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Matt Ridley Recommended Books
Matt Ridley has recommended 23 books. Browse the complete reading list with quotes and sources below.
Matt Ridley is a British journalist and businessman.
(Read more on Wikipedia)23 Books Recommended
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The Selfish Gene
by Richard Dawkins
"Turned evolutionary biology on its head and was written like a great detective story." - Matt Ridley (Source)
Also recommended by
11 people
Charlie Munger recommended this bookCharlie Munger
"I had to read [this book] twice before I fully understood it." - Charlie Munger
Charlie Munger's recommendation of this book 
Brian Armstrong recommended this bookBrian Armstrong
"Famous book about how our bodies are vehicles to replicate our genes (even though we occasionally defy them)." - Brian Armstrong
Brian Armstrong's recommendation of this book 
Ev Williams recommended this bookEv Williams
On the "books read" section of Ev Williams' GoodReads profile.
Ev Williams's recommendation of this book 
Nick Szabo recommended this bookNick Szabo
"Explains more about life (including human behavior and myself) than anything else I’ve read. " - Nick Szabo
Nick Szabo's recommendation of this book 
Phil Libin recommended this bookPhil Libin
"Had a profound influence on me pretty early on." - Phil Libin
Phil Libin's recommendation of this book 
Mr. Money Mustache recommended this bookMr. Money Mustache
"An explanation of evolution since the beginning of life that explains things from the perspective of individual genes." - MMM
Mr. Money Mustache's recommendation of this book +5
More recommendations
- Bob Metcalfe
"It just seemed to explain everything." - Bob Metcalfe
- David Deutsch
"Influenced my books." - David Deutsch
- Tai Lopez
"Mind blowing book. [...] But warning you, it’s too true for most people to handle..." - Tai Lopez
- Elon Musk
"Most people don't realize that the origin of the word 'meme' is [this book]." - Elon Musk
- Mark Manson
Mark Manson recommended this book on his website.
- Bob Metcalfe
The Double Helix
A Personal Account of the Discovery of the Structure of DNA
by James D. Watson Ph.D.
"An astonishing literary achievement, and it was about the greatest scientific discovery of the 20th century." - Matt Ridley (Source)
Also recommended by
2 people
Peter Attia recommended this bookPeter Attia
"[One of the] biographies of people who have 'built skyscrapers' (my term)." - Peter Attia
Peter Attia's recommendation of this book 
Paul Graham recommended this bookPaul Graham
"The most impressive feature of [this book] is how much [the author] admits he didn't know. He's constantly talking about papers he couldn't understand and important concepts he didn't grasp." - Paul Graham
Paul Graham's recommendation of this book
The Fabric of Civilization
How Textiles Made the World
by Virginia Postrel
"A fascinating, surprising and beautifully written history of technology, economics, and culture, told through the thread of textiles." - Matt Ridley (Source)
Also recommended by
2 people
Marc Andreessen recommended this bookMarc Andreessen
"The story of technology is a story of human ingenuity, and nowhere is this more clear than in the story of textiles." - Marc Andreessen
Marc Andreessen's recommendation of this book 
Brianne Kimmel recommended this bookBrianne Kimmel
Brianne Kimmel recommended this book on Twitter.
Brianne Kimmel's recommendation of this book
My Family and Other Animals
Corfu, Book 1
by Gerald Durrell
Matt Ridley recommended this book in a "What Should I Read Next" interview. (Source)
Also recommended by
1 person- Paul Graham recommended this book
Paul Graham
"A wonderful book, though only implicitly about 'parenting.'" - Paul Graham
Paul Graham's recommendation of this book
The Martian
The Martian, Book 1
by Andy Weir
"I loved the fact that the hero never once implies that it’s courage, spirit and faith that saves him [...] just lots of practical tinkering and problem-solving: Science the crap out of it." - Matt Ridley (Source)
Also recommended by
6 people- Ev Williams recommended this book
Ev Williams
"What’s great about this adventure—which I find rare in pop culture—is the celebration of the mind, invention, and science." - Ev Williams
Ev Williams's recommendation of this book 
Noah Kagan recommended this bookNoah Kagan
Noah Kagan recommended this book in the "Tools of Titans" book.
Noah Kagan's recommendation of this book 
Chris Sacca recommended this bookChris Sacca
"A fantastic read. The best." - Chris Sacca
Chris Sacca's recommendation of this book 
Max Levchin recommended this bookMax Levchin
Max Levchin recommended this book on LinkedIn.
Max Levchin's recommendation of this book 
Christopher Paolini recommended this bookChristopher Paolini
"Enjoyed the book." - Christopher Paolini
Christopher Paolini's recommendation of this book 
Tom Hanks recommended this bookTom Hanks
"[The author's] masterpiece!" - Tom Hanks
Tom Hanks's recommendation of this book
Dynasty
The Rise and Fall of the House of Caesar
by Tom Holland
"It’s fascinating on how, inch by inch, Augustus and his successors surreptitiously turned a republic into an autocracy." - Matt Ridley (Source)
Rubicon
The Last Years of the Roman Republic
by Tom Holland
"Outstanding." - Matt Ridley (Source)
The Vital Question
Energy, Evolution, and the Origins of Complex Life
by Nick Lane
"A brilliant new analysis of the origin of life, by the man who has himself done more than anybody to crack the problem." - Matt Ridley (Source)
Also recommended by
3 people
Bill Gates recommended this bookBill Gates
"One of those original thinkers who makes you say: More people should know about this guy’s work." - Bill Gates
Bill Gates's recommendation of this book 
Chamath Palihapitiya recommended this bookChamath Palihapitiya
"Incredible." - Chamath Palihapitiya
Chamath Palihapitiya's recommendation of this book 
David Friedberg recommended this bookDavid Friedberg
"A really good read." - David Friedberg
David Friedberg's recommendation of this book
p53
The Gene that Cracked the Cancer Code
by Sue Armstrong
"[A fabulous chance] to eavesdrop on science in the making." - Matt Ridley (Source)
Cuckoo
Cheating by Nature
by Nick Davies
"Mixes hard science with soft nature in a satisfying way." - Matt Ridley (Source)
Into the Silence
The Great War, Mallory, and the Conquest of Everest
by Wade Davis
"The account of the 1920s Everest expeditions." - Matt Ridley (Source)
One Summer
America, 1927
by Bill Bryson
"A charming account of the events of 1927 in America." - Matt Ridley (Source)
What You Want
by Constantine Phipps
"A delightful verse novel about philosophy." - Matt Ridley (Source)
The Hockey Stick Illusion
by A W Montford
"A great piece of detective work on a key scientific blunder." - Matt Ridley (Source)
Whole Earth Discipline
Why Dense Cities, Nuclear Power, Transgenic Crops, Restored Wildlands, and Geoengineering Are Necessary
by Stewart Brand
"Describes how one of the things he did was spawn a back-to-the-land movement with people growing their own vegetables and forming communes." - Matt Ridley (Source)
Also recommended by
4 people- Marc Andreessen recommended this book
Marc Andreessen
"On why even environmentalists should be pro building, pro cities, pro nuclear, and pro genetic engineering." - Marc Andreessen
Marc Andreessen's recommendation of this book 
Steven Pinker recommended this bookSteven Pinker
"An allusion to [the author]'s groundbreaking 'Whole Earth Catalog,' which merged technology with the counterculture and encouraged global consciousness." - Steven Pinker
Steven Pinker's recommendation of this book 
Patrick Collison recommended this bookPatrick Collison
Patrick Collison labeled this book "substantially above average."
Patrick Collison's recommendation of this book 
Jack Dorsey recommended this bookJack Dorsey
"Incredible book." - Jack Dorsey
Jack Dorsey's recommendation of this book
The Bottomless Well
The Twilight of Fuel, The Virtue of Waste, and Why We Will Never Run Out of Energy
by Peter Huber
"Points out that the cheaper energy gets the more we use." - Matt Ridley (Source)
What Technology Wants
by Kevin Kelly
"Realises that there’s an inexorability about the way technology changes and that it’s almost as if technology has its own agenda." - Matt Ridley (Source)
Also recommended by
2 people
Jason Silva recommended this bookJason Silva
One of the books in a "list of favorite books" Jason Silva tweeted about.
Jason Silva's recommendation of this book 
Stewart Brand recommended this bookStewart Brand
Stewart Brand recommended this book on his "Selected Books for the Manual for Civilization" blog post.
Stewart Brand's recommendation of this book
The Skeptical Environmentalist
Measuring the Real State of the World
by Bjørn Lomborg
"Most of the environmental trends in the world are getting better not worse." - Matt Ridley (Source)
The Ultimate Resource 2
by Julian Lincoln Simon
"[The author] is really the god of this subject in many ways." - Matt Ridley (Source)
The Origin of Species
by Charles Darwin
"[Changed] science and [reached] the public." - Matt Ridley (Source)
Also recommended by
3 people
Neil deGrasse Tyson recommended this bookNeil deGrasse Tyson
"To learn of our kinship with all other life on Earth." - Neil deGrasse Tyson
Neil deGrasse Tyson's recommendation of this book - Paul Graham recommended this book
Paul Graham
Paul Graham used this book as an example that one scientist's "take" can be very convincing.
Paul Graham's recommendation of this book 
Darren Aronofsky recommended this bookDarren Aronofsky
Darren Aronofsky mentioned this book on "The Tim Ferriss Show" podcast.
Darren Aronofsky's recommendation of this book
Unravelling the Double Helix
The Lost Heroes of DNA
by Gareth Williams
"Uncovers those who almost found the secret of life." - Matt Ridley (Source)
Alchemy
The Dark Art and Curious Science of Creating Magic in Brands, Business, and Life
by Rory Sutherland
"Buy this book. I loved it. It’s full of great insights." - Matt Ridley (Source)
Also recommended by
3 people
Nassim Taleb recommended this bookNassim Taleb
"Wonderfully applicable to about everything in life. Furthermore, it is funny as hell." - Nassim Taleb
Nassim Taleb's recommendation of this book 
Changpeng Zhao recommended this bookChangpeng Zhao
"Addresses some of the counterintuitive points in life and business in a very interesting way." - Changpeng Zhao
Changpeng Zhao's recommendation of this book 
Ryan Petersen recommended this bookRyan Petersen
"[Part of] my biz book canon." - Ryan Petersen
Ryan Petersen's recommendation of this book
Freezing Order
A True Story of Money Laundering, Murder, and Surviving Vladimir Putin's Wrath
by Bill Browder
"Fascinating and frightening." - Matt Ridley (Source)
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Richard Reis
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Anurag Ramdasan
Lead investor at 3one4 Capital whose startup expertise and love for books helped shaped MRB and its growth.
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