Read That? Read This!

2025 is the year of the bitcoin books as I’ve read 2 books about them this year and the year isn’t even over yet. One bitcoin book has recently been released, the other one comes out in October that I was very lucky to read an early copy of! Get ready to add these books to your wish list nonfiction readers, especially fans of bitcoin and investigative journalism.

The Mysterious Mr. Nakamoto by Benjamin Wallace  

The Mysterious Mr. Nakamoto by Benjamin Wallace is part unsolved mystery and part investigative journalism as Ben tries to find the identity of the elusive creator of Bitcoin, Satoshi Nakamoto.  I like that right away it is explained what bitcoin is as I didn’t really understand what bitcoin was at the time, only that it seemed that many people who go into the bitcoin gig ends up going to prison. The writing is excellent, and I’m kept interested in the nonlinear timeline as we go from the past to the present.  There are many suspects to consider, and I have an open mind. Satoshi Nakamoto could be one man; he could be Japanese or Satoshi could be many people. Australian Craig Wright I think is a big candidate. If Craig is an imposter, then it’s the biggest imposter scam since Anna Anderson claimed to be the long lost Grand duchess Anastasia Romanov. The Mysterious Mr. Nakamoto came out on March 18^th and is available to read now. Here is the Q&A I did with Benjamin https://booknotions.com/qa-with-benjamin-wallace/

Read The Mysterious Mr. Nakamoto? Read The Devil Takes Bitcoin by Jake Adelstein

The Devil Takes Bitcoin by Jake Adelstein follows Jake and his fellow investigator Natalie Stucky as they try to clear the name of their friend Mark Kepeles after he was accused of stealing half a billion dollars in bitcoin in the biggest heist of all time. Jake’s writing flows well and is easy to follow. Jake explains what bitcoin is as well as helping Mark clear his name. The book also covers Silk Road and its creator Ross Ulbricht & it briefly touches on many of the suspects Benjamin Wallace discusses in The Mysterious Mr. Nakamoto.  The book is a fast paced, quick read that has kept my interest. I also enjoyed the fact that the real culprit in the Bitcoin heist was caught & we found out a bit about him. What makes The Devil In Bitcoin slightly different from The Mysterious Mr. Nakamoto is the fact that it’s part true story about clearing an innocent man’s name and exposing the real culprit, part bitcoin origin story & history. If you don’t have an early copy, I would suggest preordering it so you can get it in October.