5 books that Bill Gates advises in 2018

    Bill Gates regularly shares his books on his blog and advises those he liked. In early December, a new entry appeared:

    If you like to give or receive books for holidays, then you are like me. Good reading is the best gift: thoughtful and packaged (no batteries or assembly required). Usually I don’t care if the books from the list that I make by the end of the year are suitable as a gift, but this year the selection is quite a gift.



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    My list for this year is quite eclectic. From the manual on meditation and deep immersion in the topic of autonomous weapons to the thriller about the collapse of a promising company - here there is something for everyone. If you are looking for a proven gift for friends or relatives, you can’t go wrong with any of the books presented.



    Educated , Tara Westover (in the Eksmo variant: Tara Westover, “Pupil: betray, to find yourself”). Tara never went to school or to the doctor until she left home at 17. Bill Gates notes that he would never have thought that he would be interested in the history of growing up in a Mormon family, but the author turned out to be such a good writer that, while reading about her extreme childhood, made her think about her own life. Gates and his wife Melinda fell in love with the memoirs of a young woman who had such a thirst for knowledge that she received a Ph.D. at cambridge university.

    Army of None , Paul Scharre. A standalone weapon is not exactly a festive theme, but it makes you wonder how hard it is to cope with AI during combat operations. This is an extremely complex topic, but the author very clearly explains everything and examines the pros and cons of the war machines. His acquaintance with the topic should not be surprising, since he is a veteran who helped the US government develop an autonomous weapon policy.

    Bad Blood , John Carreyrou. Gates notes that this book was recommended to him by many friends and the story was so exciting that he could not tear himself away from the very beginning of the book. Journalist Carreiro offers an insider perspective on the rise and fall of Theranos. This book has it all: complex frauds, corporate intrigues, stories from the covers of magazines, destroyed family values, and the decline of a company that was once valued at $ 10 billion.

    21 Lessons for the 21st Century , Yuval Noah Harari. Gates notes that he loves everything that historian Yuval Noah Harrari has written, and the last book is no exception. But if Sapiens and Homo Deus were devoted respectively to the past and the future, then the novelty is about the present. If the outgoing 2018 makes you very worried about the state of this world, the lessons offered can be a good basis for understanding the news and the changes we are facing.

    The Headspace Guide to Meditation and Mindfulness , Andy Puddicombe. Bill Gates writes that at the age of 25, he would surely make fun of this topic, but now he and Melinda practice meditation. The book begins with the author's story about his personal journey from a university student to a Buddhist monk, and ends with an entertaining explanation of the basics of meditation. If you are thinking about how to achieve self-awareness, this book will serve as an excellent introduction.

    Note: the Russian version of the last four books has not yet been found.


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