First, sign up for my newsletter above, which will get you my book recommendations along with other ideas or questions I’m pondering.  And then…if you keep scrolling down, you’ll see my own personal reading list!

My Reading List

When we read, so many positive things happen. Connections are made. The files of our thoughts become more effectively categorized, documented, and placed into the correct folders of our lives. Despite what’s happening around me, I can sit with a book and find a sense of security and calm there.

I feel that with each page we turn, we are in a way purifying ourselves, becoming a truer version, and just possibly…becoming gold.

The following list is what I’ve been reading over the past couple of years. I’m doing this to have a record for myself (my memory isn’t that strong, and I never want to forget some of these treasures), but also to provide a recommendation to others. I stop reading a book unless I’m in love with it. Life is too short to spend time reading rubbish! And there is so much good out there. With that said, I recommend everything on my list.

Also, I still have in my possession pretty much every book on the list…so if you live near me…and you’re nice…or you barter for high end coffee or fine pastries…I will happily let you borrow these.

If the book is in BOLD, it was life changing for me. Obviously, every piece has shaped me somehow (gold is very malleable!)…but some of them are extraordinary. Remarkable. 24 Karat.

Every piece of fiction, I always read cover to cover. If I don’t love it after a chapter or so…I quit, and it doesn’t make my list. As far as non- fiction, if I love the piece, and can tell I want all of it, it’s cover to cover. However, with some non-fiction pieces, I’ve found that I only want or need ‘some’ of those books…the 3 or 4 small nuggets of gold within. Sometimes there are anecdotes, case studies, etc. that are repetitious or unnecessary for me. With books like that, I use a technique that I call ‘panning for gold’. Imagine circulating all of the unwanted, extra words and ideas in a gold pan, until all of the arbitrary sand and sediment floated away down the river. Just those concentrated nuggets are left, and you can quickly keep them for your own!

So, if you see a 🜚 symbol (it’s the alchemical symbol for gold…according to the ‘special character list’) next to the title, I used the panning for gold technique (which I describe more in this post…click here for it). And those books, I don’t own…so you can’t borrow them. I get them from the library.

The title I’m reading now or most recently will be at the top of the list. Keep turning those pages!

Reading List:

Chop Wood Carry Water – Joshua Medcalf

The Coddling of the American Mind – Greg Lukianoff & Jonathan Haidt

Courage is Calling – Ryan Holiday

The Comfort Crisis – Michael Easter

Living Beautifully with Uncertainty and Change – Pema Chodron

Be Useful – Arnold Schwarzenegger

Silence – Thich Nhat Hanh

Carrie – Stephen King

The Saint, The Surfer, And The CEO – Robin Sharma

The Body Keeps the Score – Bessel van der Kolk

Who Will Cry When You Die – Robin Sharma

The Gunslinger (The Dark Tower 1) – Stephen King

Putting Out of Your Mind – Bob Rotella

Outlive – Peter Attia

Built to Move – Kelley Starrett

Endure – Alex Hutchinson

The Virtue of Selfishness – Ayn Rand

Unwinding Anxiety – Judson Brewer

Life Worth Living – Volf, Croasmun, & McAnnally-Linz

How to Promote Your Book – Dr. Jan Yager

The Seventh Raven – David Elliott

Range – David Epstein

The Sleep Prescription – Aric A. Prather

The Gulag Archipelago – Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn

Lost and Founder – Rand Fishkin

The Introvert’s Edge – Matthew Pollard

Think Like a Freak – Stephen Dubner & Steven Levitt

Do…More Than You Think – James Thorpe! IT’S MY OWN BOOK!  

Positively Introverted – Maureen Wilson

How we Live is How we Die – Pema Chodron

Evergreen – Noah Flemming

Subscribed – Tien Tzuo

The Monk who Sold his Ferrari – Sharma

Lawns into Meadows – Owen Wormser

History of Beauty – Umberto Eco

Robert Rauschenberg – Sinclair

Clear Seeing Place – Brian Rutenberg

Big Magic – Elizabeth Gilbert

Making Sense – Sam Harris

The Signature of All Things – Elizabeth Gilbert

Talking to Strangers – Malcolm Gladwell

Miracle and Wonder – Malcolm Gladwell

Think Like a Monk – Jay Shetty

Waking Up – Sam Harris

On Tyranny – Timothy Snyder

City of Girls – Elizabeth Gilbert

The Dichotomy of Leadership – Jock Willink

Leadership Strategy and Tactics – Jocko Willink

The Legends Club – John Feinstein

How to be an Artist – Jerry Saltz

The Short Story of Modern Art – Susie Hodge

🜚 Breakfast at Sotheby’s – Philip Hook

The Art Book – Phaidon Press

Daily Rituals (How Artists Work) – Mason Currey

Crushing It in Apartments and Commercial Real Estate – Brian Murray

The Dutch House – Ann Patchett

Beyond Order – 12 More Rules for Life – Jordan Peterson

Letter to a Christian Nation – Sam Harris

The 5am Club – Robin Sharma

🜚 Atomic Habits – James Clear

Deep Work – Cal Newport

When Things Fall Apart – Pema Chodron

InsideOut Coaching – Joe Ehrmann

Less – Andrew Sean Greer

Crash Course in Art – Eva Howarth

The Examined Life – Stephen Grosz

A Secret History – Donna Tartt

Christmas Wedding – James Patterson

Promise Me, Dad – Joe Biden

Blockade Billy – Stephen King

Morality – Stephen King

11/22/63 – Stephen King

Elevation – Stephen King

The Gingerbread Girl – Stephen King

Body Surfing – Anita Shreve

The Path Made Clear – Oprah Winfrey

Never Eat Alone – Keith Ferrazzi

You are a Badass – Jen Sincero

Leaders Eat Last – Simon Senek

Eat Pray Love – Elizabeth Gilbert

A Walk to Remember – Nicholas Sparks

Where the Crawdads Sing – Delia Owens

Meditations: A new translation – Marcus Aurelius

Elevation – Stephen King

Angela’s Ashes – Frank McCourt

Beyond Basketball – Mike Krzyzewski

🜚 Blue Mind – Wallace J. Nichols

11 Rings – Phil Jackson

The Gold Standard – Mike Krzyzewski

🜚 Breatheology – Stig Severinsen

The Art of Seduction – Robert Greene

Crushing it in Apartments and Commercial Real Estate – Brian Murray

The 48 Laws of Power – Robert Greene

Stillness is the Key – Ryan Holiday

Real Estate Investing – Mark J Flynn

The Power of Now – Eckhart Tolle

The Science of Breath – Yogi Ramacharaka

🜚 The Yoga of Breath – Richard Rosen

The 7 Spiritual Laws of Yoga – Deepak Chopra

Wolfpack – Abby Wambach

Someday is Not a Day in the Week – Sam Horn

The Oxygen Advantage – Patrick McKeown

The Big Miss – My years coaching Tiger Woods – Hank Haney

On Writing – Stephen King

The World’s Fittest Book – Ross Edgley

The Tattooist of Aushwitz – Heather Morris

🜚 You Are Not a Rock – Mark Freeman

🜚 Time to Parent – Julie Morgenstern

An Hour to Live, an Hour to Love – Richard and Kristine Carlson

Psychology and Religion – Carl Jung

Modern Man in Search of a Soul – Carl Jung

🜚 Buzz -Thor Hanson

🜚 This is Marketing – Seth Godin

Britt-Marie Was Here – Fredrik Backman

🜚  The Power of Presence – Joy Thomas Moore

🜚  The Language of Kindness – Christie Watson

Florida – Lauren Groff

The Blue Zones Solution – Dan Buettner

Homage to Catalonia – George Orwell

🜚 Quiet – The Power of Introverts… – Susan Cain

The Invisible Gorilla – Christopher Chabris and Daniel Simons

Hamilton (The Revolution) – Lin-Manuel Miranda and Jeremy McCarter

🜚 I Feel You – Chris Beam

Notes from Underground – Fyodor Dostoevsky

🜚 9 Rules of Engagement – Harris Faulkner

🜚 Extreme Ownership – Jocko Wilink and Leif Babin

12 Rules for Life – Jordan Peterson

🜚 Quirky – Melissa Schilling

Grit – Angela Duckworth

Political Tribes – Amy Chua

🜚  Making Ideas Happen – Scott Belsky

Discipline equals Freedom – Jocko Willink

Bull – David Elliott

🜚  The Introvert’s Edge – Matthew Pollard

The War of Art – Steven Pressfield

🜚 Own the Day, Own your life – Aubrey Marcus

🜚 How Luck Happens – Janice Kaplan

🜚 American Catch – Paul Greenberg

Four Fish – Paul Greenberg

Crushing it – Gary Vaynerchuk

🜚 What the Dog Saw – Malcolm Gladwell

Outliers – Malcolm Gladwell

🜚 Trust me, I’m Lying – Ryan Holiday

Blink – Malcolm Gladwell

David and Goliath – Malcolm Gladwell

🜚 The Big Thing – Phyllis Korkki

The Obstacle is the Way – Ryan Holiday

The Inner Life of Animals – Peter Wohlleben

Man’s Search for Meaning – Viktor Frankl

The Irresistible Introvert – Michaela Chung

🜚  A Slap in the Face: Why insults hurt – and why they shouldn’t – William Irvine

Capital Gaines – Chip Gaines

Unstoppable:  My Life so Far – Maria Sharapova

🜚  Book Publishing 101 – Martha Maeda

🜚  How to Write a Children’s Book and Get it Published – Barbara Seuling

🜚  101 Wines – Gary Vaynerchuk

Crush It! – Gary Vaynerchuk

Jab Jab Jab, Right Hook – Gary Vaynerchuk

Ask Gary Vee – Gary Vaynerchuk

🜚  Captivate – Vanessa Van Edwards

The Thank You Economy – Gary Vaynerchuk

🜚  The Subtle Art of Not Giving a Fuck – Manson

🜚  So Good They Can’t Ignore you – Newport

🜚  Mindset – Dweck

🜚  The 4-Hour Chef – Ferriss

🜚  Citizen – Rankine

🜚  The Power of Habit – Duhigg

🜚  The Resilient Farm and Homestead – Ben Falk

The Chicken Chronicles – Walker

🜚  Grow a Little Fruit Tree – Ralph

🜚  The Geography of Bliss – Weiner

🜚  The Market Gardener – Fortier

🜚  Applied Minds – Madhavan

🜚  Confident Parents Remarkable Kids – Harris

Crush It!  – Gary Vaynerchuk

🜚  Everyday Blessings: Inner work of Mindful Parenting – Kabat-Zinn

🜚  Duct Tape Parenting – Hoefle

The Goldfinch – Tartt

A Man Called Ove – Backman

🜚 30 Lessons for Living – Pillemer

When Things Fall Apart – Chodron

A Long Way Gone – Beah

🜚 The Behavior Gap – Richards

Home Grown: adventures in parenting off the beaten path, unschooling, and reconnecting with the natural world – Hewitt

The Four Agreements – Ruiz

🜚 BioShelter Market Garden – Darrell Fray

Drive – Pink

Black Elk Speaks – Neihardt + Black Elk

🜚  Tools of Titans – Tim Ferriss

Making Space – Hanh

🜚  How to Make Your Money Last – Quinn

Peace is Every Step- Hanh

🜚  Square Foot Gardening – Bartholomew

Peace is Every Breath – Hanh

The Miracle of Mindfulness – Hanh

🜚 All the Money in the World – Vanderkam

Men Explain Things to Me – Solnit

The Way to Rainy Mountain – Momaday

A Father First – Wade

🜚  Raising a Self-Reliant Child – Levine

The Catcher in the Rye – Salinger

The Alchemist – Coelho

We Should All be Feminists – Adichie

Flowers for Algernon – Keyes

Ishmael – Quinn

Experience and Education – Dewey

Jane Eyre – Bronte

American Dreams – Rubio

Call of the Wild – London

Feed – Anderson

Does this Dress Make me Look Fat – Thomas

The Aladdin Factor – Canfield

The One Day Contract – Pitino

The Hours – Cunningham (my favorite novel)

Stones into School – Mortenson

Three Cups of Tea – Mortenson

No Place but Here – Keizer

Falling into Theory – Richter

Will and the World – Greenblatt

A New Earth – Tolle

Deep Economy – Mckibben

Maybe One – Mckibben

How to Talk to Anyone – Lowndes

The Communist Manifesto – Marx

🜚 The Omnivore’s Dilemma – Pollan

How to Win Friends and Influence People – Carnegie

The Last Lecture – Pausch

🜚 Note to Self – Buchanan

🜚 What the F – Bergen

I Never met a Story I didn’t Like – Snider

The Poet and His Poetry – Frost

Be the Pack Leader – Millan

Learning Outside the Lines – Mooney + Cole

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian – Alexie

🜚 Tap Dancing to Work: Warren Buffett on Practically Everything – Loomis

Angels and Demons – Brown

Final Harvest – Dickenson

🜚 Jack: Straight From the Gut – Welch

Bringing up Girls – Dobson

Parenting Without Borders – Gross-Loh

Keeping Bees in Towns and Cities – Dixon

🜚 The Mosaic Principle – Lovegrove

🜚 The 80/20 Manager – Koch

The Da Vinci Code – Brown

Dude You’re Gonna be a Dad – Pfeiffer

The Archivist – Cooley

Literature: A Pocket Anthology – Gwynn

All Quiet on the Western Front – Remarque

Food Rules – Pollan

Out of the Dust – Hesse

An American Son – Rubio

🜚 Raising a Self-Reliant Child – Levine

Oil and Honey – Mckibben

How Lucky can You Be – Olny

33 Snowfish – Rapp

Honeybee: Lessons from an Accidental Beekeeper – Marchese

Billy Bud and Other Stories – Melville

Antigone, Oedipus the King, and Electra – Sophocles

The Scarlet Letter – Hawthorne

The Global Achievement Gap – Wagner

Maus I – Spiegelman

The Four Quartets – Eliot

Literary Theory – Culler

Leaves of Grass – Whitman

🜚 The Click Moment – Johansson

Home Town Advantage – Mitchell

🜚 The Secret to Peak Productivity – Myles

🜚 Give and Take – Grant

By the River Piedra I Sat Down and Wept – Coelho

Yellow Raft in Blue Water – Dorris

Of Mice and Men – Steinbeck

The Things They Carried – O’brien

We Make the Road by Walking – Harton + Freire

The Freud Reader – Freud + Gay

Running with Scissors – Burroughs

🜚 Insanely Simple – Segal

Teaching Man – McCourt

Between You + I – Cochrane

Most Common Sales Mistakes – Schiffman

🜚 Payoff – Ariely

Uncommon Learning – Thoreau

Mrs. Dalloway – Woolf

A Room of One’s Own – Woolf

The Tao of Pooh – Hoff

Eating Animals – Foer

🜚 A Plea for the Animals – Ricard

🜚 Millennials with Kids – Fromm

Tuck Everlasting – Babbitt

The Night Thoreau Spent in Jail – Lawrence + Lee

Snow White (postmodernism) – Barthelme

Have a little Faith – Albom

🜚 Onward (Starbucks)- Shultz

🜚 Click Millionaires – Fox

Everything We Had – Santoli

Walden and other Writings – Thoreau

The Great Gatsby – Fitzgerald

Eaarth – McKibben

The Rough Guide to Bob Dylan – Williamson

Shakespeare Plays-

As You Like It

Hamlet

King Henry IV part 1

King Henry IV part 2

King Lear

Macbeth

King Richard II

The Merchant of Venice

Othello

Romeo and Juliet

The Tempest

Twelfth Night