• The Ascent of Money

  • A Financial History of the World
  • By: Niall Ferguson
  • Narrated by: Simon Prebble
  • Length: 11 hrs and 27 mins
  • 4.1 out of 5 stars (3,310 ratings)

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The Ascent of Money

By: Niall Ferguson
Narrated by: Simon Prebble
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Editorial reviews

The Ascent of Money is a fast-paced, superbly written, and richly informative excursion through tableaus, themes, scenes, and events that mark the financial history of the world. Included are substantial details on the fiscal meltdown in progress in May 2008, before the book went to press, adding a 21st century variation on the theme of financial collapses detailed in The Ascent of Money. Niall Ferguson has written an exciting panorama of finance that is also very much a book for our times. This is history as global financial drama, of advancing financial development, and the always recurring back stories of financial decline and debacle. It is a book orchestrated as much as written. The Ascent of Money demands a narrator with the range of talents necessary for bringing to voice the rich orchestration of Ferguson's prose. Enter, stage right, Simon Prebble.

With his rich, versatile, and expressive British tenor voice (and his 300+ unabridged narrations in a variety of genres), Prebble is Ascent's perfect narrator. From the first sentence of the Introduction "Bread, cash, dosh, dough, loot, lucre, moolah, readies, the wherewithal: call it what you like, money matters." to the last sentence of the Afterword "It is not the fault of the mirror if it reflects our blemishes as clearly as our beauty." Prebble delivers the authentic voice of this financial history. Applying here an altered nuance of phrasing, there the shortest of a shift of timing and slant of intonation, and everywhere present the voice's active tonal center, Prebble drives Ferguson's historical narrative forward. In a print book the reading eye catches, and the mind registers - at places only subliminally - meanings that are too subtle to be directly communicated. By his command and application of stored registries of articulation, expression, and ranges of emotion, Prebble clearly shows that he belongs with the best of narrators who can tap into and reflect and suggest the visual acuity that registers in the mind when reading and narrating. David Chasey

Publisher's summary

Niall Ferguson follows the money to tell the human story behind the evolution of finance, from its origins in ancient Mesopotamia to the latest upheavals on what he calls Planet Finance.

Bread, cash, dosh, dough, loot, lucre, moolah, readies, the wherewithal: Call it what you like, it matters. To Christians, love of it is the root of all evil. To generals, it's the sinews of war. To revolutionaries, it's the chains of labor. But in The Ascent of Money, Niall Ferguson shows that finance is in fact the foundation of human progress. What's more, he reveals financial history as the essential back story behind all history.

Through Ferguson's expert lens familiar historical landmarks appear in a new and sharper financial focus. Suddenly, the civilization of the Renaissance looks very different: a boom in the market for art and architecture made possible when Italian bankers adopted Arabic mathematics. The rise of the Dutch republic is reinterpreted as the triumph of the world's first modern bond market over insolvent Habsburg absolutism. And the origins of the French Revolution are traced back to a stock market bubble caused by a convicted Scot murderer.

©2008 Niall Ferguson (P)2008 Tantor
  • Unabridged Audiobook
  • Categories: History

What listeners say about The Ascent of Money

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

I love economics

I am a rabid fan of Planet Money and this book helps you to create a base on understanding finance and money. I have always wondered about where money comes from and how it works. I have wondered how insurance and the stock market came into being. It gives you a sense of how important a good idea is and how much power that idea can have. If I would have known how fascinating this stuff was in high school (yeah right) I probably would have been an econ major instead of engineering.

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    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Interesting History

What made the experience of listening to The Ascent of Money the most enjoyable?

I enjoy economics and the history of money gives a great insight to what is happening in the world today.

What other book might you compare The Ascent of Money to and why?

Any type of investing books, because all investments strive from money and its uses.

Which scene was your favorite?

I enjoy the first experiments with paper money.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No, enjoy listening in two hour sessions.

Any additional comments?

Would recommend the book to anyone who enjoys economics.

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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

an interesting overview

I enjoyed the audiobook, but would have preferred more focus on history and money in ancient times.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

must read for the modern human

feel like this should be taught in high school how to prepare people for the reality of living in a global Marketplace. I'll revisit this book very often

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Very inciteful

Introduces the reader to the intricacies involved in the history of money, the history of human civilization, and the interactions between money and civilization.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

bruh, this book is fire.

bruh spit'n straight fire on cash, bubbles, frontsand some straight up hussle'n. get yo grind on and make those points.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Great Book

This book has opened my eyes on the history of finances and how we arrived to today’s American markets

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    5 out of 5 stars

A whole new appreciation for history!

Follow the money. The Ascent of Money gives this a new meaning. Who would think that I would gain an appreciation for George Sorous, yet this book gave me one, and a desire to find out what he thinks. I will definitely look into some more WWI history books to attempt to validate Ferguson ‘s allegation. This book is well worth the read. I recommend it to you!

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    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Not for the light of heart

This book is packed with information and great for someone with some education in economics. Although he goes through everything thoroughly so a 'laymen' may understand, it may be a bit difficult to follow at times.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

A really insightful view into the history of money

Enjoyable and very informative. Keeps you engaged with the myriad of facts and the simple way Niall describes things.

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