Alexis Ohanian Recommended Books

"A provocative look at the ongoing shift in global advertising and what it means for the future of media." - Michael Bloomberg

"As Bad Blood is to biotech, Billion Dollar Whale is to international finance... a wonderful read... Thrilling." - Bill Gates

"Worth checking out if this story interests you." - Anthony Pompliano

"Amazing [book] about human nature." - Michael Mauboussin

"Amazing read." - Raoul Pal

"Details how a pudgy Malaysian 20-something was able to con the highest levels of the financial, media, and political elite into making himself a billionaire." - Saagar Enjeti

"The most mind-bending book you can imagine, because it essentially taught you always humans are flawed and influential." - Tobi Lütke

"100 percent of effective people seem to have read [this book]. In fact, it’s one of those things that when I meet somebody and they’re operating at a pretty high level, if you mention [this book], they’ve all read it." - Scott Adams

"Fundamental and had a lot to teach." - Naval Ravikant

Charlie Munger recommended this book in the "Poor Charlie's Almanack" book.

Adam Robinson mentioned this book on "The Tim Ferriss Show" podcast.

Ramit Sethi mentioned this book on "The Tim Ferriss Show" podcast.

"Explains how neglecting sleep undercuts your creativity, problem solving, decision-making, learning, memory, heart health, brain health, mental health, emotional well-being, immune system, and even your life span." - Bill Gates

"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

Keith Rabois mentioned this book on Twitter.

"Best book on the subject [of sleep]." - Vinod Khosla

"[One of] my favorite science books in 2018." - Michael Mauboussin

"Highly recommended." - Jason Fried

"Probably the single most valuable book a startup founder could read." - Paul Graham

"Interviews with technology founders from one of the best investors of all time." - Ryan Holiday

On the "books read" section of Ev Williams' GoodReads profile.

"Collection of interviews with founders of famous technology companies about what happened in the very earliest days." - Ron Conway

"Quite good and surprisingly a love letter to the Internet as it was." - Kara Swisher

"This is the book the government does not want you to read: BUY NOW." - Brianne Kimmel

"A great read." - Elon Musk

Eric Weinstein tweet about books that mattered enough to him.

"One of my favorite books about building software." - Patrick Collison

"Please read [this book]. It's such a great book." - Jeff Atwood

"Wonderful." - Tobi Lütke

"Amazing book." - Austen Allred

"A great book." - Elon Musk

"About the PC Gaming industry." - Trung Phan

"Great book [on Uber]." - Kara Swisher

"Regardless of how you view Uber, this book is a great read." - Changpeng Zhao

Ryan Hoover mentioned this book on Twitter.

"Tackles the problem of modern distraction by empowering us to break the bad habits at the root of the issue." - Balaji Srinivasan

"A super quick read filled with very actionable advice for CEOs and managers." - Ryan Hoover

"One of the best business books I’ve read in many years." - Ryan Petersen

"[Brian Armstrong] and I used parts of this at Coinbase." - Balaji Srinivasan

"I've really enjoyed it and highly recommend!" - Anthony Pompliano

Peter King recommended this book on Twitter.

"I hand out more copies of this book than any other. How to take responsibility for yourself and for those around you. Modern Stoicism, as applied in the military, business, and life." - Marc Andreessen

"My favorite Jocko book." - Casey Neistat

"I am really enjoying this book." - Tim Ferriss

"Great book by two remarkable men. You want these guys on your side." - Michael Mauboussin

Tom Bilyeu recommended this book on his website.

"Reading and applying these tactics will make you a better person." - Danny Miranda

"[Has] some good advice on how to improve your ability to make accurate predictions." - Julia Galef

"[One of the] best books I read in 2017." - Anthony Pompliano

"Most important book since Thinking, Fast & Slow." - Michael Mauboussin

"Remarkable." - Sam Hinkie

Shane Parrish recommended this book in his blog.

"It's a really good book!" - Preston Pysh

"An amazing, amazing book." - Ezra Klein

"I love reading first-hand accounts about how people build great companies like Pixar and nurture innovation and creativity." - Mark Zuckerberg

"Pixar has made some of the greatest stories of our time, but [the author]’s personal story, is perhaps the greatest story that has come out of Pixar." - Jason Calacanis

"About Pixar." - Demis Hassabis

"Best business book I've read in a long time." - Michael Mauboussin

"One of the most entertaining and useful business books I’ve ever read." - Patrick O'Shaughnessy

"It was reading [this book] that literally motivated me, inspired me, and gave me the confidence to start my own technology company." - Casey Neistat

"If you want the chance to turn your startup into the next Google or Twitter, then read this trenchant guide from someone who played key roles in the growth of these companies." - Reid Hoffman

"A great book." - Keith Rabois

"Jam-packs every useful lesson about building and scaling companies into a single, digestible book." - Aaron Levie

"Truly amazing for founders, especially once you start to scale. Wish I'd had it early days at The Muse." - Kathryn Minshew

"[The author]'s advice has been key for Coinbase as we go through hypergrowth, from hiring executives to improving M&A." - Brian Armstrong

"[The author] has no-nonsense, highly applicable advice to any operator transitioning a company from the proverbial garage to the next stage and beyond." - Max Levchin

"The negotiation stories with Steve Jobs alone make this book worth the read." - Tim Ferriss

"Leadership gold—you won’t forget the stories or the lessons." - Brené Brown

"Bob's book is great and he's an excellent CEO." - Brian Chesky

"We recently read [this book] in the 'This Week in Startups' book club." - Jason Calacanis

Karlie Kloss said this book really inspired her to become a better boss.

"A testament to the idea that in America, if you work hard and pursue a dream, you really can achieve it." - Michael Bloomberg

"Everything here is factual, but it reads like The Da Vinci Code." - Casey Neistat

"One of my favorite books of the past few years." - Andrew Wilkinson

"An incredible tale." - John Collison

"A real page-turner." - Chris Dixon

"Breathtaking book." - Ankur Warikoo

"I love stuff at the intersection of crime and computers." - Thomas Frank

On the "books read" section of Mark Zuckerberg's Facebook profile.

"It's a good day for catharsis. And [this author] reading [this book] is a damn fine place to start." - Chris Sacca

"A great story about unconditional giving, but it's also a good reminder to not be that selfish little boy." - Jen Rubio

Michael Batnick recommended this book on Twitter.

"We keep looking for these win-win solutions but sometimes we have to lose a little bit so that everybody wins. And that’s not a good message for capitalists because that’s not how we like to roll." - Tristan Harris

"While today’s rich and powerful are fighting for equality and justice, [this book] argues that it is being done in a way that will preserve their position at the top of society." - Vinod Khosla

"A good read." - Jason Calacanis

"Great book!" - Kat Cole

Charles Poliquin recommended this book in the "Tools of Titans" book.

"It kind of hit home for me [...] that when you wake up in the morning, you put your focus on this one thing of what you want to accomplish during the day, which seems like a no-brainer." - Maria Sharapova

"Big fan of this book." - Kat Cole

"Will take you through the science and practice of creativity so that you can start tapping into your own breakthroughs." - Daniel Pink

"A juicy, rollicking tour along the path toward creativity." - Seth Godin

"'How do I know if my business is getting traction, or how do I get traction for my business, or how do I get users?' [This book] answers all of these questions and more." - James Altucher

"The latest, most specific tactics from the red-hot center of the internet marketing universe. From someone who has done it. Twice." - Seth Godin

Noah Kagan recommended this book in the "Tools of Titans" book.

"I strongly suggest you read [this author] on a phenomenon called 'white fragility.'" - Courtney Milan

Jennifer Lopez recommended this book on Twitter.

"I got my hands on an early copy and the intro blew me away." - Kathryn Minshew

"[The author] makes you want to be a better person, with his humor and his heart and everything he's had to deal with from the time he was born." - Oprah Winfrey

"An absolute joy." - Rainn Wilson

Ryan Shea recommended this book on his website.

"About [the author's] own experience of being a prisoner of war in Dresden." - Jack Edwards

"[One of the] best books I read in 2017." - Anthony Pompliano

"Loved [this book]." - Austen Allred

"A refreshingly honest reminder of what the path to business success really looks like." - Bill Gates

"All entrepreneurs should read." - Bill Gurley

"Memoir by the Nike founder and CEO." - Brian Armstrong

"Great inspirational [book]." - Jason Calacanis