At long last there is a collector's guide that provides a comprehensive overview of the complex, but fascinating world of Chinese cash coins. Covering more than 3,000 years of numismatic history, this long-awaited volume lists, illustrates and values in multiple condition grades a variety of monetary forms issued in Imperial China. Author David Jen is one of the leading experts in Chinese currency and is well respected in both the United States and Asia. His new work is by far the most complete volume available on the topic, offering history and production details for thousands of issues. In addition, the book includes many newly discovered varieties not listed in any other reference source.

In this sequel to Year of the Dog, Pacy has another big year in store for her. The Year of the Dog was a very lucky year: she met her best friend Melody and discovered her true talents. However, the Year of the Rat brings big changes: Pacy must deal with Melody moving to California, find the courage to forge on with her dream of becoming a writer and illustrator, and learn to face some of her own flaws. Pacy encounters prejudice, struggles with acceptance, and must find the beauty in change. Based on the author's childhood adventures, Year of the Rat, features the whimsical black and white illustrations and the hilarious and touching anecdotes that helped Year of the Dog earn rave reviews and satisfied readers.

The definitive English-language guide to the general issue ten cash and one fen coins of the Republic of China issued 1912 to 1948. Covers 162 varieties, as compared to the 49 varieties in the Standard Catalog of World Coins and the 125 varieties in A.M. Tracey Woodward's guide. Do you have the five varieties of Y-301? The eight varieties of Y-302? The five varieties of Y-303? The sixteen varieties of Y-306.2? The nine varieties of Y-307? Are you confused by the descriptions in the Standard Catalog and Woodward's guide? The detailed text and photographs in this guide, which meticulously describes all of the general issue ten cash and one fen varieties, will end your uncertainty.

Chinese Money in Global Context: Historic Junctures Between 600 BCE and 2012 offers a groundbreaking interpretation of the Chinese monetary system, charting its evolution by examining key moments in history and placing them in international perspective. Expertly navigating primary sources in multiple languages and across three millennia, Niv Horesh explores the trajectory of Chinese currency from the birth of coinage to the current global financial crisis. His narrative highlights the way that Chinese money developed in relation to the currencies of other countries, paying special attention to the origins of paper money; the relationship between the West's ascendancy and its mineral riches; the linkages between pre-modern finance and political economy; and looking ahead to the possible globalization of the RMB, the currency of the People's Republic of China. This analysis casts new light on the legacy of China's financial system both retrospectively and at present—when China's global influence looms large.

Did you know that millions of normal middle and lower-class Chinese are far wealthier than previously thought, hiding between 6 to 10 trillion dollars of shadow cash? Or that this astounding fact is rarely discussed by mainstream media gleefully driving the narrative that China's economy may be headed for a big slowdown? If not then China: The Big Lie? is right up your alley. In part one of China: The Big Lie? author Mario Cavolo provides a thoroughly researched, on-the ground look at the relationship between this secret wealth and the rest of Chinese society. He uses insightful analysis into topics as varied as the real estate market, online retail and the traditional Chinese family to capture the strength of China's economy. In part two Cavolo uses articles previously published for a U.S. investment website to offer further insight and commentary on his macro-bullish view of both the Chinese and global economy.

The co-host of the popular NPR podcast Planet Money provides a well-researched, entertaining, somewhat irreverent look at how money is a made-up thing that has evolved over time to suit humanity's changing needs. Money only works because we all agree to believe in it. In Money, Jacob Goldstein shows how money is a useful fiction that has shaped societies for thousands of years, from the rise of coins in ancient Greece to the first stock market in Amsterdam to the emergence of shadow banking in the 21st century. At the heart of the story are the fringe thinkers and world leaders who reimagined money. Kublai Khan, the Mongol emperor, created paper money backed by nothing, centuries before it appeared in the west. John Law, a professional gambler and convicted murderer, brought modern money to France (and destroyed the country's economy). The cypherpunks, a group of radical libertarian computer programmers, paved the way for bitcoin. One thing they all realized: what counts as money (and what doesn't) is the result of choices we make, and those choices have a profound effect on who gets more stuff and who gets less, who gets to take risks when times are good, and who gets screwed when things go bad. Lively, accessible, and full of interesting details (like the 43-pound copper coins that 17th-century Swedes carried strapped to their backs), Money is the story of the choices that gave us money as we know it today.