Derek Sivers Book Recommendations

drek sivers book recommendations

Who is Derek Sivers:

One of the most original thinkers of our time, also humble and funny. In his own words: I’ve been a musician, circus performer, entrepreneur, and speaker. I’m a slow thinker, explorer, xenophile, and I love a different point of view.

What’s on the list: 

360+ books he has read and liked enough to recommend to others. 

Derek Sivers books: Useful Not True, How to Live, Hell Yeah or No, Your Music and People, Anything You Want

You Can Negotiate Anything, by Herb Cohen

The Listening Book, by W.A. Mathieu

The Courage to Be Disliked, by Ichiro Kishimi and Fumitake Koga

Sum: Forty Tales from the Afterlives, by David Eagleman

The Gardener and the Carpenter, by Alison Gopnik

Playful Parenting, by Lawrence Cohen

On Writing Well, by William Zinsser

The War of Art, by Steven Pressfield

Stumbling on Happiness, by Daniel Gilbert

E-Myth Revisited, by Michael Gerber

Arabs, by Tim Mackintosh-Smith

The Vagabond’s Way, by Rolf Potts

Finite and Infinite Games, by James P. Carse

Israel: A Simple Guide to the Most Misunderstood Country on Earth, by Noa Tishby

How Minds Change, by David McRaney

How Religion Evolved, by Robin Dunbar

Nothing & Everything, by Val N. Tine

You Look Like a Thing and I Love You, by Janelle Shane

City of Gold: Dubai, by Jim Krane

The Righteous Mind, by Jonathan Haidt

Write Useful Books, by Rob Fitzpatrick

Wild Problems, by Russ Roberts

Relationship Handbook, by George Pransky

Awaken the Giant Within, by Tony Robbins

How Buildings Learn, by Stewart Brand

Getting Things Done, by David Allen

Several Short Sentences About Writing, by Verlyn Klinkenborg

Skin in the Game, by Nassim Nicholas Taleb

This Is Marketing, by Seth Godin

Atomic Habits, by James Clear

Thinking in Bets, by Annie Duke

12 Rules for Life, by Jordan Peterson

Sapiens, by Yuval Noah Harari

Happy, by Derren Brown

Au Contraire: Figuring Out the French, by Gilles Asselin and Ruth Mastron

The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck, by Mark Manson

Ego Is the Enemy, by Ryan Holiday

Too Soon Old, Too Late Smart: Thirty True Things You Need to Know Now, by Gordon Livingston

Cows, Pigs, Wars, and Witches, by Marvin Harris

The Entrepreneur Roller Coaster, by Darren Hardy

The Wisdom of No Escape, by Pema Chödrön

When Things Fall Apart, by Pema Chödrön

The Compound Effect, by Darren Hardy

When Cultures Collide, by Richard D. Lewis

Antifragile, by Nassim Nicholas Taleb

The Willpower Instinct, by Kelly McGonigal

Turning Pro, by Steven Pressfield

Quiet, by Susan Cain

Do the Work, by Steven Pressfield

What Got You Here Won’t Get You There, by Marshall Goldsmith

A Guide to the Good Life: The Ancient Art of Stoic Joy, by William Irvine

Switch, by Chip Heath and Dan Heath

The Happiness Hypothesis, by Jonathan Haidt

Influence, by Robert Cialdini

The Time Paradox, by Philip Zimbardo and John Boyd

How to Get Rich, by Felix Dennis

The 4-Hour Work Week, by Tim Ferriss

The Smartest Investment Book You’ll Ever Read, by Daniel R. Solin

The Paradox of Choice – Why More is Less, by Barry Schwartz

The Art of Profitability, by Adrian Slywotzky

The Silk Roads, by Peter Frankopan

The Religious Case Against Belief, by James P. Carse

Pragmatism, by William James

Complete Idiot’s Guide to Understanding Judaism, by Rabbi Benjamin Blech

Code, by Charles Petzold

The Biggest Bluff, by Maria Konnikova

The Secrets of Story, by Matt Bird

Philosophy: a Complete Introduction, by Sharon Kaye

The Minimalist Entrepreneur, by Sahil Lavingia

Four Thousand Weeks – by Oliver Burkeman

How to Live on 24 Hours a Day, by Arnold Bennett

How to Think More Effectively, by the School of Life

Story, by Robert McKee

All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten, by Robert Fulghum

Nonviolent Communication, by Marshall Rosenberg

Open Borders, by Bryan Caplan

The Practice, by Seth Godin

The Psychology of Money, by Morgan Housel

Stillness Is the Key, Ryan Holiday

Everything Is F*cked, by Mark Manson

Stubborn Attachments, by Tyler Cowen

Watching the English, by Kate Fox

Story of Philosophy, by Will Durant

Innumeracy, by John Allen Paulos

The Dip, by Seth Godin

The Road Less Traveled, by M. Scott Peck

Guns, Germs, and Steel, by Jared Diamond

Steal Like an Artist, by Austin Kleon

Total Recall, by Arnold Schwarzenegger

A Mind for Numbers, by Barbara Oakley

Smartcuts, by Shane Snow

Superhuman by Habit, by Tynan

Mindwise: How We Understand What Others Think, Believe, Feel, and Want, by Nicholas Epley

The Obstacle Is the Way, by Ryan Holiday

The Antidote: Happiness for People Who Can’t Stand Positive Thinking, by Oliver Burkeman

Decisive, by Chip and Dan Heath

5 Elements of Effective Thinking, by Edward B. Burger and Michael Starbird

The Icarus Deception, by Seth Godin

So Good They Can’t Ignore You, by Cal Newport

Mastery, by George Leonard

The Little Book of Talent, by Daniel Coyle

What Technology Wants, by Kevin Kelly

Thinking, Fast and Slow, by Daniel Kahneman

Willpower, by Roy Baumeister and John Tierney

Power of Full Engagement, by Jim Loehr and Tony Schwartz

Moonwalking with Einstein, by Joshua Foer

Practicing Mind, by Thomas Sterner

The Personal MBA, by Josh Kaufman

Mindset, by Carol Dweck

Art and Fear, by David Bayles and Ted Orland

Drive, by Daniel Pink

The Geography of Bliss, by Eric Weiner

How We Decide, by Jonah Lehrer

Discover Your Inner Economist, by Tyler Cowen

The Talent Code, by Daniel Coyle

Ignore Everybody, by Hugh MacLeod

Tribes, by Seth Godin

How to Talk to Anyone, by Leil Lowndes

Brain Rules, by John Medina

You, Inc – The Art of Selling Yourself, by Harry Beckwith

The Innovator’s Solution, by Clayton Christensen

Small is the New Big, by Seth Godin

The 48 Laws of Power, by Robert Greene and Joost Elffers

Swisstory, History of Switzerland – by Laurie Theurer

Useful Delusions, by Shankar Vedantam

Outlive, by Peter Attia

Nietzsche: a complete introduction, by Roy Jackson

What Everyone Needs to Know about Islam, by John L. Esposito

Almost Perfect, by Erika Lemay

The Courage to Be Happy, by Ichiro Kishimi and Fumitake Koga

Essays and Aphorisms, by Arthur Schopenhauer

Wanting, by Luke Burgis

Beyond Order, by Jordan Peterson

The Art of Creative Thinking, by Rod Judkins

Will, by Will Smith and Mark Manson

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Dummies, by Rob Willson and Rhena Branch

Prisoners of Geography, by Tim Marshall

Finland Culture Shock, by Deborah Swallow

The Alter Ego Effect, by Todd Herman

Life 3.0, by Max Tegmark

The Consolations of Philosophy, by Alain De Botton

The Lessons of History, by Will and Ariel Durant

When, by Daniel Pink

Perennial Seller, by Ryan Holiday

Principles, by Ray Dalio

How to Read a Book, by Charles Van Doren and Mortimer Adler

Grit, by Angela Duckworth

How to Talk So Kids Will Listen & Listen So Kids Will Talk, by Adele Fabe and Elaine Mazlish

The Inevitable, by Kevin Kelly

Peak: Secrets from the New Science of Expertise, by Anders Ericsson

Deep Work, by Cal Newport

The Geography of Genius, by Eric Weiner

The Truth, by Neil Strauss

Writing Tools, by Roy Peter Clark

Fluent Forever, by Gabriel Wyner

Geography of Time, by Robert Levine

Show Your Work, by Austin Kleon

How to Learn a Foreign Language, by Paul Pimsleur

Man’s Search for Meaning, by Viktor Frankl

Choose Yourself!, by James Altucher

Self Reliance, by Ralph Waldo Emerson

How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big, by Scott Adams

No B.S. Time Management for Entrepreneurs, by Dan S. Kennedy

The Power of Habit, by Charles Duhigg

The Passionate Programmer, by Chad Fowler

Poke the Box, by Seth Godin

The 4-Hour Body, by Tim Ferriss

Hackers & Painters, by Paul Graham

I Will Teach You To Be Rich, by Ramit Sethi

Why Smart People Make Big Money Mistakes, by Gilovich and Belsky

Management of the Absurd, by Richard Farson

CrowdSourcing, by Jeff Howe

Predictably Irrational, by Dan Ariely

The Magic of Thinking Big, by David Schwartz

The Ultimate Sales Machine, by Chet Holmes

The Art of Learning, by Josh Waitzkin

Wikinomics, by Don Tapscott and Anthony Williams

The Wisdom of Crowds, by James Surowiecki

Meatball Sundae, by Seth Godin

Don’t Make Me Think, by Steve Krug

Excellent Advice for Living, by Kevin Kelly

The Essentials of Hinduism, by Swami Bhaskarananda

Delphi Complete Works of William James, by William James

Introducing Pragmatism, by Cornelis de Waal

Pragmatism an Introduction, by Michael Bacon

Japanese Mind, by Roger Davies and Osamu Ikeno

River Out of Eden, by Richard Dawkins

Where Is My Flying Car?, by J Storrs Hall

The Box, by Marc Levinson

Before We Go, by Dan John

The Beginning of Infinity, by David Deutsch

The Art of Possibility, by Rosamund and Benjamin Zander

Pre-Suasion, by Robert Cialdini

Surviving AI, by Calum Chace

How Not to Be Wrong, by Jordan Ellenberg

Die Empty, by Todd Henry

Surely You’re Joking, Mr. Feynman!, by Richard Feynman

Never Split the Difference, by Chris Voss and Tahl Raz

Getting the Love You Want, by Harville Hendrix

Homo Deus, by Yuval Noah Harari

How to Live, by Sarah Bakewell

Nobody Wants to Read Your Sh*t, by Steven Pressfield

Living Beautifully with Uncertainty and Change, by Pema Chödrön

Give and Take, by Adam M. Grant

The Bed of Procrustes, by Nassim Nicholas Taleb

Making Ideas Happen, by Scott Belsky

A Short History of Nearly Everything, by Bill Bryson

Ikigai, by Sebastian Marshall

Wired for Story, by Lisa Cron

Pragmatic Programmer, by Andy Hunt and David Thomas

Meditations – by Marcus Aurelius, translation by C Scot Hicks and David V Hicks

The Developing World, by Fredrik Härén

You Are Not So Smart, by David McRaney

The Lean Startup, by Eric Ries

Seeking Wisdom, by Peter Bevelin

Start Small, Stay Small, by Rob Walling and Mike Taber

Making a Good Brain Great, by Daniel G. Amen

On Writing, by Stephen King

Business Stripped Bare, by Richard Branson

Talent Is Overrated, by Geoff Colvin

The Investor’s Manifesto, by William J. Bernstein

Overachievement, by John Eliot

The How of Happiness, by Sonja Lyubomirsky

Personal Development for Smart People, by Steve Pavlina

The Culture Code, by Clotaire Rapaille

The Four Pillars of Investing, by William Bernstein

Here Comes Everybody, by Clay Shirky

The Culting of Brands, by Douglas Atkin

Made to Stick, by Chip Heath and Dan Heath

Maximum Achievement, by Brian Tracy

Persuasion Story Code, by David Garfinkel

The Power of Regret, by Daniel Pink

What’s in It for Them?, by Joe Polish

Work Clean, by Dan Charnas

How to Know Everything – by Elke Wiss

The Me, Me, Me Epidemic – by Amy McCready

Attempts – by Dan John

Consider This – by Chuck Palahniuk

Scepticism: A Very Short Introduction – by Duncan Pritchard

True Style – by G. Bruce Boyer

Brain Rules for Aging Well – by John Medina

The Artist’s Journey – by Steven Pressfield

Swiss Watching – by Diccon Bewes

Mindfulness in Plain English – by Henepola Gunaratana

How Music Works – by David Byrne

The Way of the Linguist – by Steve Kaufmann

Zero to One – by Peter Thiel and Blake Masters

How Adam Smith Can Change Your Life – by Russ Roberts

Daily Rituals: How Artists Work – by Mason Currey

The Story of French – by Jean-Benoit Nadeau and Julie Barlow

Island – by Aldous Huxley

Ready for Anything – by David Allen

Starting Strength – by Mark Rippetoe

The Now Habit – by Neil Fiore

Mastery – by Robert Greene

Meditation for Beginners – by Jack Kornfield

Fail-Safe Investing – by Harry Browne

Linchpin – by Seth Godin

Cognitive Surplus – by Clay Shirky

The Selfish Gene – by Richard Dawkins

Nudge – by Richard Thaler and Cass Sunstein

Being Logical: A Guide to Good Thinking – by D.Q. McInerny

Pragmatic Thinking and Learning – by Andy Hunt

The Great Formula – by Mark Joyner

Outliers: The Story of Success – by Malcolm Gladwell

Lucky Or Smart? – by Bo Peabody

The China Study – by Campbell and Campbell

The Power of Less – by Leo Babauta

Cut to the Chase – by Stuart Levine

Know-How – by Ram Charan with Geri Willigan

The Art of Project Management – Scott Berkun

Nineteen Ways of Looking at Wang Wei – by Eliot Weinberger

Arabian Sands – by Wilfred Thesiger

Rebel Talent – by Francesca Gino

The Toilet Paper Entrepreneur – by Mike Michalowicz

Rich Dad Poor Dad – by Robert Kiyosaki

Pragmatism as a Way of Life – Ruth Anna and Hilary Putnam

Loving What Is – by Byron Katie

Essays One – by Lydia Davis

Everything Is Obvious – by Duncan Watts

The Socrates Express – by Eric Weiner

The Data Detective – by Tim Harford

The Philosophy of Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy – by Donald Robertson

The New York Nobody Knows – by William Helmreich

Barking Up the Wrong Tree – by Eric Barker

Tools of Titans – by Tim Ferriss

The Only Investment Guide You’ll Ever Need – by Andrew Tobias

Germany: Unraveling an Enigma – by Greg Nees

Never Let Go – by Dan John

In Pursuit of Silence – by George Prochnik

The Laws of Subtraction – by Matthew May

Drop Dead Healthy – by A. J. Jacobs

Little Bets – by Peter Sims

One Simple Idea – by Stephen Key

Focus – by Leo Babauta

The Upside of Irrationality – by Dan Ariely

Confessions of a Public Speaker – by Scott Berkun

The Profit Zone – by Adrian Slywotzky

Never Eat Alone – by Keith Ferrazzi and Tahl Raz

What Would Google Do? – by Jeff Jarvis

Speaking of India – by Craig Sorti

Losing My Virginity, by Richard Branson

From Rebel to Ruler – by Tony Saich

Questions Are the Answer – by Hal B. Gregersen

Anchored – Lucas Skrobot

The Barbell Prescription – Jonathon M. Sullivan

UAE Culture Shock – by Gina Crocetti Benesh

UAE Culture Smart – by John Walsh

Mistakes Were Made (But Not by Me) – by Carol Tavris

Useful Belief – Chris Helder

The Tao of Wu – by RZA

The Question Behind the Question – by John Miller

Writing to Learn – by William Zinsser

Skip the Line – by James Altucher

The Complacent Class – by Tyler Cowen

Lying – by Sam Harris

The Daily Stoic – by Ryan Holiday

Leading an Inspired Life – by Jim Rohn

The Drunkard’s Walk: How Randomness Rules Our Lives – by Leonard Mlodinow

How I Found Freedom in an Unfree World – by Harry Browne

The Sense of Style – by Steven Pinker

A More Beautiful Question – by Warren Berger

Make It Stick – by Peter Brown

The Power of No – by James and Claudia Altucher

How to Learn and Memorize French Vocabulary – by Anthony Metivier

The Checklist Manifesto – by Atul Gawande

Hiring Smart – by Pierre Mornell

A Gift to My Children – by Jim Rogers

Pomodoro Technique Illustrated – by Staffan Nöteberg

Causing a Scene – by Charlie Todd

Born to Run – by Christopher McDougall

How to be a Billionaire – by Martin Fridson

Enough – by John Bogle

Reality Check – by Guy Kawasaki

Fooled by Randomness – by Nassim Nicholas Taleb

The Obsolete Employee – by Michael Russer

Secrets of the Millionaire Mind – by T. Harv Ecker

Execution – by Larry Bossidy and Ram Charan

Islam and the Future of Tolerance – by Sam Harris and Maajid Nawaz

Cyprus Culture Smart – by Constantine Buhayer

Palestine a Four Thousand Year History – by Nur Masalha

Thus Spoke Zarathustra – by Friedrich Nietzsche

Complete Idiot’s Guide to Hinduism – by Linda Johnsen

100 Ways to Improve Your Writing – by Gary Provost

The Five Rings – by Miyamoto Musashi

Aesop’s Fables – translated by George Fyler Townsend

Fallen Leaves – by Will Durant

The Good Ancestor – by Roman Krznaric

The Elements of Style – by William Strunk

Indistractable – by Nir Eyal

The Tao of George Carlin – by George Carlin

21 Lessons for the 21st Century – by Yuval Noah Harari

The Geometry of Wealth – by Brian Portnoy

Peak Performance – by Brad Stulberg and Steve Magness

Money: Master the Game – by Tony Robbins

Simple Rules: How to Thrive in a Complex World – by Donald Sull

Quirkology – by Richard Wiseman

Mindware: Tools for Smart Thinking – by Richard Nisbett

Wilde in America – by David M. Friedman

Complexity: A Guided Tour – by Melanie Mitchell

Your Memory – by Kenneth L. Higbee

The Philosophical Baby – by Alison Gopnik

Hire With Your Head – by Lou Adler

The Pleasures and Sorrows of Work – by Alain De Botton

Born Standing Up – by Steve Martin

Committed – by Elizabeth Gilbert

What the Dog Saw – by Malcolm Gladwell

China Road – by Rob Gifford

Hot Commodities – by Jim Rogers

The Everything Token – by Steve Kaczynski and Scott Duke Kominers

Methods of Persuasion – by Nick Kolenda

The Alchemist – by Paulo Coelho

Prototype Nation – by Silvia M. Lindtner

The Art of Loving – by Erich Fromm

Crush It – by Gary Vaynerchuk

Shoe Dog – by Phil Knight

Grow Rich With Peace of Mind – by Napoleon Hill

Editing Humanity – by Kevin Davies

Poking a Dead Frog – by Mike Sacks

And Never Stop Dancing – by Gordon Livingston

The Future of Almost Everything – by Patrick Dixon

Me, Inc. – by Gene Simmons

Bird by Bird – by Anne Lamott

Program or Be Programmed – by Douglas Rushkoff and Leland Purvis

The Four Filters Invention of Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger – by Bud Labitan

What I Talk About When I Talk About Running – by Haruki Murakami

Confessions of a Serial Entrepreneur – by Stuart Skorman

Life Without Lawyers – by Philip K. Howard

The Productive Programmer – by Neal Ford

Crash Proof 2.0 – by Peter Schiff

Rapt – by Winifred Gallagher

Radical Honesty – by Brad Blanton

A Bull in China – by Jim Rogers

Founders at Work – by Jessica Livingston