The best books I read in 2018 (15)

  • Skin In The Game

    By: Nassim Nicholas Taleb   

    Pages: 304

    Non Fiction

    My recommendation: 8 / 10

    Date read: 20th May'18

    Brief review: Another masterpiece by Taleb. This is the 4th book of Taleb that I have read. A little different than the previous ones. Taleb says 'your actions and advise makes no sense unless you too have skin in the game'. In today's world, most bureaucrats, politicians, financial advisors, nobel prize winners and many other so called intellectuals take decisions and advise people without being negatively affected by the outcome of their actions. You need time and patience to read and understand Taleb. Could be heavy for first time readers but a brilliant read for regulars. 

  • Born Standing Up

    By: Steve Martin   

    Pages: 228

    Biography, Inspiration

    My recommendation: 8 / 10

    Date read: 9th Apr'18

    Brief review: Steve Martin was one of the world's most sought after stand up comedian during the 1970's. But it didn't last long. Not because people stopped laughing at his performance but because he chose to leave. In this book, Steve tells his story straight from the heart. How he reached from empty halls to massive attendance of over 50,000 people in his shows and why decided to abruptly end his performances. He candidly shares his personal challenges, emptiness and reconciliation with his family. A true story of sheer hard work and dedication. An inspiring and motivating read.

  • Anything You Want

    By: Derek Sivers   

    Pages: 92

    Business, Inspiration, Sales

    My recommendation: 9 / 10

    Date read: 6th Apr'18

    Brief review: I am a fan of Derek Sivers. His thoughts and blogs are inspirational. Being a budding musician he could not find a  distribution company for his album. That led to him creating one of the largest online music stores in the world for independent artists named CDBABY. Around 2008, he sold his company for $22 million and donated the proceeds to charity. In this book, Derek tells his story as it happened. It's refreshing, inspirational and motivational. A no nonsense book with absolute clarity on secret of happiness and how you can also create something big. A must read.

  • The Snowball: Warren Buffet And The Business of Life

    By: Alice Schroeder   

    Pages: 838

    Biography

    My recommendation: 10 / 10

    Date read: 19th Mar'18

    Brief review: A brilliant read. Though we all know Warren Buffet and a lot has been written about him in the world media, nothing comes close to this book. It captures the essence of Buffet's life as he lived it. It highlights his investing achievements and also exposes his mistakes. It gives almost a day to day view to his private life, his legal battles, his attachment of money, his frugal lifestyle, his negotiating skills and his need for female companionship. Alice Schroeder has done a wonderful job of putting down everything as it is and it makes a wonderful read. A must read for every Buffet fan.

  • Thinking Fast and Slow

    By: Daniel Kahneman   

    Pages: 448

    Psychology

    My recommendation: 10 / 10

    Date read: 8th Mar'18

    Brief review: Written by a Nobel Prize winner, the book is about human bias, emotions, probabilities and luck. It digs deep into the human mind and reveals interesting behavior patterns which we never new existed. It's a brilliant piece of work after decades of research. We may think ourselves to be smart though we may just be lucky. It gives a lot of insight on how we perceive risk and the vulnerability of first impressions. Why so called experts choose complexity over simplicity and why doctors are reluctant to take chances with new forms of treatments with terminally ill patients. Read it slow. It will change your paradigm of thinking.

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