An explosive novel of high finance and underworld villainy from Ken Follett, the grand master of international action and suspense. Crime, high finances, and journalism are interconnected in this early thriller by the author of On Wings of Eagles and Lie Down With Lions. In one suspenseful, action-packed day, fortunes change hands as an ambitious young reporter scrambles to crack the story. A suicidal junior minister, an avaricious tycoon, and a seasoned criminal with his team of tough guys all play their parts in a scheme that moves "paper money" around at a dizzying pace.
"Immerse yourself in the romance and beauty of nearly 150 years of American currency. It all comes alive in A GUIDE BOOK OF UNITED STATES PAPER MONEY, fifth edition. An engaging history book and a comprehensive catalog of valuations rolled into one, this guide covers all federal series issued from the Civil War to the present day. Paper-money collectors will appreciate the depth of the research, and American history buffs will find the narrative fascinating. Whether you're new to the hobby or a longtime collector or dealer, you will benefit from the data provided for each currency series. Market valuations are compiled from recent sale and auction records, real-world analysis of the paper-money field, and the knowledge of recognized hobby leaders. Hundreds of notes are pictured in crisp, full-color detail, face and back--dramatically illustrating the nation's history and its ideals." -- page 4 of cover.
The updated sixth edition of A Guide Book of United States Paper Money includes an engaging history of the paper currency of the United States. Every federal note"€"from the ultra rare Demand Notes of 1861 to the lunch money in our wallets today"€"is described and cataloged in detail. Fascinating narrative captures the romance and history of American paper money, and also explores recent developments in the hobby and market, including the newest $100 bill and proposed redesigns of our currency with the portraits of famous American women. The book combines the hobby-standard Friedberg numbering system with retail values and hundreds of high-resolution, full-color photos. With updated and revised content, the sixth edition joins the critically acclaimed first through fifth editions, which have solidly established this book's reputation as a popular and best-selling hobby reference. Features include: More than 20,000 market values; quantities printed; all federal series, plus Fractional Cur
The colorful history of paper money before the Civil War Before Civil War greenbacks and a national bank network established a uniform federal currency in the United States, the proliferation of loosely regulated banks saturated the early American republic with upwards of 10,000 unique and legal bank notes. This number does not even include the plethora of counterfeit bills and the countless shinplasters of questionable legality issued by unregulated merchants, firms, and municipalities. Adding to the chaos was the idiosyncratic method for negotiating their value, an often manipulative face-to-face discussion consciously separated from any haggling over the price of the work, goods, or services for sale. In Bank Notes and Shinplasters, Joshua R. Greenberg shows how ordinary Americans accumulated and wielded the financial knowledge required to navigate interpersonal bank note transactions. Locating evidence of Americans grappling with their money in fiction, correspondence, newspapers, printed ephemera, government documents, legal cases, and even on the money itself, Greenberg argues Americans, by necessity, developed the ability to analyze the value of paper financial instruments, assess the strength of banking institutions, and even track legislative changes that might alter the rules of currency circulation. In his examination of the doodles, calculations, political screeds, and commercial stamps that ended up on bank bills, he connects the material culture of cash to financial, political, and intellectual history. The book demonstrates that the shift from state-regulated banks and private shinplaster producers to federally authorized paper money in the Civil War era led to the erasure of the skill, knowledge, and lived experience with banking that informed debates over economic policy. The end result, Greenberg writes, has been a diminished public understanding of how currency and the financial sector operate in our contemporary era, from the 2008 recession to the rise of Bitcoin.
The co-host of the popular NPR podcast Planet Money provides a well-researched, entertaining, somewhat irreverent look at how money is a made-up thing that has evolved over time to suit humanity's changing needs. Money only works because we all agree to believe in it. In Money, Jacob Goldstein shows how money is a useful fiction that has shaped societies for thousands of years, from the rise of coins in ancient Greece to the first stock market in Amsterdam to the emergence of shadow banking in the 21st century. At the heart of the story are the fringe thinkers and world leaders who reimagined money. Kublai Khan, the Mongol emperor, created paper money backed by nothing, centuries before it appeared in the west. John Law, a professional gambler and convicted murderer, brought modern money to France (and destroyed the country's economy). The cypherpunks, a group of radical libertarian computer programmers, paved the way for bitcoin. One thing they all realized: what counts as money (and what doesn't) is the result of choices we make, and those choices have a profound effect on who gets more stuff and who gets less, who gets to take risks when times are good, and who gets screwed when things go bad. Lively, accessible, and full of interesting details (like the 43-pound copper coins that 17th-century Swedes carried strapped to their backs), Money is the story of the choices that gave us money as we know it today.
This reference, designed for the specialist and dealer, offers the most complete data to be found anywhere for small-size currency, organized and listed by specific series, including accurate population figures for each. The book also contains detailed tutorial information to guide the collector. • Largest size images allowed by law • Latest U.S. banknotes with new security devices and colors described • Completely analyzed and updated pricing • Most up-to-date census for all U.S. small-size currency • Comprehensive glossary of terms and more detailed information than you will find anywhere else
