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  • Naked Money

  • A Revealing Look at What It Is and Why It Matters
  • Written by: Charles Wheelan
  • Narrated by: Jonathan Davis
  • Length: 13 hrs and 11 mins
  • 4.7 out of 5 stars (10 ratings)

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Naked Money

Written by: Charles Wheelan
Narrated by: Jonathan Davis
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Publisher's Summary

Consider the $20 bill. It has no more value, as a simple slip of paper, than Monopoly money. Yet even children recognize that tearing one into small pieces is an act of inconceivable stupidity. What makes a $20 bill actually worth $20?

In the third volume of his best-selling Naked series, Charles Wheelan uses this seemingly simple question to open the door to the surprisingly colorful world of money and banking. The search for an answer triggers countless other questions along the way: Why does paper money (fiat currency, if you want to be fancy) even exist? And why do some nations, like Zimbabwe in the 1990s, print so much of it that it becomes more valuable as toilet paper than as currency? How do central banks use the power of money creation to stop financial crises? Why does most of Europe share a common currency, and why has that arrangement caused so much trouble? And will payment apps, bitcoin, or other new technologies render all of this moot?

In Naked Money, Wheelan tackles all of the above and more, showing us how our banking and monetary systems should work in ideal situations and revealing the havoc and suffering caused in real situations by inflation, deflation, illiquidity, and other monetary effects. Throughout, Wheelan's uniquely bright-eyed, whimsical style brings levity and clarity to a subject often devoid of both. With illuminating stories from Argentina, Zimbabwe, North Korea, America, China, and elsewhere around the globe, Wheelan demystifies the curious world behind the paper in our wallets and the digits in our bank accounts.

©2016 Charles Wheelan (P)2016 Audible, Inc.

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  • 2021-02-10

Great Book, Terrible Narrator

The book was great. But, I'd recommend just getting the hard copy. The narrator irritated me so much, I considered turning off the book many times. His tonality and volume changes too much. He narrates this book like it's a fiction story, which it isn't. He tries to be too dramatic by shifting his tonality to the extremes. Sometimes, he drops his voice so low, I can hardly hear what he's saying and I have to repeat that section 2 or 3 times. It was very frustrating and I would not recommend this audiobook due to this narration issue. The contents of the book was great to understand the complex financial system. I recommend the hard copy book.

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