By: Daniel McGinn
Pages: 304
Business
My recommendation: 7 / 10
Date read: 3rd Nov'16
Brief review: Everyone faces difficult situations in life. What makes world leaders is their tenacity to stand up to the challenges and make tough decisions which set them apart. This book is about the remarkable stories of some great men and women in history. Inside the book, among many stories, you will find - How a leader voluntarily gave up his CEO seat in the interest of the company; how a lady CEO of a mining company took a strong stance which change the safety standards of miners forever and how a CEO stood up to 65,000 angry activists.
By: Brent Schlender & Rick Tetzeli
Pages: 464
Biography, Business
My recommendation: 10 / 10
Date read: 31st Oct'16
Brief review: This is an unauthorised biography of Steve Jobs (the official one being 'Steve Jobs' by Walter Issacson). It digs deep into Jobs life, his working style and how he handled the challenges faced by him. One of the greatest visionary of the 21st century, you will do well to read this one.
By: J Krishnamurti
Pages: 129
Philosophy
My recommendation: 9 / 10
Brief review: Krishnamurthy is one of my favorites. His talks are deep. He has given several discourses over his life, eventually culminating in several books. In this book, he suggests we reflect upon our lives and identify how much of it was chosen and how much was influenced by the society we live in. He says, 'the demand for more and more shows the inward poverty of man'. He gives his ideas on how to make our life more meaningful by freeing our lives from society's so-called norms and finding our true selves. Read it and you shall find a way to inner peace.
By: Lao Tzu
Pages: 128
Philosophy
My recommendation: 10 / 10
Date read: 25th Oct'16
Brief review: The book is attributed to philosopher Lao Tzu (though still debated). It is said to be written around 4th century BC. Tao Te Ching means 'The Way'. It discusses the objective of human life and how to live an ethical life. It also addresses the problem of governing a country from the point of view of a person who follows "the way". I am mesmerized by this classic chinese text. I guarantee you too will fall in love with this book.
By: Stephen Hawking
Pages: 126
Biography
My recommendation: 9 / 10
Date read: 16th Oct'16
Brief review: Stephen Hawking is considered as one of the most brilliant physicists since Einstein. This book gives reader an inside view of his life - his childhood, struggle with his disease and love for physics. Got to know a little more about Stephen Hawking after reading this book. He has definitely proved that there are 'no boundaries'. It was nice to meet him through this book.
By: Porter Erisman
Pages: 256
Business
My recommendation: 8 / 10
Date read: 17th Oct'2016
Brief review: Alibaba came out with the largest IPO in history in 2014 – bigger than Google, Facebook and Twitter combined. Jack Ma, who failed in far too many things in his life, built one of the largest companies in the world in less than two decades. How Alibaba faced dot com crisis, beat ebay and fought with the Chinese government is something worth knowing. Without a doubt his approach was quite different and you get to read all of it in this fascinating story of Alibaba's success.
By: Sachin Tendulkar
Pages: 476
Biography
My recommendation: 5 / 10
Date read: 11th Oct'16
Brief review: Few players has been given such a respect as Sachin Tendulkar in the game of Cricket worldwide. In this autobiography, Sachin talks about his career in Cricket, right from revealing his early life to winning the world cup in 2011. I was excited to read this book but was disappointed. It carries more of a commentary and statistics of matches rather than his life. No doubt, he inspires with his performance but the book is a thumbs down. Only for dying hard fanatics of Sachin Tendulkar.
By: Simon Sinek
Pages: 231
Business
My recommendation: 8 / 10
Date read: 8th Oct'16
Brief review: Want to be successful? Start with why. That's what Simon Sinek advocates in this book. He says - in business it doesn't matter what you do but why you do it. He refers to some of the global leaders and suggests they all started with why. Once why is at the core of our vision, all our activities should be aligned with it. This book will surely bring clarity to your own vision.
By: Pearl S Buck
Pages: 416
Fiction
My recommendation: 8 / 10
Date read: 6th Oct'16
Brief review: Winner of Pulitzer Prize in 1932, it's a novel about a farmer named Wang Lung; his struggle, success and fate. It's takes you through a complete cycle of poverty, humility, passion, ambition and rewards. It's a brilliant piece of work. It even carries some timeless wisdom and philosophy in a subtle way. For me, it seemed to be lengthy and boring in the beginning but as I progressed, the story got me involved. It's a good read for fiction lovers.
By: Randy Pausch
Pages: 206
Biography, Inspiration, Self Help
My recommendation: 8 / 10
Date read: 10th Sep'16
Brief review: What would you do if you have a short time to live? Specially when are in the prime of your life and the future looks promising. Randy Pausch was a professor at Carnegie Mellon University. At age 47, he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and given 3-6 months of good life left. During this time he gave an inspiring talk called 'The Last Lecture' which went viral. The book is based on that lecture. When you get perspective from people not old enough but mortality looming over their life, you get a lot of wisdom to ponder over your own meaning in life. It's a good and inspiring read.
