Reading list: the books for what you are building
Tell us your business model, industry and stage, or how you invest, and get the books worth your time, picked from 30,000 on building and backing companies. Chosen by ratings and what they are about.
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643 books written by investors and founders
Now readingAtomic HabitsJames Clear4.31★
Change your answersFounder · Government and defence · Seed
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ShortlistThe best matches for everything you told us, ranked.
The best matches for everything you told us, ranked.
- 1
The Power Broker
Robert Moses and the Fall of New York
Robert A. Caro · 1974
4.5329,550 ratings · Goodreads
Government and defence
About the book
PULITZER PRIZE WINNER • A modern American classic, this huge and galvanizing biography of Robert Moses reveals not only the saga of one man’s incredible accumulation of power but the story of his shaping (and mis-shaping) of twentieth-century New York. One of…
- 2
Beyond Band of Brothers
The War Memoirs of Major Dick Winters
Dick Winters · 2006
4.3420,789 ratings · Goodreads
Government and defence
About the book
They were called Easy Company, but their mission was never easy.Immortalized as the Band of Brothers, they suffered 150% casualties while liberating Europe, an unparalleled record of bravery under fire. Dick Winters was their commander, "the best combat leader…
- 3
The Fifth Risk
Undoing Democracy
Michael Lewis · 2018
4.1048,939 ratings · Goodreads
Government and defenceCompany building
About the book
The morning after Trump was elected president, the people who ran the US Department of Energy waited to brief the administration’s transition team on the agency it would soon be running. Nobody appeared. Across all departments the stories were the same: Trump…
- 4
Sea Stories
My Life in Special Operations
William H. McRaven · 2019
4.4611,714 ratings · Goodreads
Government and defence
About the book
Admiral William H. McRaven is a part of American military history, having been involved in some of the most famous missions in recent memory, including the capture of Saddam Hussein, the rescue of Captain Richard Phillips, and the raid to kill Osama bin…
- 5
The Man Who Saved the Union
Ulysses Grant in War and Peace
H.W. Brands · 2012
4.136,257 ratings · Goodreads
Government and defenceMarketing and growth
About the book
From New York Times bestselling author H. W. Brands, a masterful biography of the Civil War general and two-term president who saved the Union twice, on the battlefield and in the White House, holding the country together at two critical turning points in our…
- 6
Economic Policy
Thoughts for Today and Tomorrow
Ludwig von Mises · 1979
4.342,106 ratings · Goodreads
Government and defence
About the book
Von Mises' economic theories and views on economic policy are revealed in his lectures on capitalism, socialism, interventionism, inflation, foreign investment, and policies and ideas
- 7
Unrestricted warfare
Qiao Liang, Wang Xiangsui · 2002
34 Open Library reading lists
Government and defence
About the book
Translated from the Original Chinese Documents Publisher Provided Annotation. As incredible as it may be to believe, three years before the September 11 bombing of the World Trade Center-a Chinese military manual called Unrestricted Warfare touted such an…
- 8
Chip War
The Fight for the World's Most Critical Technology
Chris Miller · 2022
4.3846,826 ratings · Goodreads
Government and defenceCompany building
About the book
An epic account of the decades-long battle to control what has emerged as the world's most critical resource, microchip technology, with the United States and China increasingly in conflict. You may be surprised to learn that microchips are the new oil, the…
Books on government and defence.
- 1
The Hour of the Predator
Giuliano da Empoli · 2025
3.945,140 ratings · Goodreads
Government and defence
About the book
A chilling assessment of international politics in our time, from an internationally bestselling author whose work has sparked controversy and debate across the worldBlending the author’s personal insight with startling historical comparisons to the days of…
- 2
Written Out of History
The Forgotten Founders Who Fought Big Government
Mike Lee · 2017
4.05728 ratings · Goodreads
Government and defenceCompany building
About the book
Senator Mike Lee tells the story of the Founders whose warnings about the dangers of an all-powerful federal government helped shape our Constitution--but are being ignored today. Today, most Americans are familiar only with the "big names" associated…
- 3
Unit X
How the Pentagon and Silicon Valley Are Transforming the Future of War
Raj M. Shah · 2024
3.821,608 ratings · Goodreads
Government and defenceCompany buildingInnovation
About the book
Shortlisted for the 2024 Financial Times Business Book of the Year “An exceedingly important book!”, General David Petraeus, US Army (Ret.), former Director of the CIA “Essential reading for understanding how technology will change the future of warfare.”…
- 4
The Sirens' Call
How Attention Became the World's Most Endangered Resource
Christopher L. Hayes · 2025
3.938,942 ratings · Goodreads
Government and defence
About the book
An Instant #1 New York Times BestsellerFrom the New York Times bestselling author and MSNBC and podcast host, a powerful wide-angle reckoning with how the assault from attention capitalism on our minds and our hearts has reordered our politics and the very…
- 5
Freedom's Forge
How American Business Produced Victory in World War II
Arthur Herman · 2012
4.333,196 ratings · Goodreads
Government and defenceCompany building
About the book
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • SELECTED BY THE ECONOMIST AS ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR Remarkable as it may seem today, there once was a time when the president of the United States could pick up the phone and ask the president of General Motors to…
- 6
This Is How They Tell Me the World Ends
The Cyberweapons Arms Race
Nicole Perlroth · 2021
4.3111,823 ratings · Goodreads
Government and defenceCompany building
About the book
From The New York Times cybersecurity reporter Nicole Perlroth, the untold story of the cyberweapons market-the most secretive, invisible, government-backed market on earth-and a terrifying first look at a new kind of global warfare.Zero day: a software bug…
- 7
Apple in China
The Capture of the World's Greatest Company
Patrick McGee · 2025
4.4810,559 ratings · Goodreads
Government and defenceCompany building
About the book
For readers of Walter Isaacson’s Steve Jobs and Chris Miller’s Chip War, a riveting look at how Apple helped build China’s dominance in electronics assembly and manufacturing only to find itself trapped in a relationship with an authoritarian state making…
- 8
The Everything War
Amazon’s Ruthless Quest to Own the World and Remake Corporate Power
Dana Mattioli · 2024
4.121,461 ratings · Goodreads
Government and defenceCompany building
About the book
From veteran Amazon reporter for The Wall Street Journal, and finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in investigative reporting, Dana Mattioli's The Everything War is the shocking, explosive, and untold exposé of Amazon's endless strategic greed, from destroying…
What founders at seed need most: company building, finding product-market fit, raising money, first sales, marketing and growth.
- 1
The Elements of User Experience
User-Centered Design for the Web
Jesse James Garrett · 2002
4.014,134 ratings · Goodreads
Finding product-market fitCompany building
About the book
Smart organizations recognize that Web design is more than just creating clean code and sharp graphics. A site that really works fulfills your strategic objectives while meeting the needs of your users. Even the best content and the most sophisticated…
- 2
Get Backed
Craft Your Story, Build the Perfect Pitch Deck, and Launch the Venture of Your Dreams
Evan Baehr · 2015
4.36356 ratings · Goodreads
Raising moneyCompany building
About the book
HOW DO YOU LAUNCH THE VENTURE OF YOUR DREAMS? Get Backed isn’t just about startup fundraising. It’s a handbook for anyone who has an idea and needs to build relationships to get it off the ground. Over the last 3 years, entrepreneurs Evan Loomis and…
- 3
80/20 Sales and Marketing
The Definitive Guide to Working Less and Making More
Perry Marshall · 2013
4.191,904 ratings · Goodreads
First salesMarketing and growthCompany building
About the book
Stop "Just Getting By" ... Master The 80/20 Principle And Make More Money Without More Work. When you know how to walk into any situation and see the 80/20's, you can solve almost ANY marketing problem. 80/20 can demolish any sales and advertising problem.…
- 4
Selling the Invisible
A Field Guide to Modern Marketing
Harry Beckwith · 1997
3.9410,059 ratings · Goodreads
Marketing and growthFirst salesCompany building
About the book
You can't touch, hear, or see your company's most important products... So how do you sell, develop, make them grow? That's the problem with services. This "phenomenal" book, as one reviewer called it, answers that question with insights on how markets work…
- 5
A Project Guide to UX Design
For User Experience Designers in the Field or in the Making
Russ Unger · 2009
3.871,774 ratings · Goodreads
Finding product-market fitCompany building
About the book
“If you are a young designer entering or contemplating entering the UX field this is a canonical book. If you are an organization that really needs to start grokking UX this book is also for you. " -- Chris Bernard, User Experience Evangelist, Microsoft User…
- 6
Observing the User Experience
A Practitioner's Guide to User Research
Mike Kuniavsky · 2003
3.99695 ratings · Goodreads
Finding product-market fit
About the book
The gap between who designers and developers imagine their users are, and who those users really are can be the biggest problem with product development. Observing the User Experience will help you bridge that gap to understand what your users want and need…
- 7
Venture Deals
Be Smarter Than Your Lawyer and Venture Capitalist
Brad Feld · 2011
4.1117,486 ratings · Goodreads
Raising moneyCompany building
About the book
Praise for Venture Deals"My biggest nightmare is taking advantage of an entrepreneur without even realizing it. It happens because VCs are experts in financings and most entrepreneurs are not. Brad and Jason are out to fix that problem with Venture Deals.…
- 8
Solving Product Design Exercises
Questions & Answers
Artiom Dashinsky · 2018
4.30675 ratings · Goodreads
Finding product-market fitCompany building
About the book
Practice your product design and UX skills. Prepare for your next job interview. "Redesign the NYC metrocard system. Design a dashboard for a general practitioner. Redesign an ATM". Learn how to solve and present exercises like these, that top startups…
Leading and managing a team as the company grows.
- 1
Good to Great
Why Some Companies Make the Leap... and Others Don't
Jim Collins · 2001
4.12312,279 ratings · Goodreads
Leading and managing
About the book
The Challenge: Built to Last, the defining management study of the nineties, showed how great companies triumph over time and how long-term sustained performance can be engineered into the DNA of an enterprise from the very beginning. But what about the…
- 2
A Higher Loyalty
Truth, Lies, and Leadership
James B. Comey · 2018
4.0949,995 ratings · Goodreads
Leading and managing
About the book
In his book, former FBI director James Comey shares his never-before-told experiences from some of the highest-stakes situations of his career in the past two decades of American government, exploring what good, ethical leadership looks like, and how it…
- 3
The Ride of a Lifetime
Lessons Learned from 15 Years as CEO of the Walt Disney Company
Robert Iger · 2019
4.4099,495 ratings · Goodreads
Leading and managing
About the book
A grand vision defined: The CEO of The Walt Disney Company shares the ideas and values he has used to reinvent one of the most beloved companies in the world, and inspire the people who bring the magic to life. In 2005, Robert Iger became CEO of The Walt…
- 4
Rising Strong
The Reckoning. The Rumble. The Revolution
Brené Brown · 2015
4.2590,292 ratings · Goodreads
Leading and managing
About the book
Social scientist Brené Brown has ignited a global conversation on courage, vulnerability, shame, and worthiness. Her pioneering work uncovered a profound truth: Vulnerability, the willingness to show up and be seen with no guarantee of outcome, is the only path…
- 5
A Different Kind of Power
Jacinda Ardern · 2025
4.4521,916 ratings · Goodreads
Leading and managing
About the book
From the former prime minister of New Zealand, then the world’s youngest female head of government and just the second to give birth in office, comes a deeply personal memoir chronicling her extraordinary rise and offering inspiration to a new generation of…
- 6
Joker One
A Marine Platoon's Story of Courage, Leadership, and Brotherhood
Donovan Campbell · 2009
4.154,545 ratings · Goodreads
Leading and managing
About the book
After graduating from Princeton, Donovan Campbell, motivated by his unwavering patriotism and commitment, decided to join the service, realizing that becoming a Marine officer would allow him to give back to his country, engage in the world, and learn to…
- 7
The Goal
A Process of Ongoing Improvement
Eliyahu M. Goldratt · 2004
4.0786,160 ratings · Goodreads
Leading and managing
About the book
Written in a fast-paced thriller style, The Goal, a gripping novel, is transforming management thinking throughout the world. It is a book to recommend to your friends in industry - even to your bosses - but not to your competitors. Alex Rogo is a harried…
- 8
The Wisdom of the Bullfrog
Leadership Made Simple
William H. McRaven · 2023
4.408,634 ratings · Goodreads
Leading and managing
About the book
From the acclaimed, bestselling author of Make Your Bed, a short, inspirational book of advice and leadership lessons that Admiral McRaven collected over his four decades as a Navy SEAL. The title “Bullfrog” is given to the Navy SEAL who has served the…
Published in the last three years, newest first, for what you told us.
- 1
How to Run a Country
An Ancient Guide for Modern Leaders
Marcus Tullius Cicero · 2044
3.82431 ratings · Goodreads
Government and defence
About the book
Marcus Cicero, Rome's greatest statesman and orator, was elected to the Roman Republic's highest office at a time when his beloved country was threatened by power-hungry politicians, dire economic troubles, foreign turmoil, and political parties that refused…
- 2
The Lost Empire of Emanuel Nobel
Romanovs, Revolutionaries, and the Forgotten Titan Who Fueled the World
Douglas Brunt · 2026
4.39615 ratings · Goodreads
Government and defenceCompany building
About the book
The hidden history of Emanuel Nobel, one of the world’s most successful corporate titans, a rival to the Rockefellers and the Rothschilds, integral in the creation of the Nobel Prize, whose legacy was erased in the aftermath of the Russian Revolution.…
- 3
Chokepoints
American Power in the Age of Economic Warfare
Edward Fishman · 2025
4.342,959 ratings · Goodreads
Government and defenceCompany building
About the book
The epic story of how America turned the world economy into a weapon, upending decades of globalization to take on a new authoritarian axis, Russia, China, and Iran. It used to be that ravaging another country’s economy required blockading its ports and…
- 4
Age of Revolutions
Progress and Backlash from 1600 to the Present
Fareed Zakaria · 2024
4.184,180 ratings · Goodreads
Government and defence
About the book
The CNN host and best-selling author explores the revolutions, past and present, that define the polarized and unstable age in which we live. Populist rage, ideological fracture, economic and technological shocks, war, and an international system studded…
- 5
I Swear
Politics Is Messier Than My Minivan
Katie Porter · 2023
4.214,196 ratings · Goodreads
Government and defence
About the book
An honest, inspiring, and laugh-out-loud funny memoir about re-energizing our politics and standing up to corporate America--while carting three kids around in a minivan. Never having run for office before, Katie Porter charted a new path in 2018 when she…
- 6
Coming Up Short
A Memoir of My America
Robert B. Reich · 2025
4.502,794 ratings · Goodreads
Government and defence
About the book
From political economist, cabinet member, beloved professor, media presence, and bestselling author of Saving Capitalism and The Common Good, a deeply-felt, compelling memoir of growing up in a baby-boom America that made progress in certain areas, fell short…
- 7
Simple Marketing For Smart People
The One Question You Need to Win Customers without Gimmicks, Hype, or Hard Selling
Billy Broas · 2024
4.35305 ratings · Goodreads
Marketing and growthFirst salesCompany building
About the book
Why do so many smart people struggle with marketing? The answer is smart people love complexity, and complexity brews problems. Does your marketing feel like it has way too many moving parts? If so, Simple Marketing for Smart People is the solution you’ve…
- 8
Little Bosses Everywhere
How the Pyramid Scheme Shaped America
Bridget Read · 2025
3.965,793 ratings · Goodreads
Government and defenceCompany buildingMarketing and growth
About the book
A groundbreaking work of history and reportage that unveils the stranger-than-fiction world of multilevel marketing, from the shadowy cabals at the top to the strivers at the bottom, whose deferred dreams churn a massive money-making scam that has remade…
How companies like yours were actually built, from the people who built them.
- 1
Company Commander
The Classic Infantry Memoir of World War II
Charles B. MacDonald · 1947
4.235,000 ratings · Goodreads
Government and defenceFounder stories
About the book
As a newly commisioned Captain of a veteran Army regiment, MacDonald's first combat was war at its most hellish--the Battle of the Bulge. In this plain-spoken but eloquent narrative, we live each minute at MacDonald's side, sharing in all of combat's misery,…
- 2
Lincoln's Virtues
An Ethical Biography
William Lee Miller · 2002
4.17964 ratings · Goodreads
Government and defenceFounder stories
About the book
William Lee Miller’s ethical biography is a fresh, engaging telling of the story of Lincoln’s rise to power. Through careful scrutiny of Lincoln’s actions, speeches, and writings, and of accounts from those who knew him, Miller gives us insight into the moral…
- 3
Voorbij Band of Brothers
Dick Winters · 2006
4.3320,280 ratings · Goodreads
Government and defenceFounder stories
About the book
They were called Easy Company, but their mission was never easy. Immortalized as the Band of Brothers , they suffered 150% casualties while liberating Europe, an unparalleled record of bravery under fire. Dick Winters was their commander, "the best combat leader…
- 4
My Share of the Task
A Memoir
Stanley McChrystal · 2013
4.112,140 ratings · Goodreads
Government and defenceFounder stories
About the book
In early March 2010, General Stanley McChrystal, the commanding officer of all U.S. and coalition forces in Afghanistan, walked with President Hamid Karzai through a small rural bazaar. As Afghan townspeople crowded around them, a Taliban rocket loudly…
- 5
The Rise and Fall of American Growth
The U.S. Standard of Living since the Civil War
Robert J. Gordon · 2016
4.192,210 ratings · Goodreads
Government and defenceFounder storiesCompany building
About the book
How America's high standard of living came to be and why future growth is under threat In the century after the Civil War, an economic revolution improved the American standard of living in ways previously unimaginable. Electric lighting, indoor plumbing,…
- 6
The Price of Peace
Money, Democracy, and the Life of John Maynard Keynes
Zachary D. Carter · 2020
4.423,701 ratings · Goodreads
Government and defenceFounder stories
About the book
A page-turning biography of world-changing economist John Maynard Keynes and the big ideas that outlived him. In the spring of 1934, Virginia Woolf sketched an affectionate biographical portrait of her great friend John Maynard Keynes. Writing a full two…
- 7
It Doesn't Take a Hero
The Autobiography of General H. Norman Schwarzkopf
Norman Schwarzkopf · 1992
4.113,536 ratings · Goodreads
Government and defenceFounder stories
About the book
He set his star by a simple motto: duty, honor, country. Only rarely does history grant a single individual the ability, personal charisma, moral force, and intelligence to command the respect, admiration, and affection of an entire nation. But such a man…
- 8
Disney War
James B. Stewart · 2005
4.128,885 ratings · Goodreads
Government and defenceFounder storiesCompany building
About the book
The dramatic inside story of the downfall of Michael Eisner, Disney Chairman and CEO, and the scandals that drove America’s best-known entertainment company to civil war. “When You Wish Upon a Star,” “Whistle While You Work,” “The Happiest Place on…
What founders at seed keep coming back to, if you have not read them yet.
- 1
Crossing the Chasm
Marketing and Selling High-Tech Products to Mainstream Customers
Geoffrey A. Moore · 2002
4.0332,109 ratings · Goodreads
Marketing and growthCompany buildingFirst sales
About the book
Here is the bestselling guide that created a new game plan for marketing in high-tech industries. Crossing the Chasm has become the bible for bringing cutting-edge products to progressively larger markets. This edition provides new insights into the realities…
- 2
Inspired
How to Create Tech Products Customers Love
Marty Cagan · 2008
4.2226,350 ratings · Goodreads
Company buildingFinding product-market fit
About the book
Learn to design, build, and scale products consumers can't get enough of How do today's most successful tech companies–Amazon, Google, Facebook, Netflix, Tesla–design, develop, and deploy the products that have earned the love of literally billions of…
- 3
The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing
Violate Them at Your Own Risk
Al Ries · 1993
4.0522,738 ratings · Goodreads
Marketing and growthCompany building
About the book
There are laws of nature, so why shouldn't there be laws of marketing? As Al Ries and Jack Trout, the world-renowned marketing consultants and bestselling authors of Positioning, note, you can build an impressive airplane, but it will never leave the ground if…
- 4
Building A Story Brand
Donald Miller · 2017
4.2726,500 ratings · Goodreads
Marketing and growthCompany building
About the book
New York Times bestselling author Donald Miller uses the seven universal elements of powerful stories to teach readers how to dramatically improve how they connect with customers and grow their businesses. Donald Miller’s StoryBrand process is a proven…
- 5
To Sell is Human
The Surprising Truth About Moving Others
Daniel H. Pink · 2012
3.8726,914 ratings · Goodreads
Company buildingFirst sales
About the book
From the bestselling author of Drive and A Whole New Mind comes a surprising--and surprisingly useful--new book that explores the power of selling in our lives.According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, one in nine Americans works in sales. Every day…
- 6
Bad Blood
Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup
John Carreyrou · 2018
4.40285,283 ratings · Goodreads
Company building
About the book
The full inside story of the breathtaking rise and shocking collapse of a multibillion-dollar startup, by the prize-winning journalist who first broke the story and pursued it to the end in the face of pressure and threats from the CEO and her lawyers. In…
- 7
- 8
Lok Vyavhar
Diamond Books · 1936
4.221,157,905 ratings · Goodreads
Company building
About the book
This is the translation of famous - HOW TO WIN FRIENDS AND INFLUENCE PEOPLE - a classic book that gave birth to the self-help industry. Through this book, Dale Carnegie offers practical and proven advice on how to deal with people and understand them in order…
As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. Which books we recommend never depends on it: they are chosen from their ratings and what they are about.
From the record
Written by the people who write the cheques
Books by investors and founders we hold records for. The author links to what they have done, not just what they wrote.
The Lean Startupby Eric Ries, Eric Ries2011 · 4.11★L
Lean Inby Sheryl Sandberg, Meta2013 · 3.94★T
The Hard Thing About Hard Thingsby Ben Horowitz, Andreessen Horowitz2014 · 4.19★D
Delivering Happinessby Tony Hsieh, Tony Hsieh2000 · 4.04★#
#Girlbossby Sophia Amoruso2014 · 3.64★T
The One Thingby Gary Keller, Pocketchange Investments2012 · 4.12★P
Principlesby Ray Dalio2017 · 4.09★Read what the people you are pitching read.
Every investor and founder on our records links to their books and the podcasts they are on.