Money - By Jacob Goldstein

My brother gave me this book as a gift. I've read it three times because it's so good. It gives a full and entertaining accounting of the story of money. It's weird to learn the history of money in the United States. It's one of those things you think has been the way it is today ever since it was introduced. The fact is that couldn't be further from the case for money.

It provides tons of interesting background and an especially enlightening story about the Euro, which is the best explanation I've ever heard about why countries need their own currency to control their economic destiny.

The story in question has to do with the fact that the Euro is the currency of several different nations in Europe. At one particular point in the book, they discuss a story about Greece and Germany. Both countries' currency was the Euro, but they had wildly different circumstances. Germany was on much more solid financial footing than Greece. However, when a decision was made to raise taxes and cut spending for Euro-aligned countries, Greece was hit hard because they needed to do the exact opposite to rebuild their tax base.

If you've ever wanted to know the backstory of money, this is the book to check out. Highly entertaining and enthralling read.