Reading

The definitive Buffett biography. Less about investing than about how a single person can compound judgment over decades. I re-read sections of this constantly.

Taleb at his best and most accessible. Rewired how I think about luck, skill, and the stories we tell ourselves about our own success.

If I could prescribe one book for high school students to read, it would be this one. The best explanation of what chronic stress does to the human body, written by a neuroscientist who's also a genuinely great writer.

Singularly the best overview of the non-chemical causes of depression, the low efficacy of pharmaceuticals, and experimental data on effective lifestyle interventions. Changed how I think about mental health entirely.

The insane true story of Sam Zemurray and the banana trade. Reads like fiction. If you like stories about scrappy operators who reshape industries, this is your book.

Chernow's best work (and he wrote the Hamilton biography). The scale of what Rockefeller built and the methods he used are almost incomprehensible.

Another Chernow. Grant's life is the most underrated American story -- failed businessman, alcoholic, savior of the Union, underappreciated president.

Written in 1997, reads like it was written yesterday. Predicted the erosion of nation-state power and the rise of digital sovereignty with eerie accuracy.

Where the phrase "paradigm shift" comes from. Short, dense, and will change how you think about how knowledge actually advances (hint: not gradually).

A biography structured around the questions Montaigne spent his life trying to answer. It's a book about how to think, disguised as a biography.

Once you learn to see systems, you can't unsee them. Changed how I evaluate businesses, cities, and policies.

A history of the shipping container. Sounds boring. It isn't. It's about how a single, mundane innovation reshaped the entire global economy.

The most underrated business book I've read. ALDI's operating model is a masterclass in simplicity and discipline.

James Carse's original, not the Simon Sinek rip-off. A short philosophy book that reframes how you think about competition, relationships, and what you're actually playing for.

Why top-down planning fails. Essential reading for anyone who builds things in the physical world or works with governments.

Eight CEOs who massively outperformed by thinking about capital allocation differently than everyone else. Short, data-driven, and changed how I evaluate management teams.

Herman and Chomsky's framework for how mass media shapes public opinion. Written in '88 but more relevant now than ever.

My favorite book ever. The entire trilogy. Near-future sci-fi about brain-computer interfaces that feels less fictional every year. If you read one thing from this page, read this.

This entire series is captivating but I don't recommend it for bedtime, it's too suspenseful. Reaper forever!

An extremely prescient illustration of a very believable near future. Suarez was writing about autonomous AI systems and decentralized networks before most people had heard those words.

Pure fun. The literary equivalent of comfort food for anyone who grew up on video games and '80s culture.

Richard Powers at the height of his powers. A novel about trees that is really a novel about time, interconnection, and what we owe to things that outlast us.

This is one of two books that has made me cry.

This is the other one.

I will never tire of reading about the incredible feat of science and cooperation that led to man's landing on the moon. Start with Apollo by Charles Murray if you read nothing else about it. Then go deeper with Digital Apollo, Flight (Chris Kraft's memoir), Rocket Men, and The Secret of Apollo. And watch Apollo 11 (remastered footage) -- try to watch it without crying.

Napoleon: A Life by Andrew Roberts is the definitive modern biography. Pair it with The Corsican and Napoleon: In His Own Words to hear him speak for himself.

Start with Poor Charlie's Almanac, then listen to his Psychology of Human Misjudgment lecture (Audio / PDF). If you want the investing side, pair it with The Intelligent Investor.

One of the best writers on the internet right now. Essays on education, creativity, and how to live well.

Rigorous, data-driven writing on social science and policy.

Deep essays on history, strategy, and geopolitics.

Independent journalism covering the stories mainstream outlets won't touch.

Tech, politics, and culture from a perspective you won't find elsewhere.

Lifetime body of work, especially: The Next Step, You Can Do Whatever You Want, Never Be Like Them, Comparison, and Ego Is The Enemy.

A brilliant 1985 paper by Thomas Schelling on why we make rules for ourselves and how to make them stick.

The best free business education available anywhere.

The blueprint for long-term thinking in business.

Sam Altman.