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Gold by Matthew Hart
Feb. 5th, 2014 10:14 pmThe Blurb On The Back:
From the lost empires of the Sahara to today’s frenzied global gold rush, a blazing exploration of the human love affair with gold by Matthew Hart, the award-winning author of Diamond.
In the wake of the 2008 financial crisis, the price of gold skyrocketed – in three years more than doubling from $800 an ounce to $1900. This massive spike drove an unprecedented global goldmining and exploration boom, much bigger than the Gold Rush of the 1800s.
In Gold, acclaimed author Matthew Hart takes you on an unforgettable journey around the world and through history to tell the extraordinary story of how gold became the world’s most precious commodity. Beginning with a page-turning dispatch from the inferno of the world’s deepest mine and an account of the plague of thieves that preys on the industry, Hart pulls back to survey gold’s tempestuous past. From the earliest civilizations, 6,000 years ago, when gold was an icon of sacred and kingly power, Hart tracks its evolution, through conquest, murder, and international mayhem, through the sudden emergence of China as the top producer, into the speculative casino chip that the metal has become. Hart describes each boom and bust in gold’s long story, each panic and shock, with writing described as “polished and fiery” (Publishers Weekly), weaving together history and cut-throat economics to reveal the human dramas that have driven our lust for a precious yellow metal.
( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )
The Verdict:
Matthew Hart’s book is an account of the importance that humans have always given to gold and how it rose to become the world’s most precious commodity. It takes in history (including the defeat of the Aztecs and Inca by the conquistadors), economic history (including the abandonment of the gold standard), finance (including the development of the complicated derivative products that shape the current gold market and the effect that this has on price) and politics (including how the Chinese government revived its gold mine operations to improve its economy). Although it does jump around between time periods and inevitably can’t go into great depth on all its topics, Hart writes clearly and explains complicated ideas in an easy-to-understand way and I was particularly interested in his sections on the gold standard. All in all, it’s an absorbing and fascinating read and I will check out Hart’s book on the diamond industry.
GOLD was released in the United Kingdom on 5th December 2013. Thanks to Simon & Schuster for the free copy of this book.
In the wake of the 2008 financial crisis, the price of gold skyrocketed – in three years more than doubling from $800 an ounce to $1900. This massive spike drove an unprecedented global goldmining and exploration boom, much bigger than the Gold Rush of the 1800s.
In Gold, acclaimed author Matthew Hart takes you on an unforgettable journey around the world and through history to tell the extraordinary story of how gold became the world’s most precious commodity. Beginning with a page-turning dispatch from the inferno of the world’s deepest mine and an account of the plague of thieves that preys on the industry, Hart pulls back to survey gold’s tempestuous past. From the earliest civilizations, 6,000 years ago, when gold was an icon of sacred and kingly power, Hart tracks its evolution, through conquest, murder, and international mayhem, through the sudden emergence of China as the top producer, into the speculative casino chip that the metal has become. Hart describes each boom and bust in gold’s long story, each panic and shock, with writing described as “polished and fiery” (Publishers Weekly), weaving together history and cut-throat economics to reveal the human dramas that have driven our lust for a precious yellow metal.
( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )
The Verdict:
Matthew Hart’s book is an account of the importance that humans have always given to gold and how it rose to become the world’s most precious commodity. It takes in history (including the defeat of the Aztecs and Inca by the conquistadors), economic history (including the abandonment of the gold standard), finance (including the development of the complicated derivative products that shape the current gold market and the effect that this has on price) and politics (including how the Chinese government revived its gold mine operations to improve its economy). Although it does jump around between time periods and inevitably can’t go into great depth on all its topics, Hart writes clearly and explains complicated ideas in an easy-to-understand way and I was particularly interested in his sections on the gold standard. All in all, it’s an absorbing and fascinating read and I will check out Hart’s book on the diamond industry.
GOLD was released in the United Kingdom on 5th December 2013. Thanks to Simon & Schuster for the free copy of this book.
