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History of Money: Financial History: From Barter to Bitcoin - An Overview of Our Economic History, Monetary System & Currency Crisis
Why is a printed piece of paper worth anything? How can a coin be worth more or even less than the number stamped on it? Why is digital money real money? How can money be worth more or less than it was yesterday?
Since the emergence of debit and credit cards, many of us pay little mind to our finances and hardly think of money anymore. But currency, whether by cash or debit, is the driving force of our lives. We use it to feed ourselves and our loved ones, buy or rent a place to live, buy clothing and other necessities, and pay for transportation from one location to the other.
We trust the system, even though we don
Since the emergence of debit and credit cards, many of us pay little mind to our finances and hardly think of money anymore. But currency, whether by cash or debit, is the driving force of our lives. We use it to feed ourselves and our loved ones, buy or rent a place to live, buy clothing and other necessities, and pay for transportation from one location to the other.
We trust the system, even though we don
- GenresFinanceNonfictionHistory
88 pages, Paperback
Published December 11, 2016
81 people are currently reading
63 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
July 20, 2017
Review: HISTORY OF MONEY by Mike Thornton
Presented in an engaging, down-to-earth style, this compact manual delineates the history of money creation and use from the earliest attempts at barter right through to modern (and potential future) "cryptocurrencies" such as "Bitcoin." Along the way author Mike Thornton encourages readers to delve deeper in understanding finance and economy, as a way to improve one's own financial standing and stability. HISTORY OF MONEY is a quick and also useful read.
Presented in an engaging, down-to-earth style, this compact manual delineates the history of money creation and use from the earliest attempts at barter right through to modern (and potential future) "cryptocurrencies" such as "Bitcoin." Along the way author Mike Thornton encourages readers to delve deeper in understanding finance and economy, as a way to improve one's own financial standing and stability. HISTORY OF MONEY is a quick and also useful read.
August 16, 2016
This was much more interesting than I had expected.
Frankly, I'm not much of a history fan and I'm not overly interested in the development of our monetary system, so the reason why I picked it up in the first place was rather because I wanted to read a dry book. Yes, sometimes I just want to read something boring.
But this was the exact opposite of boring. It was truly informative and easy to understand but not too monotonous. I also think that you get a great overview and it's still a very short book, so it's definitely feasible to finish it in one sitting.
I recommend this to everyone who wants to inform himself or herself about the history of money without making too much effort or time.
Frankly, I'm not much of a history fan and I'm not overly interested in the development of our monetary system, so the reason why I picked it up in the first place was rather because I wanted to read a dry book. Yes, sometimes I just want to read something boring.
But this was the exact opposite of boring. It was truly informative and easy to understand but not too monotonous. I also think that you get a great overview and it's still a very short book, so it's definitely feasible to finish it in one sitting.
I recommend this to everyone who wants to inform himself or herself about the history of money without making too much effort or time.
August 25, 2018
This book is quiet interesting. It talks about how money came to be which is something I never thought about untill now. It starts with bartering which does still go on yo this day. It goes into what the first currency was and also talks about how banks came to be. Its filled with many interesting facts and some will surely surprise you as they did me. This book I reccomend. After reading you'll always think about how money came to be when you see it or spend it. It does have a bit of lag but not too much. Thats the only reason I gave it 4 instead of 5 stars.
August 23, 2018
Fascinating book.Money! It’s indeed interesting to learn history of money.The writing is good and material interesting,contains many interesting and entertaining facts.
Laura Baron.
Laura Baron.
February 3, 2026
Short, poorly edited, and disjoint. I bought it because I had a simple question to answer (when was the first money put into use, and what was it) and the book was cheap.
It answered the question, but I got what I paid for. If I really want to know about it, I should spring for the book by Niall Ferguson.
It answered the question, but I got what I paid for. If I really want to know about it, I should spring for the book by Niall Ferguson.
September 5, 2017
The Past, Present and future of Money.
This is an interesting book that explains the origins or currency and takes you on a historical journey of how money and currency came about and where it's heading. Had me intrigued the whole time.
This is an interesting book that explains the origins or currency and takes you on a historical journey of how money and currency came about and where it's heading. Had me intrigued the whole time.
May 31, 2017
Starting point
Easy quick read . BASIC covered.
Trivia facts at end were fun and useful.
A good starting point. Good overview.
Easy quick read . BASIC covered.
Trivia facts at end were fun and useful.
A good starting point. Good overview.
December 6, 2018
I think it’s well written, very interesting book about money.great insights and explanations.good content.
December 16, 2018
Average. Would have liked to know where all of the references come from so I could read the primary sources for my own book. Isn't as interesting of a read they try to make it sound.
March 8, 2023
Fantastic read for any level!
July 14, 2019
A Geat Book On The History of Money.
Really great book. A must read if you wanted to understand the history of money and the future or digital currencies like Bitcoin, etc.
Really great book. A must read if you wanted to understand the history of money and the future or digital currencies like Bitcoin, etc.
November 21, 2021
An interesting crash course on the history of money. Light reading for improving your general knowledge.
There's no Notes accompanying the text, so there's no way of verifying whatever was mentioned - whether it is a fact, point raised by another author, or an opinion of the author himself.
There was a significant amount of typo and some strange sentence structures (maybe it's due to my poor command of the language), that I had to re-read the statements (in context) to understand it.
It's ok if I treat this like a casual conversation with the author.
There's no Notes accompanying the text, so there's no way of verifying whatever was mentioned - whether it is a fact, point raised by another author, or an opinion of the author himself.
There was a significant amount of typo and some strange sentence structures (maybe it's due to my poor command of the language), that I had to re-read the statements (in context) to understand it.
It's ok if I treat this like a casual conversation with the author.
February 15, 2020
I enjoyed reading this book. A good start for the journey of studying about money.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews