The History of Money

Books that explore the history of finance, particularly lending practices and other behavior that can lead to economic calamity.

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1	Debt: The First 5,000 Years by David Graeber 4.21 avg rating — 25,980 ratings score: 1,186, and 12 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
2	An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith 3.88 avg rating — 34,514 ratings score: 569, and 6 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
3	The Ascent of Money: A Financial History of the World by Niall Ferguson 3.90 avg rating — 30,300 ratings score: 494, and 5 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
4	Capital: A Critique of Political Economy Volume 1 by Karl Marx 4.29 avg rating — 14,202 ratings score: 481, and 5 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
5	Too Big to Fail: The Inside Story of How Wall Street and Washington Fought to Save the Financial System from Crisis — and Themselves by Andrew Ross Sorkin 4.16 avg rating — 42,029 ratings score: 388, and 4 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
5	Civilization and Capitalism 15th-18th Century, Vol. 1: The Structures of Everyday Life by Fernand Braudel 4.36 avg rating — 1,722 ratings score: 388, and 4 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
7	Das Kapital by Karl Marx 3.89 avg rating — 11,446 ratings score: 378, and 4 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
8	General Theory of Employment, Interest, and Money by John Maynard Keynes 3.85 avg rating — 5,698 ratings score: 297, and 3 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
9	The Smartest Guys in the Room: The Amazing Rise and Scandalous Fall of Enron by Bethany McLean 4.22 avg rating — 27,315 ratings score: 284, and 3 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
10	Venture: A Collection of True Microfinance Stories by Julia Kurnia (Goodreads Author) 4.27 avg rating — 11 ratings score: 200, and 2 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
10	An Austrian Perspective on the History of Economic Thought (2 Volumes) by Murray N. Rothbard 4.39 avg rating — 341 ratings score: 200, and 2 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
12	Lords of Finance: The Bankers Who Broke the World by Liaquat Ahamed 4.03 avg rating — 16,263 ratings score: 198, and 2 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
12	What Has Government Done to Our Money? and The Case for a 100 Percent Gold Dollar by Murray N. Rothbard 4.27 avg rating — 2,867 ratings score: 198, and 2 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
14	Civilization and Capitalism 15th-18th Century, Vol. 3: The Perspective of the World by Fernand Braudel 4.43 avg rating — 478 ratings score: 194, and 2 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
14	Talking to My Daughter About the Economy: or, How Capitalism Works—and How It Fails by Yanis Varoufakis 4.13 avg rating — 20,257 ratings score: 194, and 2 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
16	This Time Is Different: Eight Centuries of Financial Folly by Carmen M. Reinhart 3.76 avg rating — 7,371 ratings score: 190, and 2 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
16	The World Is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-first Century by Thomas L. Friedman 3.69 avg rating — 102,386 ratings score: 190, and 2 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
18	On Liberty by John Stuart Mill 3.96 avg rating — 42,190 ratings score: 189, and 2 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
18	The Origin of Capitalism: A Longer View by Ellen Meiksins Wood 4.17 avg rating — 2,672 ratings score: 189, and 2 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
20	Barbarians at the Gate: The Fall of RJR Nabisco by Bryan Burrough 4.28 avg rating — 42,812 ratings score: 184, and 2 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
21	The Social Contract, a Discourse on the Origin of Inequality, and a Discourse on Political Economy by Jean-Jacques Rousseau 3.83 avg rating — 420 ratings score: 180, and 2 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
22	On Colonialism by Karl Marx 3.95 avg rating — 63 ratings score: 175, and 2 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
23	When Money Dies: The Nightmare of the Weimar Hyper-inflation by Adam Fergusson 3.78 avg rating — 1,977 ratings score: 174, and 2 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
24	Colonialism and Neocolonialism by Jean-Paul Sartre 3.81 avg rating — 239 ratings score: 173, and 2 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
25	Titan: The Life of John D. Rockefeller, Sr. by Ron Chernow 4.15 avg rating — 36,179 ratings score: 171, and 2 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
26	The Tycoons: How Andrew Carnegie, John D. Rockefeller, Jay Gould and J.P. Morgan Invented the American Supereconomy by Charles R. Morris 3.73 avg rating — 2,181 ratings score: 169, and 2 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
27	The Medieval Market Economy by John Day 4.33 avg rating — 6 ratings score: 161, and 2 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
28	The Cambridge Economic History of Modern Europe (2 Volume Set) by Stephen Broadberry (Editor) 3.40 avg rating — 10 ratings score: 157, and 2 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
29	Autobiography / Poor Richard / Later Writings by Benjamin Franklin 4.16 avg rating — 128 ratings score: 100, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
29	The Worst Poverty: A History of Debt and Debtors by Hugh Barty-King 3.50 avg rating — 2 ratings score: 100, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
29	No One Can Escape the 4 Laws: Negotiate or Die by Eloy Rodrigo Colombo (Goodreads Author) 3.88 avg rating — 16 ratings score: 100, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
29	Friendly Fascism: The New Face of Power in America by Bertram M. Gross 3.96 avg rating — 227 ratings score: 100, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
29	American Kleptocracy: How the U.S. Created the World's Greatest Money Laundering Scheme in History by Casey Michel (Goodreads Author) 4.13 avg rating — 705 ratings score: 100, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
34	..and Forgive Them Their Debts: Lending, Foreclosure and Redemption from Bronze Age Finance to the Jubilee Year by Michael Hudson 4.32 avg rating — 180 ratings score: 99, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
34	Double Entry: How the Merchants of Venice Shaped the Modern World by Jane Gleeson-White 3.56 avg rating — 910 ratings score: 99, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
36	Boomerang: Travels in the New Third World by Michael Lewis 3.90 avg rating — 47,123 ratings score: 98, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
36	The Necessity of Finance: An Overview of the Science of Management of Wealth for an Individual, a Group, or an Organization by Anthony M. Criniti IV (Goodreads Author) 3.97 avg rating — 119 ratings score: 98, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
36	The Great Deformation: The Corruption of Capitalism in America by David A. Stockman 3.89 avg rating — 718 ratings score: 98, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
39	Borrow: The American Way of Debt by Louis Hyman 3.87 avg rating — 204 ratings score: 97, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
39	The Wealth and Poverty of Nations: Why Some Are So Rich and Some So Poor by David S. Landes 3.96 avg rating — 3,866 ratings score: 97, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
39	The Most Important Lessons in Economics and Finance: A Comprehensive Collection of Time-Tested Principles of Wealth Management by Anthony M. Criniti IV (Goodreads Author) 3.97 avg rating — 113 ratings score: 97, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
39	Religion and the Rise of Capitalism by R.H. Tawney 3.79 avg rating — 312 ratings score: 97, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
39	Debt and Economic Renewal in the Ancient Near East: The International Scholars Conference on Ancient Near Eastern Economics, no. 3 by Michael Hudson 4.33 avg rating — 3 ratings score: 97, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
39	Money Mischief: Episodes in Monetary History by Milton Friedman 3.93 avg rating — 800 ratings score: 97, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
45	The Mystery of Capital: Why Capitalism Triumphs in the West and Fails Everywhere Else by Hernando de Soto 3.99 avg rating — 4,358 ratings score: 96, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
45	The Modern World-System I: Capitalist Agriculture and the Origins of the European World-Economy in the Sixteenth Century by Immanuel Wallerstein 4.19 avg rating — 451 ratings score: 96, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
47	Popes and Bankers: A Cultural History of Credit and Debt, from Aristotle to AIG by Jack Cashill 3.23 avg rating — 75 ratings score: 95, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
47	Rise to Globalism: American Foreign Policy since 1938 by Stephen E. Ambrose 3.91 avg rating — 2,288 ratings score: 95, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
47	Historical Capitalism with Capitalist Civilization by Immanuel Wallerstein 3.91 avg rating — 773 ratings score: 95, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
50	The Lexus and the Olive Tree by Thomas L. Friedman 3.61 avg rating — 8,527 ratings score: 94, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
51	Currency Wars: The Making of the Next Global Crisis by James Rickards 3.96 avg rating — 5,002 ratings score: 93, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
51	Geld und Magie: Deutung und Kritik der modernen Wirtschaft anhand von Goethes Faust by Hans Christoph Binswanger 4.27 avg rating — 30 ratings score: 93, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
53	Money Makes the World Go Around: One Investor Tracks Her Cash Through the Global Economy, from Brooklyn to Bangkok and Back by Barbara Garson 3.53 avg rating — 34 ratings score: 92, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
54	Globalization and its Discontents by Joseph E. Stiglitz 3.87 avg rating — 8,132 ratings score: 91, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
54	The World Is Curved: Hidden Dangers to the Global Economy by David M. Smick 3.48 avg rating — 332 ratings score: 91, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
56	A Beautiful Math: John Nash, Game Theory, and the Modern Quest for a Code of Nature by Tom Siegfried 3.59 avg rating — 385 ratings score: 90, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
57	Banker to the Poor: Micro-Lending and the Battle Against World Poverty by Muhammad Yunus 4.12 avg rating — 10,353 ratings score: 89, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
58	Too Good to Be True: The Rise and Fall of Bernie Madoff by Erin Arvedlund (Goodreads Author) 3.46 avg rating — 667 ratings score: 85, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
59	Ponzi's Scheme: The True Story of a Financial Legend by Mitchell Zuckoff (Goodreads Author) 3.93 avg rating — 1,201 ratings score: 84, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
60	Principles of Political Economy: And Chapters on Socialism by John Stuart Mill 3.81 avg rating — 232 ratings score: 82, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
61	Writings by Alexander Hamilton 4.28 avg rating — 194 ratings score: 80, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
62	The Condition of the Working Class in England by Friedrich Engels 4.03 avg rating — 3,624 ratings score: 78, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
63	Discourse on Colonialism by Aimé Césaire 4.44 avg rating — 7,557 ratings score: 75, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
64	One Click: Jeff Bezos and the Rise of Amazon.com by Richard L. Brandt 3.74 avg rating — 8,006 ratings score: 73, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
65	The House of Rothschild, Vol 1: Money's Prophets, 1798-1848 by Niall Ferguson 3.88 avg rating — 1,719 ratings score: 70, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
66	The House of Rothschild, Vol 2: The World's Banker 1849-1999 by Niall Ferguson 3.95 avg rating — 663 ratings score: 69, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
67	The King, the Crook, and the Gambler: The True Story of the South Sea Bubble and the Greatest Financial Scandal in History by Malcolm Balen 3.89 avg rating — 110 ratings score: 68, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
68	The House of Medici: Its Rise and Fall by Christopher Hibbert 3.87 avg rating — 8,454 ratings score: 67, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
69	Medici Money: Banking, Metaphysics, and Art in Fifteenth-Century Florence by Tim Parks (Goodreads Author) 3.61 avg rating — 1,385 ratings score: 66, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
70	Die Fugger: Geschichte einer Augsburger Familie, 1367-1650 by Mark Häberlein 4.23 avg rating — 22 ratings score: 65, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
71	Fugger und der Duft des Goldes: Die Entstehung des Kapitalismus by Harald Parigger 4.07 avg rating — 15 ratings score: 64, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
72	The Hansa by Elizabeth Gee Nash 3.75 avg rating — 12 ratings score: 63, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
73	Basic Economics: A Citizen's Guide to the Economy by Thomas Sowell 4.37 avg rating — 13,937 ratings score: 61, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars