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Greenback: The Almighty Dollar and the Invention of America
From the author of Lords of the Horizons, the
fascinating story of a new kind of money for a
new world
Money has always been at the heart of the American experience. Paper money, invented in Boston in 1698, was a classic of American ingenuity-and American disregard for authority and tradition. With the wry and admiring eye of a modern Tocqueville, Jason Goodwin has written a biography of the dollar, giving us the story of its astonishing career through the wilds of American history.
Greenback looks at the dollar over the years as a form of art, a kind of advertising, a reflection of American attitudes, and a builder of empires. Goodwin shows us how the dollar rolled out the frontier and peopled the Plains; how it erected the great cities; how it expressed the urges of democracy and opportunity. And, above all, Goodwin introduces us to the people who championed-or ambushed-the dollar over the years: presidents, artists, pioneers, and frontiersmen; bankers, shady and upright; safecrackers, crooks, and dreamers of every stripe. It's a vast and colorful cast of characters, who all agreed on one thing: getting the money right was the key to unlocking liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
Greenback delves into folklore and the development of printing, investigates wildcats and counterfeiters, explains why a buck is a buck and how Dixie got its name. Like Goodwin's Lords of the Horizons , another story of empire, Greenback brings together an array of quirky detail and surprising-often hilarious-anecdote to tell the story of America through its best-beloved product.
fascinating story of a new kind of money for a
new world
Money has always been at the heart of the American experience. Paper money, invented in Boston in 1698, was a classic of American ingenuity-and American disregard for authority and tradition. With the wry and admiring eye of a modern Tocqueville, Jason Goodwin has written a biography of the dollar, giving us the story of its astonishing career through the wilds of American history.
Greenback looks at the dollar over the years as a form of art, a kind of advertising, a reflection of American attitudes, and a builder of empires. Goodwin shows us how the dollar rolled out the frontier and peopled the Plains; how it erected the great cities; how it expressed the urges of democracy and opportunity. And, above all, Goodwin introduces us to the people who championed-or ambushed-the dollar over the years: presidents, artists, pioneers, and frontiersmen; bankers, shady and upright; safecrackers, crooks, and dreamers of every stripe. It's a vast and colorful cast of characters, who all agreed on one thing: getting the money right was the key to unlocking liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
Greenback delves into folklore and the development of printing, investigates wildcats and counterfeiters, explains why a buck is a buck and how Dixie got its name. Like Goodwin's Lords of the Horizons , another story of empire, Greenback brings together an array of quirky detail and surprising-often hilarious-anecdote to tell the story of America through its best-beloved product.
336 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2003
15 people are currently reading
168 people want to read
About the author
Jason Goodwin
48Ìýbooks410ÌýfollowersJason Goodwin's latest book is YASHIM COOKS ISTANBUL: Culinary Adventures in the Ottoman Kitchen.
He studied Byzantine history at Cambridge University - and returned to an old obsession to write The Gunpowder Gardens or, A Time For Tea: Travels in China and India in Search of Tea, which was shortlisted for the Thomas Cook Award. When the Berlin Wall fell, he walked from Poland to Istanbul to encounter the new European neighbours. His account of the journey, On Foot to the Golden Horn, won the John Llewellyn Rhys/Mail on Sunday Prize in 1993.
Fascinated by what he had learned of Istanbul's perpetual influence in the region, he wrote Lords of the Horizons: A History of the Ottoman Empire, a New York Times Notable Book. 'If you want to learn,' he says, 'write a book.' Lords of the Horizons was described by Time Out as 'perhaps the most readable history ever written on anything.'
Having always wanted to write fiction, he became popular as the author of the mystery series beginning with The Janissary Tree, which won the coveted Edgar Award for Best Novel in 2007. Translated into more than 40 languages, the series continues with The Snake Stone, The Bellini Card, An Evil Eye and The Baklava Club. They feature a Turkish detective, Yashim, who lives in 19th century Istanbul.
YASHIM COOKS ISTANBUL is an illustrated collection of recipes, inspired by the cookery in his five published adventures.
He studied Byzantine history at Cambridge University - and returned to an old obsession to write The Gunpowder Gardens or, A Time For Tea: Travels in China and India in Search of Tea, which was shortlisted for the Thomas Cook Award. When the Berlin Wall fell, he walked from Poland to Istanbul to encounter the new European neighbours. His account of the journey, On Foot to the Golden Horn, won the John Llewellyn Rhys/Mail on Sunday Prize in 1993.
Fascinated by what he had learned of Istanbul's perpetual influence in the region, he wrote Lords of the Horizons: A History of the Ottoman Empire, a New York Times Notable Book. 'If you want to learn,' he says, 'write a book.' Lords of the Horizons was described by Time Out as 'perhaps the most readable history ever written on anything.'
Having always wanted to write fiction, he became popular as the author of the mystery series beginning with The Janissary Tree, which won the coveted Edgar Award for Best Novel in 2007. Translated into more than 40 languages, the series continues with The Snake Stone, The Bellini Card, An Evil Eye and The Baklava Club. They feature a Turkish detective, Yashim, who lives in 19th century Istanbul.
YASHIM COOKS ISTANBUL is an illustrated collection of recipes, inspired by the cookery in his five published adventures.
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
January 8, 2014
It's not often that you get the chance to revisit a book you've written, and amend it. When I came to re-read Greenback, I saw more clearly where it lagged, and where it needed tightening, or corrections: and I've incorporated those changes in this Kindle edition. It's the pre-history of the dollar, before the Fed was set up in 1913, and it's something of a wild and surprising ride. It's also, I have to say, quite funny.
August 13, 2016
Imagine a time when there was no reliable paper cash in the U.S. That was so throughout most of the 1800s. Paper dollars and cents issued by private banks and states were of poor quality, so much so that few examples survive. Moreover, which issuing bank or state could you trust to back up your paper with gold or silver? If you were in Indiana, how would you know how to trust a $10 note issued by a bank in Pennsylvania? Or one issued by the State of Connecticut? Increased speed of transportation (railroads) forced the U.S. Government to establish a unified specie and the trustworthy paper bills that we know today. Also I wonder if Frank Baum, author of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, really had in mind the gold-silver currency imbroglio of the 1890s when he wrote that fantasy tale. Did he truly intend to relate political figures of the day to story characters? Democrat William Jennings Bryan as Cowardly Lion? Republican political guru Mark Hanna the Wizard? And today, Donald Trump as the Wizard? -- a speculation that's not in the book.
June 21, 2009
This is a history of the dollar. It's divided into different topics, so it's similar to other "topical" books, like Salt and Cod.
Some of the topics are difficult to understand for history students, such as the history of the Bank of the United States and Hamilton's financial plans. Unfortunately, Goodwin's prose doesn't make it any clearer. Other sections are better, such as Jefferson's attempt to push our nation to adopt a decimal currency and the indifferent reception he (and it) received.
Some of the topics are difficult to understand for history students, such as the history of the Bank of the United States and Hamilton's financial plans. Unfortunately, Goodwin's prose doesn't make it any clearer. Other sections are better, such as Jefferson's attempt to push our nation to adopt a decimal currency and the indifferent reception he (and it) received.
January 5, 2008
This was a lot of fun; it's the history of paper money, wrapped up with the history of the dollar, the concept of money itself, the gold & silver standards, and incidentally the country as a whole. It's remarkable in a way since it takes what we understand as a rock-solid institution, the dollar, and turns it into the real chimera it actually is. I enjoyed the read a lot, it's good light history mixed in with just enough economics to make it real.
October 14, 2008
I found this book extremely interesting. It covers the origins of money, talks about how the word "dollar" came about. The most interesting things for me were: 1) early opposition to the idea of a bank, and 2) all the different dollars that were printed and in circulation before we finally arrived at the dollar we know today. I guess I always thought that once the Constitution was ratified, only the US Mint was printing and issuing money. Terrific book about a not-often-discussed subject.
June 7, 2010
A fact filled book with tons of history on both the rise of the United States and America’s greatest invention “The Dollar.� The book was, at times, difficult to follow (I think better editing could have helped this) but overall a nice history book worth the read. A few more illustrations would have enhanced the book nicely.
March 26, 2019
This book was an interesting look at the history of the American dollar, the men who influenced its character, and the movements that have been influenced by it. There were also some nice characterizations of the people who found its use and/or its disuse.
October 28, 2015
Incisive, illuminating, informative and witty history of the world's most well-known and powerful currency...
February 22, 2017
A great history of the US dollar. This is a short but good reference book.
October 9, 2020
It's rare to find a such a well researched book that is also fun to read. Greenback is as much a history of the early United States and its formation as it is a history of our currency - and the penny truly drops when one sees they are one and the same. Lofty ideals of liberty are all well and good, but once again we follow the money for the true basis of all things uniquely American: the dollar.
Greenback exceeded my expectations as a history buff both in thoroughness and impactful, relevant information. Told in a clear, engaging style, there is no stuffy economics lesson here. I very much recommend everyone read this book to better understand how America was conceived of the basis of capital rather than class, and why it remains today so different in this philosophy from its (primarily) European roots.
Greenback exceeded my expectations as a history buff both in thoroughness and impactful, relevant information. Told in a clear, engaging style, there is no stuffy economics lesson here. I very much recommend everyone read this book to better understand how America was conceived of the basis of capital rather than class, and why it remains today so different in this philosophy from its (primarily) European roots.
November 8, 2024
Got this book for free. It could be better, ngl, or my translated version was not ideal
November 24, 2013
I've had this book on my shelf for probably 5 years, and I finally got around to reading it. My original thought was, oh, the history of the dollar, that has to be interesting and full of little rich and hilarious vignettes and stories, right? Well, it probably is, but you don't really get that form Goodwin's book.
First, the history of the dollar written by a Brit should've given me pause. He does recount the history, but his verbiage and prose are unbelievably academic, making the reading slowly going and less than engaging.
I'll give him credit where credit is due; reading about the coal fires in the Treasury building, the long fight between Alexander Hamilton and Perkins over the establishment of a national (as opposed to state-by state) currency, and the utter confusion over state bank currencies that led to lots of counterfeiting, was definitely worth reading. I also enjoyed reading about the history of the Dixie during the Civil War, and the foils of shavers, counterfeiters, and "deaf-mute hustlers from Boston called Josh Tatum" who used money to their own advantage, but I just felt like there was in fact so much more that he wasn't telling me.
Anyway, I guess I'm glad I read it, though I doubt any book has been better at putting me to sleep, not even Con Law! How bout a history of money in general, from quetzales to kina??
First, the history of the dollar written by a Brit should've given me pause. He does recount the history, but his verbiage and prose are unbelievably academic, making the reading slowly going and less than engaging.
I'll give him credit where credit is due; reading about the coal fires in the Treasury building, the long fight between Alexander Hamilton and Perkins over the establishment of a national (as opposed to state-by state) currency, and the utter confusion over state bank currencies that led to lots of counterfeiting, was definitely worth reading. I also enjoyed reading about the history of the Dixie during the Civil War, and the foils of shavers, counterfeiters, and "deaf-mute hustlers from Boston called Josh Tatum" who used money to their own advantage, but I just felt like there was in fact so much more that he wasn't telling me.
Anyway, I guess I'm glad I read it, though I doubt any book has been better at putting me to sleep, not even Con Law! How bout a history of money in general, from quetzales to kina??
March 10, 2007
An entertaining and informative history of the American dollar and its influence on world currencies and markets. I never realized how important the idea of paper money backed by the integrity of a government is in the world economy.
October 17, 2010
Good history of the U.S. dollar.
June 20, 2013
To me this seemed a very high level overview of the history of money. While it was basically informative, I was looking for more information and a deeper history.
November 29, 2007
interesting.. fun take on a traditional genre.
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
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