The Creature from Jekyll Island: A Second Look at the Federal Reserve
$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Amazon reviewer', 'A')side from the John Birch-style rants about world socialism mentioned by other reviewers and the Libertarian bent to the solution advocated by the author, it is a well-researched history of the issue, certainly much more readable than Stephen Zarlenga's The Lost Science of Money. Without the sidetrips into his own political positions the author would have a more compelling book. These things may or may not be true (he does cite references for all of it) but the story would be easier to take in without them. The information presented on the main topic is important, and G. Edward Griffin has done a fine job compiling it. The research put into the volume was obviously substantial, and like many readers it has caused me to do further research into the topic of monetary reform.
A more modern version of the story with much less ideological baggage can be found in
Ellen Hodgson Brown's The Web of Debt, which is more recent (2007), is less scholastic in presentation style, and is mercifully more concise and an easier read. It presents a more compelling case with much of the same information but boiled down to eliminate some of the spurious details but is still a gripping read. WEB OF DEBT: The Shocking Truth About Our Money System -- The Sleight of Hand That Has Trapped Us in Debt and How We Can Break Free
A good overview of the history of money and its current issues can be found in Bernard Lietaer's The Future of Money (or El Futuro Del Dinero, if you don't want to spend $250+ on the English version).
For a good proposal on monetary reform building on a more realistic and populist basis, see
Michael Rowbotham's The Grip of Death.
For those of you not inclined to plow through a book the size of Griffins', watch "The Money Masters" on Google video.
"Creature" is the one most people seem to read.