Christian Keil
(Pronounced "Kyle," but call me CK.)
I'm building satellites to connect the world as the Chief of Staff at
Astranis
.
I write a
newsletter
to share what I've learned about Silicon Valley startups.
I swim, bike, and run. My last races were a half-Ironman and an Alcatraz triathlon, and an 100-mile bike ride. This year: powerlifting.
I'm a product of public schooling: undergrad at the University of Michigan; MBA from UC Berkeley.
I love traveling, playing pickup sports, and nerding out with my wife Maryli.
I started meticulously tracking my reading in 2014. Happy browsing!
2022 READS
Death's End
Cixin Liu
270
97
/100
tl;dr:
"Possible" is bigger than you think
Genre:
Fiction
721
pages
The Three Body Problem
Cixin Liu
94
/100
tl;dr:
An intergalactic physics war, LFG
Genre:
Fiction
399
pages
Valuable Humans in Transit
qntm
274
92
/100
tl;dr:
Lots of incredible, mind-bending short stories
Genre:
Fiction
101
pages
American Nations
Colin Woodard
262
90
/100
tl;dr:
America was never really united
Genre:
Politics
322
pages
Seveneves
Neil Sttephenson
264
89
/100
tl;dr:
Moon explodes; seven women create new world
Genre:
Fiction
861
pages
The Dark Forest
Cixin Liu
268
89
/100
tl;dr:
Pessimism and optimism are both irrational
Genre:
Fiction
512
pages
Dune
Frank Herbert
250
87
/100
tl;dr:
Knowing the future != changing it
Genre:
Fiction
884
pages
The Hard Thing About Hard Things
Ben Horowitz
276
87
/100
tl;dr:
Hard things have no right answers
Genre:
Business
282
pages
Them
Ben Sasse
277
86
/100
tl;dr:
Americans are lonely
Genre:
Politics
253
pages
What Do *You* Care What Other People Think?
Richard Feynman
271
84
/100
tl;dr:
Divergence is a strength
Genre:
Auto/biography
277
pages
The Fabric of Reality
David Deutsch
260
82
/100
tl;dr:
People don't take scientific explanation seriously
Genre:
Science
366
pages
How To Change Your Mind
Michael Pollan
261
81
/100
tl;dr:
Psychedelics are worth studying
Genre:
Science
414
pages
The Beginning of Infinity
David Deutsch
272
79
/100
tl;dr:
Humans are special, because they explain
Genre:
Science
459
pages
Diplomatic History
A Very Short Introduction
255
78
/100
tl;dr:
Modern diplomacy is way more complicated
Genre:
Politics
134
pages
These Truths
Jill Lepore
263
78
/100
tl;dr:
"Land of the free" founded on slavery
Genre:
History
789
pages
Freedom's Forge
Arthur Herman
275
78
/100
tl;dr:
Industry won WW2 for America
Genre:
History
346
pages
International Relations
Very Short Introduction
258
76
/100
tl;dr:
IR = global organization of political authority
Genre:
Politics
123
pages
American Politics
A Very Short Introduction
251
74
/100
tl;dr:
Politcians connect the public to governance
Genre:
Politics
112
pages
Why We're Polarized
Ezra Klein
256
73
/100
tl;dr:
Polarization is a systems, not people, problem
Genre:
Politics
278
pages
Amusing Ourselves to Death
Neil Postman
273
73
/100
tl;dr:
Thank god this guy never saw TikTok
Genre:
Politics
163
pages
Reconstruction
Very Short Introductions
266
70
/100
tl;dr:
A world with Lincoln would have been better
Genre:
History
135
pages
Bringing up the Boss
Rachel Pacheco
259
69
/100
tl;dr:
Gotta learn the basics to manage
Genre:
Business
248
pages
High Growth Handbook
Elad Gil
269
67
/100
tl;dr:
There is a "right way" in Silicon Valley
Genre:
Business
343
pages
Firepower
Matt Lacombe
257
65
/100
tl;dr:
NRA created an ideology and an identity
Genre:
Politics
237
pages
Democracy
Very Short Introductions
65
/100
tl;dr:
Democracy is more than free voting
Genre:
History
120
pages
Neoliberalism
A Very Short Introduction
253
64
/100
tl;dr:
Neolib = intl. development saying "trust us"
Genre:
Politics
127
pages
Ideology
A Very Short Introduction
252
56
/100
tl;dr:
Ideology = impratical, academic political science
Genre:
Politics
128
pages
Geopolitics
A Very Short Introduction
254
53
/100
tl;dr:
This guy's geopolitics is ideologically bankrupt
Genre:
Politics
143
pages
2021 READS
There Is No Antimemetics Division
qntm
94
/100
tl;dr:
Ideas resistant to sharing are mind-bending
Genre:
Fiction
227
pages
Man's Search for Meaning
Viktor Frankl
243
93
/100
tl;dr:
Meaning of life: find meaning in your life
Genre:
Life
165
pages
Liftoff
Eric Berger
92
/100
tl;dr:
SpaceX almost died... many times
Genre:
Business
257
pages
The Topeka School
Ben Lerner
236
90
/100
tl;dr:
Politicians and other experts "spread"
Genre:
Fiction
282
pages
The Circle
Dave Eggers
232
88
/100
tl;dr:
Tech "utopia" doesn't sound so great
Genre:
Fiction
497
pages
Nonviolent Communication
Marshall Rosenberg
229
87
/100
tl;dr:
Observations, emotions, needs
Genre:
Life
219
pages
A Promised Land
Barack Obama
237
86
/100
tl;dr:
Obama did a LOT pre-obstruction
Genre:
Auto/biography
701
pages
Uncanny Valley
Anna Wiener
230
83
/100
tl;dr:
Everyone's equal in SV, some more equal
Genre:
Auto/biography
175
pages
Creativity, Inc.
Ed Catmull
237
78
/100
tl;dr:
Pixar's open culture sparks creativity
Genre:
Business
314
pages
Prisoners of Geography
Tim Marshall
240
78
/100
tl;dr:
Geography determines politics
Genre:
Politics
277
pages
Shark's Fin and Sichuan Pepper
Fuchsia Dunlop
228
74
/100
tl;dr:
Chinese culture is food
Genre:
Auto/biography
312
pages
Carrie
Stephen King
244
74
/100
tl;dr:
Simple story; creepy imagery
Genre:
Fiction
245
pages
The Art of Loving
Erich Fromm
241
73
/100
tl;dr:
Love is collective and individual both
Genre:
Life
123
pages
The Institute
Stephen King
245
73
/100
tl;dr:
Psychic kids take down the deep state
Genre:
Fiction
557
pages
No Rules Rules
Reed Hastings
239
72
/100
tl;dr:
High talent density, fewer rules
Genre:
Business
272
pages
The All-or-Nothing Marriage
Eli Finkel
242
71
/100
tl;dr:
Set expectations: frequent peaks, valleys okay
Genre:
Life
269
pages
Homo Deus
Yuval Noah Harari
226
70
/100
tl;dr:
Science and humanism run the world
Genre:
Psych/Soc/Stats
402
pages
Already Free
Bruce Tift
246
70
/100
tl;dr:
West = fix what's wrong; East = already free
Genre:
Life
319
pages
The Making of the Atomic Bomb
Richard Rhodes
247
69
/100
tl;dr:
Neutron discovery made use inevitable
Genre:
Science
747
pages
Why We Sleep
Mathew Walker
231
59
/100
tl;dr:
Go to bed and wake up at constant times
Genre:
Science
342
pages
Educated
Tara Westover
249
58
/100
tl;dr:
Disturbing, sad ending; bad people exist
Genre:
Auto/biography
352
pages
Zucked
Roger McNamee
235
55
/100
tl;dr:
Early advisor to Facebook has his regrets
Genre:
Business
335
pages
Valley of the Gods
Alexandra Wolfe
234
50
/100
tl;dr:
The Thiel Fellowship exists, kids are kids
Genre:
Business
256
pages
2020 READS
Genghis Khan
Jack Weatherford
219
94
/100
tl;dr:
Genghis wasn't so bad; his imitators were
Genre:
History
271
pages
A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius
Dave Eggers
200
93
/100
tl;dr:
Novels are weird, man
Genre:
Auto/biography
437
pages
Rosshalde
Herman Hesse
212
93
/100
tl;dr:
Loneliness can be a beautiful emotion
Genre:
Fiction
213
pages
American Kingpin
Nick Bilton
204
91
/100
tl;dr:
Ross wanted to change the world, and did
Genre:
Auto/biography
333
pages
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
Maya Angelou
211
90
/100
tl;dr:
Privilege is freedom of mind and body
Genre:
Auto/biography
289
pages
Permutation City
Greg Egan
220
86
/100
tl;dr:
Don't overestimate our self-understanding
Genre:
Fiction
320
pages
Shortest Way Home
Pete Buttigieg
203
85
/100
tl;dr:
Values-led leadership is age independent
Genre:
Auto/biography
330
pages
Consider This
Chuck Palahniuk
207
85
/100
tl;dr:
Suspense is a science
Genre:
Writing
233
pages
How to Win Friends and Infuence People
Dale Carnegie
216
85
/100
tl;dr:
Just be nice and stop talking about yourself
Genre:
Business
248
pages
Diversity in the Workplace
Bärí A. Williams
217
84
/100
tl;dr:
Privilege is freedom of attention
Genre:
Business
98
pages
Can't Hurt Me
David Goggins
199
83
/100
tl;dr:
Pain only stops the weak
Genre:
Auto/biography
356
pages
Dead Wake
Erik Larson
213
81
/100
tl;dr:
Churchill definitely wanted it to sink
Genre:
History
353
pages
The Space Barons
Christian Davenport
198
79
/100
tl;dr:
Space is hard
Genre:
Technology
275
pages
The Everything Store
Brad Stone
215
79
/100
tl;dr:
Founders shape companies to be like them
Genre:
Business
355
pages
Influence
Robert Cialdini
205
78
/100
tl;dr:
The human brain is exploitable
Genre:
Psych/Soc/Stats
280
pages
The Splendid and the Vile
Erik Larson
221
77
/100
tl;dr:
Churchill helped others find their courage
Genre:
History
503
pages
The Gatekeepers
Chris Whipple
209
76
/100
tl;dr:
Strong, not flashy, is best
Genre:
History
316
pages
I Am Legend
Richard Matheson
202
75
/100
tl;dr:
Vampires are people too
Genre:
Fiction
278
pages
The Making of a Manager
Julie Zhou
201
74
/100
tl;dr:
Experience is the only way to learn management
Genre:
Business
256
pages
Predictably Irrational
Dan Ariely
208
74
/100
tl;dr:
Honestly, the title nails it
Genre:
Psych/Soc/Stats
322
pages
Alibaba: The House That Jack Ma Built
Duncan Clark
218
73
/100
tl;dr:
The strategy to win China: be Chinese
Genre:
Business
264
pages
Only the Paranoid Survive
Andy Grove
214
72
/100
tl;dr:
CEOs are often the last to know about changes
Genre:
Business
198
pages
Chaos Monkeys
Antonio Garcia Martinez
224
72
/100
tl;dr:
Cynicism is the path of least resistance
Genre:
Auto/biography
496
pages
Masters of the Word
William Bernstein
225
64
/100
tl;dr:
New comms centralize power first
Genre:
History
339
pages
Secrets of Sand Hill Road
Scott Kupor
210
63
/100
tl;dr:
VC isn't all that secretive anymore
Genre:
Business
275
pages
How to Be a Bad Emperor
Suetonius
206
55
/100
tl;dr:
Roman Emperors were pretty evil
Genre:
History
135
pages
2019 READS
A Clash of Kings
George R.R. Martin
189
94
/100
tl;dr:
Commoners don't really care about kings
Genre:
ASOIAF
969
pages
A Game of Thrones
George R.R. Martin
188
91
/100
tl;dr:
Nobody is safe; love and honor are weaknesses
Genre:
ASOIAF
807
pages
Winners Take All
Anand Giridharadas
181
89
/100
tl;dr:
Everything that's not taxes or government is bad
Genre:
Business
263
pages
A Storm of Swords
George R.R. Martin
190
89
/100
tl;dr:
Weddings are dangerous
Genre:
ASOIAF
1128
pages
Pet Sematary
Stephen King
197
89
/100
tl;dr:
Sometimes dead is better
Genre:
Fiction
395
pages
How The Internet Happened
Brian McCullough
175
88
/100
tl;dr:
Market crashed, technology didn't
Genre:
History
326
pages
Steve Jobs
Walter Isaacson
185
87
/100
tl;dr:
Jobs was mercurial, self-aware, and taken far too early
Genre:
Auto/biography
577
pages
A Dance of Dragons
George R.R. Martin
194
84
/100
tl;dr:
Hopefully not the end of an expansive world
Genre:
ASOIAF
1051
pages
The Master and His Emissary
Iain McGilchrist
196
83
/100
tl;dr:
Right brain rules!
Genre:
Psych/Soc/Stats
462
pages
The Messy Middle
Scott Belsky
183
82
/100
tl;dr:
Entrepreneurship is less glamorous than many admit
Genre:
Business
375
pages
A Feast for Crows
George R.R. Martin
192
82
/100
tl;dr:
The Stark kids stay alive... and Mama is undead
Genre:
ASOIAF
976
pages
Angel
Jason Calacanis
178
80
/100
tl;dr:
Angel investing is high upside, all about hustle
Genre:
Auto/biography
272
pages
Who is Michael Ovitz?
Michael Ovitz
179
76
/100
tl;dr:
Appearing all-knowing is a choice; Ovitz made it
Genre:
Auto/biography
356
pages
Tiger Woods
Jeff Benefict and Armen Keteyian
176
75
/100
tl;dr:
Tiger was the best golfer ever, bad at everything else
Genre:
Auto/biography
404
pages
Blitzscaling
Reid Hoffman
184
75
/100
tl;dr:
The Samwer brothers were villains, but also right
Genre:
Business
299
pages
Who
Geoff Smart & Randy Street
193
75
/100
tl;dr:
Even a little structure in hiring goes a long way
Genre:
Business
188
pages
High Output Management
Andy Grove
180
73
/100
tl;dr:
Old-school management by an old-school manager
Genre:
Business
227
pages
What You Do is Who You Are
Ben Horowitz
195
72
/100
tl;dr:
Culture is about your actions
Genre:
Business
246
pages
The Teachings of Don Juan: A Yaqui Way of Knowledge
Carlos Castaneda
191
71
/100
tl;dr:
Non-ordinary reality can still be logical
Genre:
Psych/Soc/Stats
213
pages
Creative Selection
Ken Kocienda
174
70
/100
tl;dr:
Apple was all about demos and deciding for customers
Genre:
Technology
264
pages
Bad Blood
John Carreyrou
177
69
/100
tl;dr:
Elizabeth Holmes should be in jail
Genre:
Technology
299
pages
The Defining Decade
Dr. Meg Jay
186
68
/100
tl;dr:
Leaving 20s with career and relationship on lock is sick
Genre:
Life
201
pages
The Truth Machine
Michael Casey and Paul Vigna
182
63
/100
tl;dr:
Blockchain can do everything (but not yet)
Genre:
Technology
263
pages
The Blockchain and the New Architecture of Trust
Kevin Werbach
187
55
/100
tl;dr:
Not the hottest take
Genre:
Technology
246
pages
2018 READS
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
JK Rowling
133
99
/100
tl;dr:
Snape is the greatest character ever
Genre:
HARRY POTTER
650
pages
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
JK Rowling
131
98
/100
tl;dr:
Baby Voldemort fights teenage Harry; Cedric dies
Genre:
HARRY POTTER
734
pages
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
JK Rowling
134
98
/100
tl;dr:
The perfect ending to a perfect story
Genre:
HARRY POTTER
759
pages
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
JK Rowling
128
95
/100
tl;dr:
The perfect introduction to a complete world
Genre:
HARRY POTTER
309
pages
The 4-Hour Workweek
Tim Ferriss
152
95
/100
tl;dr:
Automate a lifestyle business, travel the world
Genre:
Religion
376
pages
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
JK Rowling
130
94
/100
tl;dr:
Turns out that Ron's rat betrayed Harry's parents
Genre:
HARRY POTTER
435
pages
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
JK Rowling
129
93
/100
tl;dr:
Harry saves his future wife from an evil diary
Genre:
HARRY POTTER
341
pages
Devil in the White City
Erik Larson
167
93
/100
tl;dr:
Architecture was more dramatic than murder, somehow
Genre:
History
390
pages
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
JK Rowling
132
91
/100
tl;dr:
Harry is the moodiest…. He should've listened to Hermy
Genre:
HARRY POTTER
870
pages
Business Adventures
John Brooks
146
91
/100
tl;dr:
Business is boring unless John Brooks tells the story
Genre:
Business
441
pages
We Were Eight Years in Power
Ta-Nehisi Coates
141
90
/100
tl;dr:
Racism is essential to the American story
Genre:
Politics
367
pages
The Hard Thing About Hard Things
Ben Horowitz
138
89
/100
tl;dr:
Management book that admits startups are hard
Genre:
Business
275
pages
Dreams from My Father
Barack Obama
167
89
/100
tl;dr:
People simply want to belong to a larger order
Genre:
Auto/biography
442
pages
Leonardo da Vinci
Walter Isaacson
148
88
/100
tl;dr:
Leonardo: Divergence, procrastination, and observation
Genre:
Auto/biography
525
pages
The Tiger
John Vaillant
153
87
/100
tl;dr:
Tigers are scary
Genre:
History
306
pages
A Supposedly Fun Thing I'll Never Do Again
David Foster Wallace
137
86
/100
tl;dr:
DFW saw better than any of us; bummer he's gone
Genre:
Literature
353
pages
The Stand
Stephen King
158
85
/100
tl;dr:
M-O-O-N, that spells "what just happened"
Genre:
Fiction
1153
pages
Shoe Dog
Phil Knight
154
85
/100
tl;dr:
Morality is secondary to winning for Knight
Genre:
Auto/biography
383
pages
The Cosmic Serpent
Jeremy Narby
149
84
/100
tl;dr:
DNA literally communicates with shamans
Genre:
Science
162
pages
The Last Days of Night
Graham Moore
163
84
/100
tl;dr:
Tesla thought, Edison reveled, Westinghouse developed
Genre:
History
366
pages
Turtles All The Way Down
John Green
144
82
/100
tl;dr:
OCD girl battles with disease, young love, and friendship
Genre:
Fiction
286
pages
The Undoing Project
Michael Lewis
156
82
/100
tl;dr:
Good partners share brains
Genre:
Auto/biography
352
pages
Astrophysics for People in a Hurry
Neil Degrasse Tyson
142
81
/100
tl;dr:
Complex science can be understood simply
Genre:
Science
208
pages
Principles
Ray Dalio
159
81
/100
tl;dr:
Radical transparency -> success
Genre:
Business
552
pages
Becoming
Michelle Obama
166
80
/100
tl;dr:
Michelle 4 president
Genre:
Auto/biography
421
pages
An Anthropologist on Mars
Oliver Sacks
150
78
/100
tl;dr:
Mental disorders can bring good along with the bad
Genre:
Science
296
pages
Fooled by Randomness
Nassim Nicholas Taleb
173
78
/100
tl;dr:
Magnitude, not frequency, of success is what matters
Genre:
Psych/Soc/Stats
262
pages
Sapiens
Yuval Noah Harari
127
73
/100
tl;dr:
Well, humanity escalated quickly
Genre:
Science
316
pages
Nudge
Richard Thaler and Cass Sunstein
143
73
/100
tl;dr:
Simple idea: people are lazy, don't change from default
Genre:
Psych/Soc/Stats
271
pages
Draft No. 4
John McPhee
151
73
/100
tl;dr:
New Yorker writer has been doing this for fifty years
Genre:
Writing
192
pages
The Audacity of Hope
Barack Obama
169
73
/100
tl;dr:
Future President tries on his President hat
Genre:
Auto/biography
362
pages
Who Can You Trust
Rachel Botsman
162
72
/100
tl;dr:
Interpersonal -> institutional -> distributed trust
Genre:
Technology
263
pages
The Tribe
Sebastian Junger
157
71
/100
tl;dr:
War and strife bring people closer
Genre:
Auto/biography
136
pages
The Inevitable
Kevin Kelly
140
70
/100
tl;dr:
Futures thinking seems like fun
Genre:
Technology
297
pages
The Wizard of Menlo Park
Randall Stross
170
70
/100
tl;dr:
Edison was anti-semitic, mostly deaf, and a jerk
Genre:
History
290
pages
The Lessons of History
Will and Ariel Durant
164
69
/100
tl;dr:
History repeats, but not simply
Genre:
History
102
pages
Venture Deals
Brad Feld & Jason Mendelson
135
68
/100
tl;dr:
Dull but helpful book on venture finance
Genre:
Business
211
pages
The World As It Is
Ben Rhodes
147
68
/100
tl;dr:
Obama was the real deal
Genre:
Politics
422
pages
Cryptoassets
Chris Burniske & Jack Tatar
136
66
/100
tl;dr:
Good to review
Genre:
Business
284
pages
A Higher Loyalty
James Comey
139
65
/100
tl;dr:
Political-hopeful leads the FBI
Genre:
Politics
277
pages
The Effective Executive
Peter Drucker
160
65
/100
tl;dr:
Executives should be good at their jobs
Genre:
Business
174
pages
1995
W. Joseph Campbell
172
64
/100
tl;dr:
Eventful year, maybe, sweeping impact less credible
Genre:
History
161
pages
Talking to Humans
Giff Constable
145
62
/100
tl;dr:
Here's an idea: talk to customers, but be smart
Genre:
Business
80
pages
Fear: Trump in the White House
Bob Woodward
161
62
/100
tl;dr:
Trump is too disorganized to understand rationally
Genre:
Politics
357
pages
The Race Underground
Doug Most
165
62
/100
tl;dr:
The sorta boring story of the world's second subway
Genre:
History
361
pages
AC/DC
Tom McNichol
171
62
/100
tl;dr:
Electricity, not rock and roll
Genre:
History
186
pages
Yes We (Still) Can
Dan Pfeiffer
155
61
/100
tl;dr:
Obama was the real deal
Genre:
Politics
280
pages
2017 READS
All the King's Men
Robert Penn Warren
103
95
/100
tl;dr:
Talos buys and destroys his way to power… and death
Genre:
Fiction
609
pages
To Kill a Mockingbird
Harper Lee
99
94
/100
tl;dr:
A story as calm, collected, and interesting as Atticus
Genre:
Fiction
376
pages
The Black Swan
Nassim Nicholas Taleb
125
94
/100
tl;dr:
Stats is horribly broken by mega-outliers
Genre:
Psych/Soc/Stats
379
pages
Meditations
Marcus Aurelius
98
93
/100
tl;dr:
YOLO: everyone is small and will die soon anyways
Genre:
Philosophy
172
pages
Let The Great World Spin
Colum McCann
124
93
/100
tl;dr:
Everybody has a story
Genre:
Fiction
350
pages
Discipline and Punish
Michel Foucault
83
92
/100
tl;dr:
Prisons conquered torture, then society
Genre:
Philosophy
308
pages
A Prayer for Owen Meany
John Irving
106
92
/100
tl;dr:
THE VOICE WAS RIGHT ALL ALONG
Genre:
Fiction
627
pages
Originals
Adam Grant
115
91
/100
tl;dr:
World-changing originality is part-science
Genre:
Design/Innovation
254
pages
Liar's Poker
Michael Lewis
121
91
/100
tl;dr:
Traders make money because someone has to
Genre:
Business
310
pages
A Clockwork Orange
Anthony Burgess
96
90
/100
tl;dr:
A real horrorshow of a veshch, O my brothers
Genre:
Fiction
212
pages
Elon Musk
Ashlee Vance
116
90
/100
tl;dr:
Worldview + Recruiting + Indomitable Will = Musk
Genre:
Auto/biography
392
pages
The Selfish Gene
Richard Dawkins
95
89
/100
tl;dr:
Genes, not people, naturally select
Genre:
Science
266
pages
The Diary of a Young Girl
Anne Frank
81
88
/100
tl;dr:
She had to make it one more month! One!!
Genre:
Auto/biography
283
pages
The Satanic Verses
Salman Rushdie
108
87
/100
tl;dr:
He's either Archangel Gabriel, or a schizophrenic
Genre:
Fiction
561
pages
Between The World And Me
Ta-Nehisi Coates
84
86
/100
tl;dr:
People who think themselves white break black bodies
Genre:
Auto/biography
152
pages
The Souls of Black Folk
W.E.B. DuBois
92
86
/100
tl;dr:
Emancipation didn't solve the issue of race
Genre:
History
123
pages
Zero to One
Peter Thiel
118
86
/100
tl;dr:
Founders can change the world
Genre:
Business
195
pages
The Structure of Scientific Revolutions
Thomas Kuhn
85
85
/100
tl;dr:
Normal science doesn't apply in paradigm shift
Genre:
Science
208
pages
Meditations on First Philosophy
Rene Descartes
94
84
/100
tl;dr:
Descartes can do no wrong -- except overthinking
Genre:
Philosophy
59
pages
Brave New World
Aldous Huxley
100
84
/100
tl;dr:
Soma and cloning killed God
Genre:
Fiction
259
pages
Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass
Frederick Douglass
91
80
/100
tl;dr:
Christian slavers were the worst
Genre:
Auto/biography
76
pages
The Sun Also Rises
Ernest Hemingway
90
79
/100
tl;dr:
Isn't it pretty to think things can work out?
Genre:
Fiction
250
pages
Schindler's List
Thomas Keneally
101
79
/100
tl;dr:
You're safe now; you're with me
Genre:
Fiction
397
pages
Lord of the Rings
JRR Tolkien
105
78
/100
tl;dr:
Servant eavesdrops, rewarded with eternal fame
Genre:
Fiction
1031
pages
The Double Helix: A Personal Account of the Discovery of THE STRUCTURE OF DNA
James Watson
88
77
/100
tl;dr:
25 year old chases girls, Nobel prizes
Genre:
Science
226
pages
The Varieties of Religious Experience
William James
104
77
/100
tl;dr:
The religo-psychical experience is dramatic, also real
Genre:
Religion
385
pages
Predictably Irrational
Dan Ariely
120
75
/100
tl;dr:
Econ is wrong, but irrationality is predictable
Genre:
Psych/Soc/Stats
322
pages
The Lean Startup
Eric Reis
119
74
/100
tl;dr:
Stay small, be fast, get customer feedback
Genre:
Business
284
pages
The Character of Physical Law
Richard Feynman
86
72
/100
tl;dr:
Physicist says all you can say about simple physics
Genre:
Science
173
pages
Influence
Robert Cialdini
123
72
/100
tl;dr:
People use decision shortcuts; salesmen exploit them
Genre:
Psych/Soc/Stats
280
pages
The Art of War
Sun Tzu
87
71
/100
tl;dr:
Sun Tzu says: this is a metaphor for everything
Genre:
Philosophy
60
pages
Born Standing Up
Steve Martin
122
71
/100
tl;dr:
A wild and crazy guy finds a comedy niche
Genre:
Auto/biography
207
pages
The Innovator's Dilemma
Clayton Christensen
109
69
/100
tl;dr:
Boring industries; decent theory
Genre:
Business
220
pages
The Origin of Species
Charles Darwin
89
68
/100
tl;dr:
It's the ciiiiiiirrrcle (tree) of life
Genre:
Science
507
pages
The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing
Al Ries and Jack Trout
117
68
/100
tl;dr:
…guys I think some of these are mutable
Genre:
Business
132
pages
The Communist Manifesto
Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels
82
67
/100
tl;dr:
Eff da (bourgeois) police
Genre:
Philosophy
27
pages
Thanks, Obama
David Litt
126
67
/100
tl;dr:
He was there; Obama is the real deal
Genre:
Auto/biography
308
pages
Mythologies
Roland Barthes
107
66
/100
tl;dr:
Austere, french, inside jokes for days
Genre:
Philosophy
274
pages
Thus Spoke Zarathustra
Friedrich Nietzsche
97
65
/100
tl;dr:
Nietzsche was a lonely, weird, self-loving genius
Genre:
Philosophy
253
pages
Improv Wisdom
Patricia Ryan Madson
110
65
/100
tl;dr:
Yes, and I wanted more from this book
Genre:
Business
148
pages
Getting to Plan B
John Mullins & Randy Komisar
114
65
/100
tl;dr:
Pivots are cool
Genre:
Business
215
pages
Walden
Henry David Thoreau
102
63
/100
tl;dr:
Arrogant man builds cabin in the woods; loves nature
Genre:
Auto/biography
316
pages
The Credibility Code
Cara Hale Alter
113
63
/100
tl;dr:
Speak good, business good
Genre:
Business
136
pages
Crossing the Chasm
Geoffrey Moore
112
59
/100
tl;dr:
Metaphors = business, apparently
Genre:
Business
241
pages
Inside the Tornado
Geoffrey Moore
111
59
/100
tl;dr:
Metaphors = business, apparently
Genre:
Business
238
pages
Philosophy of Mind
GWF Hegel
93
52
/100
tl;dr:
I understood some of those words
Genre:
Philosophy
96
pages
2016 READS
Infinite Jest
David Foster Wallace
64
96
/100
tl;dr:
Wallace understands (un)happiness, also words
Genre:
Fiction
1079
pages
Charlotte's Web
E.B. White
73
91
/100
tl;dr:
Charlotte is the friend you wish you had
Genre:
Fiction
184
pages
The Great Gatsby
F. Scott Fitzgerald
76
91
/100
tl;dr:
What did Gatsby love: the light, or the girl?
Genre:
Fiction
180
pages
Lolita
Vladimir Nabokov
71
88
/100
tl;dr:
Pedophiles can be protagonists too
Genre:
Fiction
317
pages
All The Light We Cannot See
Anthony Doerr
63
85
/100
tl;dr:
Nazis were people too
Genre:
Fiction
530
pages
Consider the Lobster
David Foster Wallace
60
84
/100
tl;dr:
Wallace knows really big words
Genre:
Literature
343
pages
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child
J.K. & Others Rowling
68
84
/100
tl;dr:
Bellatrix is Voldemort's baby mama; baby is mean
Genre:
Fiction
308
pages
A Room of One's Own
Virginia Woolf
75
84
/100
tl;dr:
Did Virginia take her own medicine for genius? Maybe.
Genre:
Writing
114
pages
Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption
Stephen King
70
80
/100
tl;dr:
Reading a whole book in Morgan Freeman's voice rocks
Genre:
Fiction
87
pages
Ender's Game
Orson Scott Card
78
80
/100
tl;dr:
Big bro takes over Earth; little bro kills aliens
Genre:
Fiction
324
pages
The Hunt for Red October
Tom Clancy
72
79
/100
tl;dr:
Clancy'll you miss the good ol' days of hating Russians
Genre:
Fiction
641
pages
When Breath Becomes Air
Paul Kalanithi
66
78
/100
tl;dr:
Doctor faces death himself
Genre:
Auto/biography
225
pages
The Laws of Simplicity
John Maeda
62
76
/100
tl;dr:
Subtract the obvious, add the meaningful
Genre:
Design/Innovation
100
pages
Animal Farm
George Orwell
74
76
/100
tl;dr:
Pigs can be Communists too
Genre:
Fiction
141
pages
Look Me in the Eye
John Elder Robison
69
76
/100
tl;dr:
Funny, or just aspergian, stories
Genre:
Auto/biography
288
pages
Eichmann in Jerusalem: A Report on the Banality of Evil
Hannah Arendt
77
76
/100
tl;dr:
Eichmann was dumb, and maybe also evil
Genre:
History
298
pages
The Victory Lab
Sasha Issenberg
80
76
/100
tl;dr:
Surprising few, politics was data-dumb pre-Obama
Genre:
Politics
375
pages
My Reading Life
Pat Conroy
65
75
/100
tl;dr:
Pat Conroy has read 300 pages a day for 300 years
Genre:
Auto/biography
333
pages
Accidental Empires
Robert X Cringely
61
74
/100
tl;dr:
Bill Gates was mean; it worked
Genre:
Technology
361
pages
Einstein's God
Krista Tippett
59
74
/100
tl;dr:
There are scientists that believe
Genre:
Science
279
pages
Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman
Richard Feynman
67
72
/100
tl;dr:
Physicist loves strip clubs, brain teasers
Genre:
Auto/biography
391
pages
The Story of My Experiments with Truth
Gandhi
79
68
/100
tl;dr:
Gandhi thought a lot about food, apparently
Genre:
Auto/biography
505
pages
How I Lost 170 Million Dollars
Noah Kagan
58
52
/100
tl;dr:
Guy got fired; probably due to writing style
Genre:
Technology
112
pages
2015 READS
The Phantom Tollbooth
Norton Juster
36
92
/100
tl;dr:
Bored boy learns to love life
Genre:
Fiction
256
pages
Doctor Sleep
Stephen King
27
90
/100
tl;dr:
Sequel to The Shining; people still shine
Genre:
Fiction
531
pages
11/22/63
Stephen King
35
90
/100
tl;dr:
Time traveler saves JFK, rips time-space
Genre:
Fiction
849
pages
I Am A Strange Loop
Douglas Hofstadter
38
88
/100
tl;dr:
"I" is a strange loop
Genre:
Psych/Soc/Stats
363
pages
It
Stephen King
48
86
/100
tl;dr:
Imagination makes and kills monsters
Genre:
Fiction
1090
pages
The Bazaar of Bad Dreams
Stephen King
56
86
/100
tl;dr:
King turns his real world stories horrific
Genre:
Fiction
495
pages
Think Like a Freak
Levitt & Dubner
33
84
/100
tl;dr:
How to think good
Genre:
Economics
211
pages
we are all completely beside ourselves
Karen Joy Fowler
50
84
/100
tl;dr:
Chimps are people too
Genre:
Fiction
308
pages
The Mind of God
Paul Davies
26
83
/100
tl;dr:
Why can we understand math and physics?
Genre:
Science
232
pages
Science and Religion in Quest of Truth
John Polkinghorne
37
82
/100
tl;dr:
Scientifically believing in God is possible
Genre:
Religion
134
pages
Saving the Appearances
Owen Barfield
51
81
/100
tl;dr:
People lived metaphors in the past
Genre:
Philosophy
191
pages
The Curious Case of the Dog in the Night-time
Mark Haddon
52
80
/100
tl;dr:
Awkward boy is good at math
Genre:
Fiction
226
pages
The Martian
Andy Weir
29
79
/100
tl;dr:
Stranded astronaut grows potatoes on Mars
Genre:
Fiction
369
pages
The Innovators
Walter Isaacson
45
77
/100
tl;dr:
Collaboration makes computers
Genre:
Technology
488
pages
Modern Romance
Aziz Ansari
43
77
/100
tl;dr:
More options, different problems in love
Genre:
Psych/Soc/Stats
250
pages
A Deadly Wandering
Matt Richtel
57
77
/100
tl;dr:
Don't text and drive, your brain ain't that good
Genre:
Technology
387
pages
Emergence
Steven Johnson
31
76
/100
tl;dr:
2001 book predicts emergent tech well
Genre:
Technology
234
pages
Way of the Peaceful Warrior
Dan Millman
46
75
/100
tl;dr:
Dan probably found zen in a gas station
Genre:
Psych/Soc/Stats
215
pages
Got to Give the People What They Want
Jalen Rose
55
75
/100
tl;dr:
Jalen Rose is a baller
Genre:
Sports
265
pages
Miracles
Eric Metaxas
30
74
/100
tl;dr:
Miracles are real, Metaxas' friends claim
Genre:
Religion
332
pages
The Design of Everyday Things
Donald Norman
39
74
/100
tl;dr:
User error is the designer's fault
Genre:
Design/Innovation
217
pages
Endzone
John U. Bacon
53
74
/100
tl;dr:
Dave Brandon almost broke Michigan
Genre:
Sports
464
pages
Black Holes and Baby Universes
Stephen Hawking
47
72
/100
tl;dr:
Stephen Hawking is real smart
Genre:
Science
175
pages
The Universe in a Single Atom
HH Dalai Lama
32
71
/100
tl;dr:
Being the Dalai Lama would be legit
Genre:
Science
209
pages
Black Holes & Time Warps
Kip Thorne
54
71
/100
tl;dr:
Black holes are probably complicated
Genre:
Science
527
pages
Descarte's Error
Antonio Damasio
42
70
/100
tl;dr:
Emotions guide reason
Genre:
Psych/Soc/Stats
267
pages
24/7
Jonathan Crary
49
70
/100
tl;dr:
Praxis-ing sleep is natural, also eff capitalism
Genre:
Philosophy
128
pages
Against the Gods
Peter L. Bernstein
28
69
/100
tl;dr:
Risk and stats evolved with people
Genre:
Psych/Soc/Stats
337
pages
Belief in God in an Age of Science
John Polkinghorne
44
69
/100
tl;dr:
Religious discovery can mirror science
Genre:
Religion
130
pages
The Drama of the Gifted Child
Alice Miller
41
62
/100
tl;dr:
Author loves her model, not her parents
Genre:
Psych/Soc/Stats
119
pages
Think Big, Start Small, Move Fast
Nicholas LaRusso
40
55
/100
tl;dr:
Mayo learned how to innovate
Genre:
Business
242
pages
2014 READS
Invisible Monsters
Chuck Palahniuk
13
89
/100
tl;dr:
Beauty becomes beast
Genre:
Fiction
297
pages
1984
George Orwell
6
88
/100
tl;dr:
Big Brother
Genre:
Fiction
326
pages
Born to Run
Christopher McDougall
21
87
/100
tl;dr:
Running barefoot with Tarahumara
Genre:
Auto/biography
282
pages
The Origin of Life
Paul Davies
3
82
/100
tl;dr:
All scientific and related issues to life origin
Genre:
Science
256
pages
On Writing
Stephen King
9
81
/100
tl;dr:
Stephen King's autobiography / fiction tips
Genre:
Writing
291
pages
The Fault in Our Stars
John Green
19
81
/100
tl;dr:
Girl meets boy; cancer; sadness
Genre:
Fiction
313
pages
A More Beautiful Question
Warren Berger
16
81
/100
tl;dr:
Questioning: how, why
Genre:
Philosophy
220
pages
The Elements of Style
Strunk and White
12
80
/100
tl;dr:
Writing well
Genre:
Writing
85
pages
This Explains Everything
Various
7
79
/100
tl;dr:
Deep, beautiful, elegant scientific ideas
Genre:
Science
402
pages
The Rosie Project
Graeme Simsion
17
79
/100
tl;dr:
Awkward professor finds love
Genre:
Fiction
292
pages
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
Lewis Carroll
10
78
/100
tl;dr:
Trippy journey through kid's imagination
Genre:
Fiction
86
pages
Conversations on Consciousness
Susan Blackmore
5
78
/100
tl;dr:
Overview of consciousness debate
Genre:
Science
257
pages
Talking Diabetes with Owls
David Sedaris
18
78
/100
tl;dr:
Hilarious short stories
Genre:
Auto/biography
275
pages
Breakfast of Champions
Kurt Vonnegut
22
78
/100
tl;dr:
America sucks, and so on
Genre:
Fiction
303
pages
American Gods
Neil Gaiman
23
76
/100
tl;dr:
Gods still exist, and they're gullible
Genre:
Fiction
588
pages
The (Honest) Truth About Dishonesty
Dan Ariely
20
75
/100
tl;dr:
Everybody lies, but just a little
Genre:
Psych/Soc/Stats
254
pages
Fully Present
Smalley & Winston
15
74
/100
tl;dr:
Science, art, practice of meditation
Genre:
Psych/Soc/Stats
222
pages
Consciousness: A Very Short Introduction
Susan Blackmore
4
73
/100
tl;dr:
Overview of consciousness debate
Genre:
Science
133
pages
An Astronaut's Guide to Life on Earth
Col. Chris Hadfield
24
71
/100
tl;dr:
Being an astronaut would be tough, fun
Genre:
Auto/biography
282
pages
Origins of Life
Freeman Dyson
2
67
/100
tl;dr:
Theory of double origin of life (DNA Last)
Genre:
Science
91
pages
10% Happier
Dan Harris
14
66
/100
tl;dr:
"I thought of a catchy meditation slogan"
Genre:
Psych/Soc/Stats
237
pages
Physics in Mind
Werner B. Loewenstein
8
64
/100
tl;dr:
Brain physics
Genre:
Science
275
pages
The Emergence of Life on Earth
Iris Fry
1
63
/100
tl;dr:
Scientific history of how life began on earth
Genre:
Science
283
pages
The Happiness Project
Gretchen Rubin
25
63
/100
tl;dr:
(Most) moms can be happy too
Genre:
Auto/biography
289
pages
Consciousness
Eva Herr
11
50
/100
tl;dr:
Pseudoscience; quantum consciousness
Genre:
Science
207
pages