Money

July 15, 2020
An economic expert chronicles the evolution of money. Goldstein, co-host of NPR's podcast Planet Money, offers a brisk, brightly told history of money, ranging from lumps of metal used in ancient Greek city-states to invisible bitcoin traded online. Money, the author argues convincingly, is "a made-up thing, a shared fiction." He continues, "a pretty good working definition of money is: it's the thing you pay taxes with. In a world where different things are competing to be money--bills of exchange, silver and gold coins, notes from private banks--the thing the government accepts for taxes is going to win." Besides tracing different forms that money has taken, Goldstein introduces a roster of quirky individuals who influenced monetary policy: among them, 17th-century Scotsman John Law, an inveterate gambler cognizant of the probability theory put forth by the "weirdo genius" Blaise Pascal and who powerfully shaped the French economy; Nicholas Biddle, president of America's first central bank (at a time when the U.S. had 8,370 different kinds of paper money), who drew Andrew Jackson's ire; Yale economist Irving Fisher, who redefined the dollar "as a fixed basket of stuff"; and Bruce Bent, inventor of the money-market fund. Goldstein deftly clarifies economic concepts, distinguishing, for example, the real economy ("the carpenter who builds your house") from finance ("the banker who lends you money to buy the house"). Finance, he explains, "matches people who are willing to give up money now for the possibility of more money later with people who need money now and are willing to pay back more money later. Finance moves money around in time." The author also explains the underpinnings of the 2008 financial crisis, the consequences of the adoption of the euro, and the possibilities of money in the future: the disappearance of cash, for one, and the end of banks. An informative primer from a genial guide.

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Starred review from September 1, 2020
What is money, really? When you pay a dollar bill for a soda, what is actually being traded? Journalist Goldstein became fascinated with money during the 2008 financial crisis when trillions of dollars in wealth disappeared. He moved from the Wall Street Journal's health care beat to the NPR podcast Planet Money and continued to study money. This book, Goldstein's first, traces the history of the concept of money. Goldstein introduces readers to the origins of monetary tokens, the invention of paper money, and the creation of the stock market, with attention to specific details and the people who played major roles. He shows how the evolution of financial systems across the globe did not move in a linear progression, but rather, more often, as a series of experiments. Money brings readers through the role of the Dutch East India Company in the creation of short-selling to the inventions of the euro and bitcoin. Goldstein's entertaining storytelling style makes complicated ideas clear and engaging. Money is a must-read for all those who've ever wondered what their paycheck actually means.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2020, American Library Association.)