Money
A Story of Humanity
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In this groundbreaking book, renowned global economist David McWilliams unlocks the mysteries and the awesome power of money: what it is, how it works, and why it matters.
The story of money is the story of our desires, our genius, and our downfalls. Money is power--and power beguiles. Nothing we've invented as a species has defined our own evolution so thoroughly and changed the direction of our planet's history so dramatically. Money has shaped the very essence of what it means to be human. We can't hope to understand ourselves without it. And yet despite money's primacy, most of us don't truly understand it. As economist David McWilliams states, money is everything. "Money defines the relationship between worker and employer, buyer and seller, merchant and producer. But not only that: it also defines the bond between the governed and the governor, the state and the citizen. Money unlocks pleasure, puts a price on desire, art and creativity. It motivates us to strive, achieve, invent and take risks. Money also brings out humanity's darker side, invoking greed, envy, hatred, violence and, of course, colonialism." Money isn't just paper or coins or virtual currency. Money is humanity.
Leading economics expert, David McWilliams answers these questions and more in Money, an epic, breathlessly entertaining journey across the world through the present and the past, from the birthplace of money in ancient Babylon to the beginning of trade along the silk road to China, from Marrakech markets to Wall Street and the dawn of cryptocurrency. By tracking its history, McWilliams uncovers our relationship with money, transforming our perspective on its impact on the world right now. McWilliams is no dusty economist; he is a communicator at the highest level, a highly telegenic and marketable expert who is as comfortable in front of a large audience talking about his favourite subject as he is appearing on podcasts, social media, and even in stand-up comedy. He's been called Ireland's most important economist and is ranked among the leading economists working today.
The story of money is the story of earth's most inventive, destructive, and dangerous animal: Homo sapiens. It is our story.
About this Author
David McWilliams strives to demystify economics and make the topic accessible to audiences worldwide. Formerly an economist for Irish Central Bank, UBS, and Banque Nationale de Paris, he is a prolific author, podcaster, journalist, documentarian, and broadcaster. He is the founder of the world's only economics and stand-up comedy festival, "Kilkenomics," which the Financial Times called "the best economics conference in the world." McWilliams has written five books, writes a weekly column for The Irish Times and contributes regularly to the Financial Times. A faculty member at Trinity Business School at Trinity College, Dublin, he's been described as being to economics what David Attenborough is to the natural sciences and Brian Cox is to physics. He lives in Dublin, Ireland.
Format: Hardcover
Pages: 416
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Published: 2024-09-17
Reviews
"Whatever the future holds, McWilliams is worth trusting on the subject."
-- MICHAEL LEWIS, internationally bestselling author of The Big Short
"The only way to enjoy money more than reading this book is to win the lottery."
-- EVAN SOLOMON, publisher at Gzero Media
"McWilliams has a great knack for bringing a complex economics story to life. He is also funny. In economics, that's a rare and persuasive combination."
-- The Irish Times
"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, Books to Live By podcast
"A gifted and often courageous polemicist."
-- Irish Independent
"David McWilliams is the best explainer of economics I know. Here he explains the world through money, and it's fantastically entertaining. He's the kind of writer who makes you feel clever, because he helps you grasp things you never understood before."
-- SIMON KUPER, author of Chums: How a Tiny Caste of Oxford Tories Took Over the UK
"Pacey chapters make for a series of entertaining--and at times irreverent--tales which relay a story of money that we all should know!"
-- LINDA YUEH, author of The Great Crashes: Lessons from Global Meltdowns and How to Prevent Them
"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
"Equally entertaining and insightful."
-- YANIS VAROUFAKIS, author of Talking to My Daughter About the Economy: or, How Capitalism Works - and How It Fails
"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, author of Rubicon
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