Recommendations

Short stories

They’re Made out of Meat
Mind-blowing alien-dialogue story by Terry Bisson, 1991.

On Exactitude in Science
Jorge Luis Borges knocks it out of the park with a 1-paragraph story.

Books

The Beginning of Infinity, by David Deutsch
So many good things in one book. Sure, at times Deutsch might sound like the proverbial old physicist. A foundational book.

The World of Yesterday, by Stefan Zweig
Excellent first-person account of Europe’s societal and cultural changes, from La Belle Époque to WW2.

Everything Is Tuberculosis, by John Green
Such beautiful prose! You’ll start caring about something you probably never think about.

Chaos, by James Gleick It was probably after reading it as a teenager that I decided to study Physics.

The Sleepwalkers: How Europe Went to War in 1914, by Christopher Clark
If you like History, read it!

Siddhartha, by Hermann Hesse
Just beautiful.

Debt: The First 5,000 Years, by David Graeber
Not an easy read; it will crack your head wide open.

The World Until Yesterday, by Jared Diamond
I think about this book a lot. About the many ways the society I live in is just a tiny local minimum in a vast landscape.

Justice, by Michael J. Sandel
A superb introduction to Moral Philosophy

Born a Crime, by Trevor Noah
When someone who has never listened to (read) an audiobook asks me where they should start, I always recommend this one. Narrated by the author.

The Name of the Rose, by Umberto Eco
I just love Eco, read them all. Start here.

Waking Up, by Sam Harris
What is the mind? What’s consciousness? Beautiful.

36 Arguments for the Existence of God: A Work of Fiction, by Rebecca Goldstein
Goldstein is a literary genius. I suppose that being Jewish would really help understanding so many of the references in this book.

The Unfolding of Language, by Guy Deutscher
Best linguistics book ever.

Contact, by Carl Sagan
Whenever I’m asked what’s my favorite book, that’s my answer.

The Selfish Gene, by Richard Dawkins
I read a bunch of Dawkins when I was 16–18. This was eye opening.

Superintelligence, by Nick Bostrom
I didn’t sleep well for three months after reading this.

Infidel, by Ayaan Hirsi Ali
She is a true hero, champion of freedom.