
Bill Gurley Recommended Books
Bill Gurley has recommended 44 books. Browse the complete reading list with quotes and sources below.
Bill Gurley is a general partner at Benchmark.
(Read more on Wikipedia)44 Books Recommended
As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases (at no extra cost to you).
Complexity
The Emerging Science at the Edge of Order and Chaos
"Read this book, it changes everything." - Bill Gurley (Source)
Also recommended by:
How Innovation Works
Serendipity, Energy and the Saving of Time
"I really, really loved [this book]." - Bill Gurley (Source)
Also recommended by:
The Rational Optimist
How Prosperity Evolves
"[The author] has the ability to combine thinking from many fields - most notably science, technology, psychology, & a heavy dose of microeconomics." - Bill Gurley (Source)
Also recommended by:
Naval Ravikant, Jordan Peterson, Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, Marc Andreessen, Nick Szabo, Mr. Money Mustache, John Arnold, Anthony Pompliano, Rupert Murdoch
Lean Solutions
How Companies and Customers can Create Value and Wealth Together
"A great book on that topic, applying lean manufacturing principles to services." - Bill Gurley (Source)
Sapiens
A Brief History, Book 1
"I really enjoyed [this book]." - Bill Gurley (Source)
Also recommended by:
Joe Rogan, Bill Gates, Naval Ravikant, Lex Fridman, Mark Zuckerberg, Peter Attia, Ashton Kutcher, Whitney Cummings, Richard Branson, Ray Dalio, Vinod Khosla, James Cameron, Demis Hassabis, Keith Rabois, Daniel Ek, Reid Hoffman, Sam Kass, Sebastian Junger, Kishore Biyani, Ryan Shea, Melinda Gates, Karlie Kloss, Anthony Pompliano, Changpeng Zhao, PewDiePie, Patrick O'Shaughnessy, Chris Evans, Simon Mayo, Penn Jillette, Mark Manson, James Clear
Brotopia
Breaking Up the Boys' Club of Silicon Valley
"Historically important book that will hopefully stand as a critical catalyst to change in our industry." - Bill Gurley (Source)
Also recommended by:
Arianna Huffington, Tom Peters, Aaron Levie, Melinda Gates, Michael Bloomberg
Crossing the Chasm
Marketing and Selling High-Tech Products to Mainstream Customers
"All entrepreneurs should read." - Bill Gurley (Source)
Also recommended by:
Andrew Ng, Drew Houston, Seth Godin, Aaron Levie, Ev Williams, Ron Conway, Guy Kawasaki, Changpeng Zhao, Chris Dixon
Competitive Strategy
Techniques for Analyzing Industries and Competitors
"All entrepreneurs should read." - Bill Gurley (Source)
Also recommended by:
The Innovator's Dilemma
When New Technologies Cause Great Firms to Fail
"All entrepreneurs should read." - Bill Gurley (Source)
Also recommended by:
Jeff Bezos, Steve Jobs, Mark Cuban, Marc Benioff, Ben Horowitz, Drew Houston, Aaron Levie, Ev Williams, Max Levchin, Tim O’Reilly, Caterina Fake, Guy Kawasaki, Blake Scholl, Chris Dixon, Marc Andreessen, Michael Bloomberg, Steve Blank
Startup
A Silicon Valley Adventure
"All entrepreneurs should read." - Bill Gurley (Source)
Security Analysis
Bill Gurley recommended this book on Quora. (Source)
Also recommended by:
Valuation
Measuring and Managing the Value of Companies
Bill Gurley recommended this book on Quora. (Source)
Also recommended by:
The Success Equation
Untangling Skill and Luck in Business, Sports, and Investing
Bill Gurley recommended this book on Quora. (Source)
Also recommended by:
Think Twice
Harnessing the Power of Counterintuition
Bill Gurley recommended this book on Quora. (Source)
Also recommended by:
More Than You Know
Finding Financial Wisdom in Unconventional Places
Bill Gurley recommended this book on Quora. (Source)
Expectations Investing
Reading Stock Prices for Better Returns
Bill Gurley recommended this book on Quora. (Source)
Berkshire Hathaway Letters to Shareholders
Bill Gurley recommended this book on Quora. (Source)
The Most Important Thing
Uncommon Sense for the Thoughtful Investor
Bill Gurley recommended this book on Quora. (Source)
Also recommended by:
Warren Buffett, Peter Attia, Patrick O'Shaughnessy, Lyn Alden
Mastering the Market Cycle
Getting the Odds on Your Side
Bill Gurley recommended this book on Quora. (Source)
Also recommended by:
The Most Important Thing Illuminated
Uncommon Sense for the Thoughtful Investor
Bill Gurley recommended this book on Quora. (Source)
Also recommended by:
Catastrophic Care
How American Health Care Killed My Father--and How We Can Fix It
"Enlightening." - Bill Gurley (Source)
Built to Last
Successful Habits of Visionary Companies
"[Suggests] that the very best companies set an audacious, very long-term goal that shines a light towards 'an envisioned future.'" - Bill Gurley (Source)
Also recommended by:
The Wealth of Nations
"[The author]'s magnum opus." - Bill Gurley (Source)
Also recommended by:
Elon Musk, Naval Ravikant, Neil deGrasse Tyson, Nick Szabo, Noam Chomsky, Brandon Stanton, Patrick Bet-David
Ready Player One
"Spectacular." - Bill Gurley (Source)
Also recommended by:
Steve Jurvetson, Brian Armstrong, Astro Teller, Austen Allred, Jenn Im, George R. R. Martin, Mark Zuckerberg
Bad Blood
Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup
"An incredible book that should be read by each and every player in the startup/Silicon Valley ecosystem." - Bill Gurley (Source)
Also recommended by:
Negotiating the Impossible
How to Break Deadlocks and Resolve Ugly Conflicts (without Money or Muscle)
"If you want to be a world class big deal negotiator, make sure you pick up [this book]." - Bill Gurley (Source)
Also recommended by:
The Storytelling Animal
How Stories Make Us Human
"Nice compliment to Sapiens." - Bill Gurley (Source)
Also recommended by:
The Sixth Man
A Memoir
"If you love basketball, the @warriors, intense tenacity, or understanding how a great team executes as one, you will love [this book]." - Bill Gurley (Source)
Also recommended by:
The Billionaire Shell Game
How Cable Baron John Malone and Assorted Corporate Titans Invented a Future Nobody Wanted
"Great book." - Bill Gurley (Source)
Monetizing Innovation
How Smart Companies Design the Product Around the Price
"[This author] is to monetization strategy what Bob Marley is to reggae music. You must read this book." - Bill Gurley (Source)
Also recommended by:
The Principles of Political Economy and Taxation
"Expanded upon [Adam Smith]'s work in developing the theory of Comparative Advantage." - Bill Gurley (Source)
A Random Walk Down Wall Street
The Time-Tested Strategy for Successful Investing
"Offers the most pragmatic advice for the long-term saver." - Bill Gurley (Source)
Also recommended by:
Why We Get Fat
And What to Do About It
"A toned down, more reader friendly, less technical version of [the author's] 2008 New York Times best seller." - Bill Gurley (Source)
Also recommended by:
Seeker
Seeker, Book 1
"If you like epic, futuristic teen fantasy, check [this book] out!" - Bill Gurley (Source)
Virus of the Mind
The New Science of the Meme
"Tim Cook is practicing 'meme warfare'. Microsoft used to be awesome at this. [This is a] great book on topic." - Bill Gurley (Source)
Shoe Dog
A Memoir by the Creator of Nike
"All entrepreneurs should read." - Bill Gurley (Source)
Setting the Table
The Transforming Power of Hospitality in Business
"I'm a huge fan of [this author]." - Bill Gurley (Source)
Also recommended by:
Noah Kagan, Chip Conley, Julie Rice, Fred Wilson, Patrick O'Shaughnessy, Trung Phan
Sharkproof
Get the Job You Want, Keep the Job You Love... in Today's Frenzied Job Market
"Had a whole section on your dream job and how to think about it over the long term." - Bill Gurley (Source)
The Soul of A New Machine
"A really old book, but it's a famous book." - Bill Gurley (Source)
Also recommended by:
eBoys
The First Inside Account of Venture Capitalists at Work
"[The author] got sucked into writing more of a Hollywood gossip story." - Bill Gurley (Source)
Mr. China
A Memoir
"Great book [about] a British gentleman who went to China in '96 with a $400M PE fund to privatize businesses [and] returned $0." - Bill Gurley (Source)
Play Their Hearts Out
A Coach, His Star Recruit, and the Youth Basketball Machine
"About AAU basketball." - Bill Gurley (Source)
Build
An Unorthodox Guide to Making Things Worth Making
"Benefit from [the author]'s amazing journey and the advice he received from iconic mentors like Steve Jobs and Bill Campbell." - Bill Gurley (Source)
Also recommended by:
One Up On Wall Street
How To Use What You Already Know To Make Money In
"Any investor starts with just building bedrock and that comes from reading. [For example,] you can read [this book]." - Bill Gurley (Source)
Also recommended by:
Other Recommenders
Edited by
Software engineer whose passion for tracking book recommendations from podcasts inspired the creation of MRB.
Lead investor at 3one4 Capital whose startup expertise and love for books helped shaped MRB and its growth.






















.jpg)





















Comments
Did we miss something? Have feedback?
Help us improve this page by sharing your thoughts