Here are some of the top crypto books on bitcoin, cryptocurrency and blockchain. This list includes books that cover a wide verity of topics including the technical aspects of how blockchain and cryptocurrencies work, the societal impact of bitcoin and cryptocurrency, and how to invest in bitcoin and cryptocurrencies.
Crypto Books Directory
The Bitcoin Standard: The Decentralized Alternative to Central Banking
Considered by some “The Bitcoin Bible”, it is one of the most popular books on the economics of Bitcoin out there.
From the description: When a pseudonymous programmer introduced “a new electronic cash system that’s fully peer-to-peer, with no trusted third party” to a small online mailing list in 2008, very few paid attention. Ten years later, and against all odds, this upstart autonomous decentralized software offers an unstoppable and globally-accessible hard money alternative to modern central banks. The Bitcoin Standard analyzes the historical context to the rise of Bitcoin, the economic properties that have allowed it to grow quickly, and its likely economic, political, and social implications.
Mastering Bitcoin: Programming the Open Blockchain
Created more for the technically minded, this book teaches you about the underlying technology of blockchain that makes Bitcoin work.
From the description: Join the technological revolution that’s taking the world of finance by storm. Mastering Bitcoin is your guide through the seemingly complex world of bitcoin, providing the knowledge you need to participate in the internet of money. Whether you’re building the next killer app, investing in a startup, or simply curious about the technology, this revised and expanded second edition provides essential detail to get you started.Bitcoin, the first successful decentralized digital currency, is still in its early stages and yet it’s already spawned a multi-billion dollar global economy. This economy is open to anyone with the knowledge and passion to participate.
Ethereum: Blockchains, Digital Assets, Smart Contracts, Decentralized Autonomous Organizations
A non-technical guide to understanding Ethereum and the Ethereum blockchain.
From the description:
As IBM´s official liaison to the Ethereum core developers I gave talks on blockchain topics pretty much around the world. After one keynote I was asked for a non-technical guide to understand blockchains. This is it.
The book aims to help you get your head around blockchains in general and around Ethereum specifically. Since Ethereum is currently the pre-imminent blockchain, it makes sense as reference point. The essential stuff is the same for any blockchain.
This text was written for people with a fast grasp, who are not programmers. Reading this should give you the basics to cut through the hype and to identify blockchain opportunities in your professional domain. There are tiny bits of code, which can be admired and skipped.
Originally a series of talks given on cryptocurrency, this book attempts to explain the “why” behind Bitcoin and crypto instead of the “how”.
From the description: While many books explain the how of bitcoin, The Internet of Money delves into the why of bitcoin. Acclaimed information-security expert and author of Mastering Bitcoin, Andreas M. Antonopoulos examines and contextualizes the significance of bitcoin through a series of essays spanning the exhilarating maturation of this technology.
Cryptoassets: The Innovative Investor’s Guide to Bitcoin and Beyond
A down to earth guide on investing in cryptocurrency.
From the description: The innovative investor’s guide to an entirely new asset class—from two experts on the cutting edge
With the rise of bitcoin and blockchain technology, investors can capitalize on the greatest investment opportunity since the Internet. Bitcoin was the first cryptoasset, but today there are over 800 and counting, including ether, ripple, litecoin, monero, and more. This clear, concise, and accessible guide from two industry insiders shows you how to navigate this brave new blockchain world’and how to invest in these emerging assets to secure your financial future.
The Age of Cryptocurrency: How Bitcoin and the Blockchain Are Challenging the Global Economic Order
Two reporters attempt to dive into how the future digital economy will work and what it will look like.
From the description: In The Age of Cryptocurrency, Wall Street journalists Paul Vigna and Michael J. Casey deliver the definitive answer to this question. Cybermoney is poised to launch a revolution, one that could reinvent traditional financial and social structures while bringing the world’s billions of “unbanked” individuals into a new global economy. Cryptocurrency holds the promise of a financial system without a middleman, one owned by the people who use it and one safeguarded from the devastation of a 2008-type crash.
But bitcoin, the most famous of the cybermonies, carries a reputation for instability, wild fluctuation, and illicit business; some fear it has the power to eliminate jobs and to upend the concept of a nation-state. It implies, above all, monumental and wide-reaching change―for better and for worse. But it is here to stay, and you ignore it at your peril.
Vigna and Casey demystify cryptocurrency―its origins, its function, and what you need to know to navigate a cyber-economy. The digital currency world will look very different from the paper currency world; The Age of Cryptocurrency will teach you how to be ready.
What are we missing? Please comment below with your favorites. If they are good, we’ll add them to the list.
