David McWilliams - The History of Money (2009), "HHow money has made the world. Religion, technology, power, and
the rise and fall of entire empires are tied up with economics and commerce in McWilliams’ excellent whistle-stop tour of the
way money has shaped world history. Covering centuries of innovations—from an ancient baboon femur called the Ishango Bone,
possibly used for accounting, to digital-age solutions like M-Pesa, a service in Africa that turns mobile-phone credit into
money—it’s a blast of a book. A former Central Bank of Ireland economist who says his peers in the field “take the fun out of
money,” McWilliams is a clever and irreverent guide with a knack for turning economic concepts into easy conversation. “For
economists, price is only a number,” he writes; “for real people, price is a feeling.” He takes shots at the way the elite
turn up their noses at discussing money matters. “No one pretends to dislike money more than the truly posh,” he says. “Beneath
the snobbery is fear,” he adds, “fear of usurpation” thanks to money’s “ability to propel social advancement.” McWilliams is
skeptical of crypto, calling it “more or less an elaborate scam” that has preyed on anemic public trust in institutions."
kirkusreviews.com and
Kobo Books
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David McWilliams - The History of Money (2009), "HHow money has made the world. Religion, technology, power, and
the rise and fall of entire empires are tied up with economics and commerce in McWilliams’ excellent whistle-stop tour of the
way money has shaped world history. Covering centuries of innovations—from an ancient baboon femur called the Ishango Bone,
possibly used for accounting, to digital-age solutions like M-Pesa, a service in Africa that turns mobile-phone credit into
money—it’s a blast of a book. A former Central Bank of Ireland economist who says his peers in the field “take the fun out of
money,” McWilliams is a clever and irreverent guide with a knack for turning economic concepts into easy conversation. “For
economists, price is only a number,” he writes; “for real people, price is a feeling.” He takes shots at the way the elite
turn up their noses at discussing money matters. “No one pretends to dislike money more than the truly posh,” he says. “Beneath
the snobbery is fear,” he adds, “fear of usurpation” thanks to money’s “ability to propel social advancement.” McWilliams is
skeptical of crypto, calling it “more or less an elaborate scam” that has preyed on anemic public trust in institutions."
kirkusreviews.com and
Kobo Books
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