Niall Ferguson follows the money to tell the human story behind the evolution of finance, from its origins in ancient Mesopotamia to the latest upheavals. To Christians, love of it is the root of all evil. To generals, it's the sinews of war. To revolutionaries, it's the chains of labor. But historian Ferguson shows that finance is in fact the foundation of human progress. What's more, he reveals financial history as the essential backstory behind...

The Nobel Prize–winning economist explains how value is created, and how that affects everything from your paycheck to global markets. One of the leading figures of the Chicago school of economics that rejected the theories of John Maynard Keynes offers a journey through history to illustrate the importance of understanding monetary economics, and how monetary theory can ignite or deepen inflation. With anecdotes revealing the far-reaching consequences...

An account of the central importance of money in the ordinary business of the life of different people throughout the ages from ancient times to the present day. It includes the Barings crisis and the report by the Bank of England on Barings Bank, information on the state of Japanese banking, and the changes in the financial scene in the US.

A graphic nonfiction volume that introduces different kinds of money and how they function in society.

From bartering, early forms of currency, credit cards, and digital payment, here is a clear and thorough introduction to money.

Laos enjoys his life in ancient Turkey. His father and grandfather are famous for crafting gold into beautiful objects, and Laos helps in their market stall, bartering golf for food and livestock. But exchanging such different goods is complicated. They need something to represent the value of their goods -- and so the king gives Laos's family the very important task of creating the world's first currency.

The noted economist-diplomat traces the evolution of money and the institutions and techniques for its management and mismanagement from Lydian coinage to current inflation.

From ancient currency to Adam Smith, from the gold standard to shadow banking and the Great Recession: a sweeping historical epic that traces the development and evolution of one of humankind's greatest inventions.

"In most accounts of the origins of money we are offered pleasant tales in which it arises to the mutual benefit of all parties as a result of barter. In this groundbreaking study David McNally reveals the true story of money's origins and development as one of violence and human bondage. Money's emergence and its transformation are shown to be intimately connected to the buying and selling of slaves and the waging of war. Blood and Money demonstrates...

"Charles Wheelan's wonderfully whimsical, best-selling Naked series tackles the weird, surprisingly colorful world of money and banking. Consider the $20 bill. It has no more value, as a simple slip of paper, than Monopoly money. Yet even children recognize that tearing one into small pieces is an act of inconceivable stupidity. What makes a $20 bill actually worth twenty dollars? In the third volume of his best-selling Naked series, Charles Wheelan...