Recommend picking up a copy of Central Banking 101[1] for a gentle introduction; the basic mechanics of fractional reserve banking are explained in Chapter 2.

[1] https://www.amazon.com/Central-Banking-101-Joseph-Wang/dp/09...

Central Banking 101[0] is a great primer on this as well

[0]: https://www.amazon.com/Central-Banking-101-Joseph-Wang/dp/09...

The Creature from Jekyll Island : A Second Look at the Federal Reserve by G. Edward Griffin

https://www.amazon.com/Creature-Jekyll-Island-Federal-Reserv...

The history of the foundation of the banks, central banks, and Wall Street and how corruption is embedded in the foundation itself.

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Bank Robbery: The way we create money, and how it damages the world by Ivo Mosley

https://www.amazon.com/Bank-Robbery-create-money-damages/dp/...

A much shorter version of the above book with less historical context.

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Central Banking 101

https://www.amazon.com/Central-Banking-101-Joseph-Wang/dp/09...

This is not a book on financial crime but explains how banking works in detail

Big ups for Bernstein, Against The Gods was a fantastic read and I can’t wait to read Power of Gold.

Another book I’d like to throw into the mix here: Central Banking 101 [0]

Fantastic overview of how the current central banking system works, written post-Covid so it has some context for the extensive QE that’s been happening over the last 2 years. Author worked on the Fed’s trading desk for over a decade in various capacities so he has a deep experiential knowledge of the plumbing in action.

[0] https://www.amazon.com/Central-Banking-101-Joseph-Wang/dp/09...