Bookshelf
Books that shaped how I think about technology, leadership, life, and everything in between. Roughly organized by when I read them — some titles are exact, others are from memory.
~2019
Children of Ruin
The sequel to Children of Time ventures to a water world where humanity and its spider allies encounter an utterly alien intelligence evolved from octopuses.
Talking to Strangers
Why we're terrible at understanding people we don't know. Gladwell explores how our default to trust and transparency leads to catastrophic misjudgments.
A Velocity of Being
121 illustrated love letters to reading, from artists and writers to the children of the world. A celebration of why books matter.
The Second Mountain
After achieving worldly success comes a deeper journey toward commitment, community, and moral purpose. Brooks argues the second mountain is where real joy lives.
An Elegant Puzzle
Systems of engineering management. Larson shares frameworks for sizing teams, managing technical debt, running migrations, and navigating organizational design.
Atomic Habits
Small changes, remarkable results. A practical system for building good habits and breaking bad ones through the four laws of behavior change.
~2018
iGen
How the smartphone generation is reshaping adolescence. Data-driven research on why teens raised with phones are more anxious, less rebellious, and slower to grow up.
~2017
A Man Called Ove
A grumpy old man who's given up on life finds it upended by new neighbors who won't leave him alone. A heartwarming story about community, loss, and unexpected friendship.
Born a Crime
Growing up mixed-race in apartheid South Africa, where his very existence was illegal. Trevor Noah's memoir is funny, moving, and a testament to a mother's unconditional love.
~2016
Now: The Physics of Time
A physicist's radical new theory of time — why 'now' is special, why time flows, and what the Big Bang has to do with the direction of the arrow of time.
Extreme Ownership
Navy SEAL combat lessons applied to business leadership. The core principle: leaders must own everything in their world — no excuses, no blame.
The Effective Engineer
A practical guide to maximizing impact as a software engineer. Focus on high-leverage activities, iterate quickly, and invest in tools that multiply your output.
Children of Time
The last survivors of Earth arrive at a terraformed planet, only to find it claimed by an evolved spider civilization. A sweeping tale of evolution, intelligence, and coexistence.
~2015
Business-Do
The Rakuten founder's philosophy on business, innovation, and the power of optimism. Lessons from building Japan's largest e-commerce company.
Money: Master the Game
Seven steps to financial freedom distilled from interviews with the world's greatest investors. Robbins simplifies wealth-building into an actionable playbook.
The Broken Earth
On a planet wracked by catastrophic seismic events, a woman with the power to control earthquakes searches for her kidnapped daughter. Won the Hugo three years running.
The Alliance
A new framework for the employer-employee relationship. LinkedIn's co-founder proposes treating employment as an alliance of mutual investment rather than a family or transaction.
~2014
Three Body Problem
During China's Cultural Revolution, a secret military project sends signals into space, making first contact with an alien civilization on the brink of destruction. Hard sci-fi at its most ambitious.
~2012
Spiritual Autobiography
Exploring the inner journey through autobiographical accounts of spiritual awakening and transformation. The quest for meaning beyond the material.
How Will You Measure Your Life?
A Harvard professor applies business theories to life's most important questions — career fulfillment, relationships, and integrity. Strategy for a meaningful life.
~2011
The 4-Hour Body
An unconventional guide to rapid body transformation through self-experimentation. Ferriss shares shortcuts for fat loss, muscle gain, sleep optimization, and more.
Engineering Infinity
A collection of hard science fiction stories pushing the boundaries of engineering and physics. Stories about building the impossible at cosmic scales.
~2010
The Culture Series
A post-scarcity civilization run by benevolent AI minds navigates the moral complexities of galactic politics. Space opera that grapples with utopia's edges.
Alexander and the Gymnosophists
The legendary encounter between Alexander the Great and the naked philosophers of India. A dialogue about power, wisdom, and the limits of conquest.
Finite and Infinite Games
A philosophical exploration of two kinds of games: finite games played to win, and infinite games played to keep playing. Changes how you see competition, culture, and life.
Stories of Your Life and Others
Brilliant science fiction short stories exploring language, mathematics, free will, and what it means to know the future. The basis for the film Arrival.
The Innovator's Dilemma
Why great companies fail by doing everything right. Christensen's theory of disruptive innovation explains how new entrants topple established industry leaders.
~2009
Tuxedo Park
The story of Alfred Lee Loomis, the Wall Street tycoon who built a secret lab and helped win WWII by pioneering radar technology. Science, wealth, and wartime secrecy.
Magician
An orphan boy discovers he has magical abilities as his world faces invasion from another dimension. The beginning of the epic Riftwar saga.
Power vs. Force
A map of human consciousness from shame to enlightenment. Hawkins introduces muscle testing as a way to distinguish truth from falsehood across all domains.
The Biology of Belief
A cell biologist's argument that beliefs and perceptions control biology, not DNA. Explores how consciousness, environment, and energy influence our cells.
The Power of Now
A guide to spiritual enlightenment through present-moment awareness. Tolle argues that identification with the mind is the root of suffering.
Never Let Me Go
Three friends grow up at a mysterious English boarding school, slowly uncovering the heartbreaking truth about their existence. A quiet meditation on mortality and what it means to be human.
Watership Down
A band of rabbits journey to find a new home after their warren is threatened. An adventure story that is really about leadership, courage, and the nature of societies.
~2008
The Last Lecture
A terminally ill professor's final talk on achieving childhood dreams. Pausch's wisdom on overcoming obstacles, enabling others' dreams, and seizing every moment.
The Prince
The foundational text on political power and pragmatic leadership. Machiavelli's treatise on how rulers acquire, maintain, and wield authority.
Brave New World
A society engineered for stability through genetic conditioning, consumerism, and a pleasure drug called soma. Huxley's warning about trading freedom for comfort.
1984
A dystopian masterpiece about totalitarian surveillance, thought control, and the destruction of truth. Winston Smith's rebellion against Big Brother remains chillingly relevant.
The Fountainhead
The story of Howard Roark, an individualistic architect who refuses to compromise his artistic vision. A novel about integrity, creativity, and standing alone.
Man's Search for Meaning
A psychiatrist's account of surviving the Holocaust and finding purpose through suffering. Frankl's logotherapy argues that meaning is the primary drive in human life.