Coined
The Rich Life of Money and How Its History Has Shaped Us
-
-
4.0 • 2 Ratings
-
-
- $14.99
-
- $14.99
Publisher Description
A New York Times and Wall Street Journal Bestseller
From New York Times bestselling author Kabir Sehgal, an informative, rousing, surprising history of the one thing that makes the world go 'round: money.
The importance of money in our lives is readily apparent to everyone--rich, poor, and in between. However grudgingly, we are all aware of the power of money--how it influences our moods, compels us to take risks, and serves as the yardstick of success in societies around the world. Yet because we take the daily reality of money so completely for granted, we seldom question how and why it has come to play such a central role in our lives.
In Coined: The Rich Life of Money And How Its History Has Shaped Us, author Kabir Sehgal casts aside our workaday assumptions about money and takes the reader on a global quest to uncover a deeper understanding of the relationship between money and humankind. More than a mere history of its subject, Coined probes the conceptual origins and evolution of money by examining it through the multiple lenses of disciplines as varied as biology, psychology, anthropology, and theology. Coined is not only a profoundly informative discussion of the concept of money, but it is also an endlessly fascinating and entertaining take on the nature of humanity and the inner workings of the mind.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Investment banker Sehgal (Walk in My Shoes) undertakes a broad survey of topics connected (sometimes loosely) to money in its various functions as a medium of exchange, store of value, token of obligation, and even cultural artifact. Sehgal begins by reviewing fundamental biological exchanges such as the operation of mitochondria and the "evolution of cooperation," before turning to the psychology of financial decision making and the "anthropology of debt," the latter exemplified by elaborate Japanese conventions of gifts and social obligations. He examines competing historical views of money as "hard" or "soft" and their respective limitations and dangers, including the seductive, stimulative "alchemy" of expanding the money supply with soft money which, unlike the hard variety, is not backed by an intrinsically valuable asset. He then looks at the future of money from alternately bearish and bullish points of view. Finally, Sehgal touches on money's ethical aspects, and its artistic function in expressing national identity and aspirations. Sprinkled with light anecdotes and illustrations from the author's global travels for his banking day job, the book, Sehgal concedes, "does not advance a grand theory." Indeed, it would have been strengthened by greater integration of its disparate elements. Nevertheless, Sehgal may encourage the general reader to join him in thinking "about an ancient topic in new ways."
