Occasionally I learn of a new book that I put on my library list and fortune smiles and I find myself in front of the queue. This was the case with Zeke Faux’s Number Go Up: Inside Crypto’s Wild Rise and Staggering Fall.
Less frequently, I spot a title on the library’s new acquisition shelf that catches my eye and grab it. A library impulse read one might say. This was the situation with Cory Doctorow’s Red Team Blues.
Additionally fortunate was that I had able to get them both on the same trip and more so that they both were on the same topic: cryptocurrency.
I’ve always felt that money is a belief system. A story we’ve all agreed to participate in, often without thought. We believe that the paper in our wallets and the numbers in our accounts are real. It’s a shared illusion. Your numbers may be higher than mine so the story says that you’re wealthier. During our working life, we trade our labor for payment and today, the payments are deposited directly into our accounts shown by the addition of new numbers and the change of the total amount. Money is about faith in our mutual story.
Cryptocurrency is a new story. However, unlike our financial system, it has no rules or regulations governing how it works and can be used. Zeke Faux’s Number Go Up: Inside Crypto’s Wild Rise and Staggering Fall takes us through this new story. It’s a story of magical thinking mixed with greed, grift, and schemes that would make Ponzi proud.
Faux is a financial reporter for Bloomberg and has experience in reporting on schemes and Ne’er-do-wells. Like me, he’s naturally suspicious of crypto and begins his investigation with Tether, a stable coin, that’s tied directly to the dollar one for one. His journey takes us through the world of various cryptocurrencies, the blockchain, mining, initial coin offerings and a cast of true believers and grifters. Faux works hard to keep everything understandable to a non-technical reader. Although I’m still not sure I understand mining other than its impact on the environment. It’s an engaging story, often frightening and sometimes funny. I found it impossible to put down. Highly recommended.
I had read Cory Doctorow’s nonfiction work, Information Doesn’t Want to be Free, almost a decade ago. Doctorow clearly explained the complex situation of intellectual property and copyright in the internet age and, most importantly, the need for change. Red Team Blues was my first fiction book of his. I’m glad to discover it.
The protagonist is a sixty-seven year old, forensic accountant, Martin Hench, who’s asked by an old friend to recover the key to the back door to a cryptocurrency. The trail leads to dead bodies, unsavory characters, the feds, and generally much more trouble than Marty wanted. The story is fast paced and great fun to read. My only regret is that I thought the whole conundrum was resolved much easier than I expected. However Doctorow has created a great character and I look forward to reading more of Marty’s adventures in forthcoming books.
