Money: Story Of Humanity, A

*AS HEARD ON RADIO 4 BOOK OF THE WEEK* THE INTERNATIONAL #1 BESTSELLER SHORTLISTED FOR THE AN POST IRISH BOOK AWARDS 2024 NON-FICTION BOOK OF THE YEAR A WATERSTONES NON-FICTION BOOK OF THE YEAR 2024 AN OBSERVER BOOK OF THE YEAR 2024 AN ECONOMIST BOOK OF THE YEAR 2024 A FINANCIAL TIMES ECONOMICS BOOK OF THE YEAR 2024 A PROSPECT BOOK OF THE YEAR 2024 'A breathtaking, expansive and imaginative ride through the history and future of money from an author who truly understands it' PROFESSOR BRIAN COX 'Exceptional' FINANCIAL TIMES 'A cracking book that is as enjoyable as it is readable' PETER FRANKOPAN 'Equally entertaining and insightful' YANIS VAROUFAKIS _______________________________________________________ MONEY. The object of our desires. The engine of our genius. Humanity's greatest invention. Money is everything. It brings freedom and it takes it away. It inspires and corrupts us. But what is money? Is it the main thing holding us back from utopia or is it the one constant that's driven us to success? In his illuminating, entertaining and often surprising book, economist David McWilliams charts the relationship between humans and money - from clay tablets in Mesopotamia to coins in Ancient Greece, from mathematics in the medieval Arab world to the French Revolution, and from the emergence of the US dollar right up to today's cryptocurrency. Along the way, we meet a host of characters who have innovated with money, disrupting society and transforming the way we live. Like humanity, money is ever changing, adapting to its time and circumstances. The question is, over the last 5000 years, have we changed money or has money changed us? Money tells an astonishing new story of our species. Taking the reader on an epic journey through the history of money, McWilliams reveals its fundamental role in our society. _______________________________________________________ 'An impressive journey that fizzes with facts' ECONOMIST 'An eye-opening history of what makes the world go round' EVENING STANDARD 'David McWilliams is the best explainer of economics I know' SIMON KUPER 'Compelling, funny and original' KATJA HOYER 'If, as David McWilliams complains, economists take the fun out of money, then he is the exception that proves the rule: a man who could not write a boring sentence if he tried' TOM HOLLAND Review: 'A hugely ambitious, insightful and readable account of our relationship with money' -- Felix Martin * Financial Times * 'This is an author who knows how to hook his audience . . . There is no shortage of books about money . . . but few are as lively as this one. With McWilliams as your guide, your journey into the story of money will be so much more digestible and fun' -- Linda Yueh, BBC History Magazine 'If you still think of economics as 'the dismal science', then this firecracker of a book might change your mind' -- Christopher Hart * Mail on Sunday * 'Well researched and crammed full of anecdotes that help bring a dry subject to life. Much to enjoy - for the lay reader as well as the economist' * Guardian * 'A breathtaking, expansive and imaginative ride through the history and future of money from an author who truly understands it. If, like me, you've never quite figured out where money comes from or even what it is, this is the book for you' -- Professor Brian Cox 'If, as David McWilliams complains, economists take the fun out of money, then he is the exception that proves the rule: a man who could not write a boring sentence if he tried, and who, in this brilliantly informative and entertaining book, has done his subject splendid justice' -- Tom Holland 'A timely, fascinating account of how money has powered life on our planet from Ireland's superstar economist. Money is so often shrouded in secrecy and manipulated by forces we barely understand, so it's refreshing to read a book that traces our relationship with it with such healthy irreverence!' -- Mariella Frostrup 'Entertaining and compelling . . . raises profound questions as to how we have ordered our societies and the inequalities that we have built into the template of our civilisations . . . . a fabulous read' * Irish Times * 'Fascinating . . . a wonderful mix of the author's deep knowledge of history and economics and his understanding of human psychology, told in an engaging and personable style . . . Money: A Story of Humanity will not only give you a deeper appreciation of that banknote in your pocket or that depressingly small number in your current account, but also of how such things shaped the world around us, our lives and our communities' * Irish Independent * 'A tour de force of economic history that manages to be erudite, authoritative and engaging . . . His account is peppered with memorably colourful - and sometimes spicy - details that will grab the attention of experts and lay people alike . . . After reading this, you will never look at your bank account in the same way again' -- Gillian Tett Author Biography: David McWilliams is a global economist, writer and broadcaster whose unique ability to communicate complex societal and economic structures is unparalleled. Having worked at the Central Bank of Ireland, he became a faculty member at Trinity College, Dublin business school. He's been described as being to economics what David Attenborough is to the natural sciences and Brian Cox is to physics.