15 Best Books To Understand Bitcoin & Blockchain, Once And For All
Bitcoin, the peer-to-peer currency of the internet is widely regarded as the future of money, alongside its underpinning technology, blockchain, has been in existence for just over a decade. However, they are still a mystery to many people.
This is mainly because the technology itself is difficult to understand while Bitcoin introduces a new way for the governance and issuance of money free from central banks or governments.
The pair has moved from being an experiment conducted on computers of nerds to a worldwide phenomenon that caught the attention of large companies such as Facebook, government agencies, businesses, and ordinary people.
The creator of Bitcoin still remains hidden from the digital face of the earth, while its history is as fascinating as its unknown future.
To get a glimpse of the past, the present, and possibly the future of this cryptocurrency and its underlying technology, here is a list of 15 must-read books on Bitcoin and Blockchain:
1. The Book of Satoshi
Paul Champagne put together a collection of Satoshi Nakamoto’s writings in an attempt to get the reader to have a feel of the birth and the rise of the digital currency known as Bitcoin. The book digs deeper into the communication channels used by Satoshi during the early days of Bitcoin and how he communicated with a handful of people.
The book rewinds time and takes you to a moment in time when Satoshi was still selling his vision to the world and allows you to feel as if you were there at the beginning too. While it does not reveal who Satoshi was, it gives a clue, based on facts, of who Satoshi, was then.
2. Mastering Bitcoin
The first edition of Mastering Bitcoin was released in 2016. Written by Andreas Antonopoulos, a Bitcoin advocate and researcher of computer security, the book gives you good technical details about the Bitcoin protocol.
Due to the high level of technical detail, the book may not be good for everyone but it is a major tool for anyone working on Bitcoin or cryptocurrency applications.
3. Bitcoin: The Future of Money
This book is a great introduction to digital currencies and how they work. In some parts of this book, the author plays detective and tries to solve the mystery of Satoshi Nakamoto, and goes through the possibilities of the leading figures that were present at the beginning of it all.
The author goes as far as speculating about who Satoshi may be based on opinions. There is a soft review on what the technology is and this could appeal to the non-tech savvy audience.
4. The Age of Cryptocurrency
This book is one of the most important books to read as it focuses on how cryptocurrencies are challenging the global economic order. The book tells the story of Bitcoin through the eyes of Afghan women earning their income through the internet. The Age of Cryptocurrency also touches on the history of crypto, the state of the nascent industry, and the players involved.
5. Bitcoin Revolution
Co-authored by Don Tapscott and Alex Tapscott, real-life father and son, this book highlights the reasons why blockchain technology has the potential to change business, money, and the world. It explores the various uses of technology in different industries. Some may even regard it as a fantasy but it is a very good book for newbies and non-tech people who want to get their wet feet on this new wave of technology.
6. The Bitcoin Standard
The creation of Bitcoin and blockchain by default has urged many thinkers and researchers to take a deeper look at the technology and try to explain it.
This book was written by an economist who wanted to go deeper about Bitcoin and present it as an alternative to central banking. And this book will likely gain more readers from Bitcoin enthusiasts who believe that the central banking system is flawed.
The book has been well received by some of the readers and has suggested that it should be included in school curriculums. “The Bitcoin Standard: The Decentralized Alternative to Central Banking” goes beyond the hyped and offers real-world applications of blockchain technology beyond blockchain.
7. The Business Blockchain
Some books were specifically written for newbies or developers, but this book was exclusively written for executives and managers interested in blockchain. The writer, William Mougayar, is a blockchain technology researcher and entrepreneur, and his target audience is not misplaced at all.
This book is recommended for anyone who wants to understand the relevance of blockchain technology in financial serves or wants to develop projects utilizing the technology. Those who are dipping into the technology for the first time must stay away.
8. Bitcoin and Cryptocurrency Technologies
This book was written for a large audience ranging from students, software developers, computer science researchers to tech entrepreneurs. It educates you on the internet of money and gives you facts about Bitcoin and the technology behind it. It was written by five intelligent people and has several interesting chapters. It’s a great read for everyone despite your knowledge level.
9. Mastering Ethereum
This book is not exactly on Bitcoin but Ethereum, a decentralized protocol that pioneered smart contracts and served as a go-to platform for projects launching their own initial coin offerings (ICOs). This book is good for system administrators, enthusiasts, and developers. It was written by Andreas Antonopoulos and Gavin Wood.
10. Early Bird Gets the Bitcoin
Written by Andrew K. Courey, this is an introductory guide on Bitcoin. As the name suggests, this is one of the books you must read when you are starting to explore the cryptocurrency world. The book further talks about blockchain technology, initial coin offerings, and Ethereum. Apart from the history of the evolution of Bitcoin, the book teaches you about wallets, mining, and gives you tips to use when investing in Bitcoin.
11. The Bitcoin Bible
It is not really a bible but a collection of several articles written by industry heavyweights such as Vitalik Buterin, a Russian-Canadian programmer who co-created Ethereum, the second most valuable blockchain in the world.
12. Bitcoin for the Befuddled
This is a book in which the authors went to great lengths to connect Bitcoin with concepts that people are used to as a way of bridging the gap between the distributed ledger technology behind Bitcoin and what people are accustomed to.
It is a very good book as a beginner guide and uses comic strips to help the reader have a better understanding of Bitcoin. The book is low on technical details when compared with other books but it goes a long way in helping beginners to get a grip on Bitcoin.
13. Digital Gold
This is an inside story about the millionaires and misfits trying to reinvent money. This is a fun read for everyone interested in learning more about the world’s most famous cryptocurrency.
14. Blockchain — A Blueprint for a New Economy
This is a book about the impact that blockchain technology will have in the future. It explores the potential use cases of blockchain technology in an easy-to-understand manner. It makes it easy for the reader to understand the differences and similarities between Bitcoin and blockchain.
15. Bitcoin Billionaires: A True Story of Genius, Betrayal, and Redemption
This is a classic Ben Mezrich’s book, one that you could be forgiven for thinking that it is a spin-off of the Accidental Billionaires, the book that chronicled the early days of Facebook and how the Winklevoss Twins claimed that Mark Zuckerberg stole their idea and Facebook right under their noses.
For those that have watched The Social Network, the twins were vilified in a tale in which nerds and geeks emerged as the winners. After suing Facebook and receiving $65 million in compensation, the pair stumbled upon the digital gold — Bitcoin — and reclaimed their identity, and became the heroes of the book.
This is a book on how the Winklevoss Twins, commonly referred to as the Winklevii, made early bets on Bitcoin and won big time. The book cover, which features a USD bill burning, is well-liked in the Bitcoin community.
Originally published on Crypterium News
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