As author Lionel S. Sobel states, most U.S. citizens want their taxes to be "as low as possible." But, he explains, entertainers, athletes, and artists are not “most people,” and their often significant earnings and the available tax planning strategies may require special understanding and handling. These consideration may be especially important in how aggressive any tax planning methods are used that could be perceived negatively by their fans, the general population, and the media. Adding further complication, the law makes tax-significant distinctions that greatly affect entertainers, athletes, and artists, including issues such as residency, the Alternative Minimum Tax, and various international tax treaties.

In Taxation of Entertainers, Athletes, and Artists, Lionel Sobel discusses the many complex issues affecting the income taxation of these professionals. In the first part, the book deals exclusively with U.S. domestic taxation policies and procedures, covering how the United States taxes income earned in the United States by entertainers, athletes and artists who are U.S. citizens and resident aliens.

The book's second part focuses on international taxation. These chapters address how entertainers, athletes, and artists are taxed in the United States, when income earned in the U.S. when they are non-resident aliens; and outside the U.S., in other countries tax when income earned in those countries when they are U.S. citizens and U.S.-resident aliens. Finally, the book discusses how the U.S. has provided some tax relief for those of its citizens and resident aliens who pay tax in other countries.