BooksBill Gates

Bill Gates Reading List: Inventor, Philanthropist Names What He'll Be Reading This Summer

Bill Gates Names Summer Reading List
Open Image Modal
Billionaire Bill Gates, chairman and founder of Microsoft Corp., listens during the 2013 Fiscal Summit sponsored by the Peter G. Peterson Foundation in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Tuesday, May 7, 2013. The summit puts forward solutions for bipartisan agreement to address America's long-term debt and deficits. Photographer: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Bill Gates has shared his reading lists before, and this summer he has named some interesting non-fiction (and one fiction) books that he plans on reading. He posted the list last week on his blog.

Here are the titles, plus a couple of lines from his blogpost about each. Click here to read more.

Check out Bill's book pile:

Bill Gates's Summer Reading List 2013
The World Until Yesterday: What Can We Learn from Traditional Societies? By Jared Diamond(01 of08)
Open Image Modal
Diamond’s best-known book, Guns, Germs, and Steel, had a profound effect on the way I think about history and why certain societies advance faster than others. In fact, I’d like to invite you to read it along with me. I’ll be posting my review of The World Until Yesterday in about two weeks. If you’re interested, you can read it at the same time and post your comments.
The Box: How the Shipping Container Made the World Smaller and the World Economy Bigger by Marc Levinson (02 of08)
Open Image Modal
I’ve read a fair amount already about how advances in engines for jets and ships made globalization possible.
However Long the Night: Molly Melching's Journey to Help Millions of African Women and Girls by Aimee Molloy(03 of08)
Open Image Modal
Melinda read this book a while ago and wrote a great review of it on the foundation's site.
How Children Succeed: Grit, Curiosity, and the Hidden Power of Character by Paul Tough(04 of08)
Open Image Modal
Tough argues that non-cognitive qualities like perseverance and optimism are what make kids successful.
Japan's Dietary Transition and Its Impacts (Food, Health, and the Environment) by Vaclav Smil and Kazuhiko Kobayashi(05 of08)
Open Image Modal
Smil is one of my favorite authors. The term “polymath” was made for people like him.
Made in the USA: The Rise and Retreat of American Manufacturing by Vaclav Smil (06 of08)
Open Image Modal
While his style can be a little dry and isn’t for everyone, I learn more by reading Vaclav Smil than just about anyone else.
Whistling Vivaldi: How Stereotypes Affect Us and What We Can Do (Issues of Our Time) by Claude Steele(07 of08)
Open Image Modal
I’ve actually read this one already, but I’m including it here as a recommendation. Discrimination has a lot of layers that make it tough for minorities to get a leg up. And Steele offers a few ideas about how to tackle the problem.
Patriot and Assassin by Robert Cook(08 of08)
Open Image Modal
I think The Hunger Games was the last novel I read. I bet this one will involve less archery.

Our 2024 Coverage Needs You

As Americans head to the polls in 2024, the very future of our country is at stake. At HuffPost, we believe that a free press is critical to creating well-informed voters. That's why our journalism is free for everyone, even though other newsrooms retreat behind expensive paywalls.

Our journalists will continue to cover the twists and turns during this historic presidential election. With your help, we'll bring you hard-hitting investigations, well-researched analysis and timely takes you can't find elsewhere. Reporting in this current political climate is a responsibility we do not take lightly, and we thank you for your support.

to keep our news free for all.

Support HuffPost
Suggest a correction
|
Submit a tip