The Power of Gold: The History of an Obsession Book

Any business book with a testimonial on its cover from one Paul Volcker deserves at least a second glance. Not that the former chairman of the US Federal Reserve says much ("The story of gold--in all its splendour and mythology") but it's better than a poke in the eye with a sharp stick. Still, gold is a fascinating subject and one that most of us would probably agree we'd like to see a bit more of. They did in ancient times, according to Peter Bernstein. It was more plentiful then, and its use was "for adornment and decoration and not for coinage or hoarding". This is underlined by a swift retelling of Moses' descent from Mount Sinai with the newly minted Ten Commandments to find a golden calf being worshipped. Even as slaves, the chosen people had ample amounts of gold on their person. "It never occurred to them to use their gold to bribe their way out of captivity in Egypt, they would have found few takers." O tempora, o mores, one might think. From Moses in the desert to Montagu Norman at the Bank of England. From Kubla Khan to Maynard Keynes, The Power of Gold describes itself as the history of an obsession. There's more to it than that. Peter Bernstein's sequel to Against the Gods, The Remarkable Story of Risk is a highly readable potted history of modern mankind, told through the development of money and modern economics. --Brian BollenRead More