Do you want to know what ultra-successful people usually have in common? They read. A lot. In fact most successful people will credit much of their success, knowledge, and skills to reading.
“If we encounter a man of rare intellect, we should ask him what books he reads.”
So proclaimed American philosopher, essayist and poet Ralph Waldo Emerson. His sentiment is one of those eternal truths, a statement about the importance of literature in our everyday lives that continues to inform how the most successful among us navigate the world. Ask any of the world’s most acclaimed CEOs, billionaires and politicians about the source of their success, and you’ll find that they credit a remarkable number of their achievements to the simple, yet crucial, art of reading.
Elon Musk, in an interview, said that he learned how to build rockets by reading books. While talking with The New York Times, Bill Gates said that he read around 50 books a year. Facebook founder, Mark Zuckerberg, started his book club in 2015 to motivate himself and others to read a book every two weeks. Warren Buffett, with his voracious reading habit to learn every minuscule detail about the industry, became America’s most successful investor. Famous people like Oprah Winfrey, Barack Obama, and Emma Watson find solace in books. What exactly is the reason for which successful people read so many books?
The answer to this question is amazingly simple as reading is a way to discover new things. It also helps us develop a positive self-image. The ability to read is an important skill in being able to function in today’s society. Reading is very important because it helps us expand our minds and improve our imagination.
Below, we’ve gathered a list of all the books that the world’s most successful people have read, and have publicly cited as life-changing. Surprisingly many of these books are not related to business. Instead many of them ignite imagination and creativity. To pick up a copy of any of these books, just click the link in the title.
No other work in modern political thought, with the possible exception of Marx’s Communist Manifesto, remotely competes with the influence exerted by Machiavelli’s Prince. Thick tomes have been written on the history of its reception. There is no question that The Prince teaches the use of evil means in the pursuit of legitimate political ends.
It’s a delightfully comic story with richly drawn characters, and it’s a thrillingly convoluted love story. In addition, the novel provides a fascinating view into the role of women and men in early 19th century England through the perceptive and unblinking eye of Austen.
In what may be Dickens’s best novel, humble, orphaned Pip is apprenticed to the dirty work of the forge but dares to dream of becoming a gentleman — and one day, under sudden and enigmatic circumstances, he finds himself in possession of “great expectations.” In this gripping tale of crime and guilt, revenge and reward, the compelling characters include Magwitch, the fearful and fearsome convict; Estella, whose beauty is excelled only by her haughtiness; and the embittered Miss Havisham, an eccentric jilted bride.
4 Dracula
When Jonathan Harker visits Transylvania to help Count Dracula with the purchase of a London house, he makes horrifying discoveries about his client and his castle. In the ensuing battle of wits between the sinister Count Dracula and a determined group of adversaries, Bram Stoker created a masterpiece of the horror genre.
Although Stoker did not invent the vampire, the novel’s influence on the popularity of vampires has been singularly responsible for many theatrical and film interpretations throughout the 20th and 21st centuries.
Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus, generally known as Frankenstein, is a novel written by the British author Mary Shelley. Wife of the Romantic poet and philosopher Percy Bysshe Shelley.
Frankenstein is a novel infused with some elements of the Gothic novel and the Romantic movement. It was also a warning against the “over-reaching” of modern man and the Industrial Revolution, alluded to in the novel’s subtitle, The Modern Prometheus.
The story has had an influence across literature and popular culture and spawned a complete genre of horror stories and films. It is arguably considered the first fully realized science fiction/fantasy novel.
Hermann Hesse’s novel is beautiful account of a life’s journey from a public and known religion to a personal and esoteric private spiritual journey. It is the story of a man never quite satisfied with where he is, but always striving to find a bit more of the meaning and struggle for meaningful existence. It is a book that no seeker of “higher things” should miss.
The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald’s 1925 Jazz Age novel about the impossibility of recapturing the past, was initially a failure. At the time of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s death the book had sold just 100,000 copies worldwide. Today, the story of Gatsby’s doomed love for the unattainable Daisy is considered a defining novel of the 20th century.
Sherlock Holmes and his assistant Dr. Watson have captivated audiences for generations. This collection of twelve short stories is fantastic. From stolen jewels to mysterious circumstances and brilliant crimes, The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes has it all. The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes is full of mesmerizing deductions and wonderful short adventures. I highly recommend this collection of short stories for every Sherlock Holmes fan and anyone searching for great mystery novels or short stories.
9 The Extraordinary Adventures of Arsene Lupin, Gentleman-Burglar
This classic crime caper established the antihero character of Arsène Lupin, who is the archetypal gentleman thief. A master of disguise, Lupin demonstrates an effortless ability to transition between high society and his actual profession of burglar. Charming and dapper to a fault, Lupin appears to his contemporaries as the consummate embodiment of a refined gent.
10 The Greek Philosophers. Volume 1 and Volume 2
For readers not familiar with philosophy and its proponents, there can be no better introduction to the subject than The Greek Philosophers by Alfred William Benn. Presented in two volumes, The Greek Philosophers has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. Spanning the works of Plato, Socrates and Aristotle through to Epicurus and Lucretius and eventually arriving at the spiritualism of Plotinus, The Greek Philosophers is perhaps one of the most significant and influential books on Greek philosophy ever written.
11 Alice in Wonderland and Through the looking glass
Bored on a hot afternoon, Alice, a bright and inquisitive child, follows a white rabbit down a rabbit-hole, and finds herself in Wonderland, a very odd place indeed. This unique story mixes satire and puzzles, comedy and anxiety, Mock Turtles and Gryphos to provide an astute description of the experience of childhood.
Lewis Carroll’s beloved and witty story was made into an animated film by Disney in 1951. It is also the inspiration for Tim Burton’s 2010 film where an adult Alice returns to the peculiar world she discovered as a child. The film features Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter and Anne Hathaway among a cast of British stars.
Solomon Norhtup obtained his freedom in January 1853 and wrote this book the same year, considered the best slave narrative. This novel gives insight into the slavery practice, judicial authorities of different states, inhumane punishments for black people. The author also accords to the treatment of other slaves; he witnessed in those 12 years. It is a heart-wrenching story and one of the best classics I’ve ever read. Without a doubt, pick this book and read it asap.