Reading for Better
Recommended by6 books

Bill Gates

Co-founder of Microsoft

Bill Gates publishes his reading recommendations every year on Gates Notes, and his taste runs to big-picture history and rigorous social science , books that change how you see whole systems, not just your morning routine. These are the titles from the index he has championed.

6
Books picked
2,782
Total pages
~56h
Reading time
  1. 01
    Cover of Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari

    Sapiens

    Yuval Noah Harari·443 pp
    Why Bill rates itGates calls Harari's sweep from foragers to capitalism one of the most thought-provoking big-history books he has read.
  2. 02
    Cover of Guns, Germs, and Steel by Jared Diamond

    Guns, Germs, and Steel

    Jared Diamond·480 pp
    Why Bill rates itA long-time favourite , Diamond's environmental account of why societies diverged shaped how Gates thinks about global development.
  3. 03
    Cover of Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman

    Thinking, Fast and Slow

    Daniel Kahneman·499 pp
    Why Bill rates itHe points to Kahneman's map of the two systems of the mind for anyone who makes decisions under uncertainty.
  4. 04
    Cover of A Short History of Nearly Everything by Bill Bryson

    A Short History of Nearly Everything

    Bill Bryson·544 pp
    Why Bill rates itAn avowed Bill Bryson fan, Gates recommends this science survey to rekindle curiosity about how we know what we know.
  5. 05
    Cover of Educated by Tara Westover

    Educated

    Tara Westover·352 pp
    Why Bill rates itGates put Westover's memoir on his 2018 favourites list and interviewed her, calling himself lucky to have had the schooling she had to fight for.
  6. 06
    Cover of Business Adventures by John Brooks

    Business Adventures

    John Brooks·464 pp
    Why Bill rates itBuffett lent Gates his copy in 1991. Gates has called it the best business book he has read, and Brooks's essays still sit on his shelf.
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