Books Recommended by Bill Gates
Army of None
Paul Scharre
Source: "The book I had been waiting for. I can’t recommend it highly enough." - Bill Gates
Business Adventures
John Brooks
Source: "Substantially above average." - Patrick Collison
Educated
Tara Westover
Source: "An engrossing read, a fresh perspective on the power of an education, and it’s also a testament to the way grit and resilience can shape our lives." - Michelle Obama
Why We Sleep
Matthew Walker
Source: "Not only did I become convinced that getting high-quality sleep is the best protector and enhancer of health and cognition, but it is also the most underappreciated." - Bryan Johnson
Enlightenment Now
Steven Pinker
Source: "It is the most optimistic book I’ve read in a long time." - Yuval Noah Harari
How Not to Be Wrong
Jordan Ellenberg
Source: "On the surface it’s about math, but it’s really about how much math plays into our daily lives without our even knowing it." - Bill Gates
Principles
Ray Dalio
Source: "Sketched really concise and good thoughts for [how to approach life]." - Drew Houston
Moonwalking with Einstein
Joshua Foer
Source: "It has changed my life and made me embarrass myself much less when meeting someone twice." - Chelsea Handler
13 Things That Don't Make Sense
Michael Brooks
Source: List of books Bill Gates read in 2011.
Life 3.0
Max Tegmark
Source: "I recommend people read [this book]." - Lex Fridman
Factfulness
Hans Rosling
Source: Recommended on Jordan Peterson's website.
Hyperbole and a Half
Allie Brosh
Source: "You will rip through it in three hours, tops. But you’ll wish it went on longer, because it’s funny and smart as hell." - Bill Gates
Sapiens
Yuval Noah Harari
Source: "A great book about [how] we’ve evolved and why we have anxiety." - Whitney Cummings
Energy
Vaclav Smil
Source: "Explores important topics around how energy works, how our production and use might evolve, and how this affects climate change." - Mark Zuckerberg
The Headspace Guide to Meditation and Mindfulness
Andy Puddicombe
Source: "If you want to try meditation for yourself, one good way to ease into it—especially if you’re as skeptical as I was—is to pick up a copy of [this book]." - Bill Gates
Should We Eat Meat?
Vaclav Smil
Source: "I can’t think of anyone better equipped to present a clear-eyed analysis of this subject than Vaclav Smil." - Bill Gates
The Better Angels of Our Nature
Steven Pinker
Source: "One of my favorite recent books." - Jack Kornfield
The Rosie Effect
Graeme Simsion
Source: "[Melinda and I] enjoyed [this book] so much that we invited Graeme to come to Seattle to talk to us about it." - Bill Gates
Brain Rules
John Medina
Source: "Discusses how to keep your brain healthy." - James Altucher