Writers & editors
Books recommended by Ryan Holiday
Author and bookstore owner
Writer of popular books on Stoic philosophy such as The Obstacle Is the Way; runs a monthly reading-list email and the Painted Porch bookstore in Texas.
On lists:AuthorsEntrepreneursJournalists
HistoryPhilosophy & how to liveFiction & literatureBusiness & investingPolitics & society
Photo: Luiz Berengue, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
This is a selection of sourced recommendations, not a complete list of everything Ryan Holiday has read or praised. How we choose.
Recommendations
Books Ryan Holiday recommends
50 books from 15 sources. Each one links to the place where Ryan recommended it.
The (Very) Best Books I Read In 2024
Holiday narrows a year of reading-list emails down to a handful of the best.
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Tunnel 29
Year-end favouriteAmong the best books he read in 2024 — an escape tunnel under the Berlin Wall.
The (Very) Best Books I Read In 2024 Blog postryanholiday.net
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Night of the Grizzlies
Year-end favouriteAmong the best books he read in 2024, and one of his favourites of the year.
The (Very) Best Books I Read In 2024 Blog postryanholiday.net
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The Tiger
Explicit recommendationIn the same post he calls it the greatest man-versus-animal book ever written, after raving about it for nearly a decade.
The (Very) Best Books I Read In 2024 Blog postryanholiday.net
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James
Year-end favouriteAmong the best books he read in 2024 — Huckleberry Finn retold from Jim's perspective.
The (Very) Best Books I Read In 2024 Blog postryanholiday.net
+3 other recommenders: Barack Obama, The Booker Prize, The Pulitzer Prizes
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Papyrus
Year-end favouriteAmong the best books he read in 2024; he singles it out as an impressive feat of making a subject fascinating.
The (Very) Best Books I Read In 2024 Blog postryanholiday.net
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The Notebook: A History of Thinking on Paper
Year-end favouriteAmong the best books he read in 2024, paired with Papyrus.
The (Very) Best Books I Read In 2024 Blog postryanholiday.net
+1 other recommender: Austin Kleon
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Lincoln at Gettysburg
Year-end favouriteAmong his 2024 highlights; after thousands of pages on Lincoln he calls it probably the best.
The (Very) Best Books I Read In 2024 Blog postryanholiday.net
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Ghost Town Living
Year-end favouriteAmong his 2024 highlights; he says he gave about 30 copies to friends.
The (Very) Best Books I Read In 2024 Blog postryanholiday.net
The Very Best Books I Read in 2023
Ryan Holiday's year-end pick of the best books he read in 2023.
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The Son
Year-end favouriteOne of the books Ryan Holiday picked as the very best he read in 2023.
The Very Best Books I Read in 2023 Blog postryanholiday.net
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Pontius Pilate
Year-end favouriteOne of the books Ryan Holiday picked as the very best he read in 2023.
The Very Best Books I Read in 2023 Blog postryanholiday.net
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Good Inside
Year-end favouriteOne of the books Ryan Holiday picked as the very best he read in 2023.
Listed in the source as “Good Inside: A Guide to Becoming the Parent You Want to Be”.
The Very Best Books I Read in 2023 Blog postryanholiday.net
The Unusual Books That Shaped 50+ Billionaires, Mega-Bestselling Authors, and Other Prodigies
Ryan Holiday answered Tim Ferriss's interview question "What book have you gifted most to others?". Only the most-gifted answers (bolded in the post) are listed here.
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Meditations
Explicit recommendationRyan Holiday named it as a book they have given as a gift more than any other, answering Tim Ferriss's interview question.
The Unusual Books That Shaped 50+ Billionaires, Mega-Bestselling Authors, and Other Prodigies Interviewtim.blog
+6 other recommenders: Stewart Brand, Shane Parrish, Darius Foroux, James Clear, Mark Manson, Naval Ravikant
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The War of Art
Explicit recommendationRyan Holiday named it as a book they have given as a gift more than any other, answering Tim Ferriss's interview question.
The Unusual Books That Shaped 50+ Billionaires, Mega-Bestselling Authors, and Other Prodigies Interviewtim.blog
+8 other recommenders: Derek Sivers, Chris Guillebeau, Darius Foroux, Dickie Bush, James Clear, Mark Manson, Matt D'Avella, Chris Williamson
Best Book Recommendations of 2011
Ryan Holiday's year-end post picking the best books he read in 2011.
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Sherman
Year-end favouriteOne of the best books Ryan Holiday read in 2011, from his year-end post.
Listed in the source as “Sherman: Soldier, Realist, American”.
Best Book Recommendations of 2011 Blog postryanholiday.net
Best Book Recommendations of 2012
Ryan Holiday's year-end post picking the best books he read in 2012.
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The Fish that Ate the Whale
Year-end favouriteOne of the best books Ryan Holiday read in 2012, from his year-end post.
Listed in the source as “The Fish That Ate the Whale: The Life and Times of America's Banana King”.
Best Book Recommendations of 2012 Blog postryanholiday.net
+1 other recommender: Nat Eliason
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Titan
Year-end favouriteOne of the best books Ryan Holiday read in 2012, from his year-end post.
Listed in the source as “Titan: The Life of John D. Rockefeller Sr”.
Best Book Recommendations of 2012 Blog postryanholiday.net
+1 other recommender: Sam Parr
Best Book Recommendations of 2013
Ryan Holiday's year-end post picking the best books he read in 2013.
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Average Is Over
Year-end favouriteOne of the best books Ryan Holiday read in 2013, from his year-end post.
Listed in the source as “Average Is Over: Powering America Beyond the Age of the Great Stagnation”.
Best Book Recommendations of 2013 Blog postryanholiday.net
+1 other recommender: Scott H. Young
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All the Great Prizes
Year-end favouriteOne of the best books Ryan Holiday read in 2013, from his year-end post.
Listed in the source as “All the Great Prizes: The Life of John Hay, from Lincoln to Roosevelt”.
Best Book Recommendations of 2013 Blog postryanholiday.net
The Very Best Books I Read in 2014
Ryan Holiday's year-end post picking the best books he read in 2014.
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The Theory of Moral Sentiments
Year-end favouriteOne of the best books Ryan Holiday read in 2014, from his year-end post.
The Very Best Books I Read in 2014 Blog postryanholiday.net
+2 other recommenders: Robert J. Shiller, Karl Rove
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In the Heart of the Sea
Year-end favouriteOne of the best books Ryan Holiday read in 2014, from his year-end post.
Listed in the source as “In the Heart of the Sea: The Tragedy of the Whaleship Essex”.
The Very Best Books I Read in 2014 Blog postryanholiday.net
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Tiny Beautiful Things
Year-end favouriteOne of the best books Ryan Holiday read in 2014, from his year-end post.
Listed in the source as “Tiny Beautiful Things: Advice on Life and Love from Dear Sugar”.
The Very Best Books I Read in 2014 Blog postryanholiday.net
+2 other recommenders: Mark Manson, Reese Witherspoon
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Bird by Bird
Year-end favouriteOne of the best books Ryan Holiday read in 2014, from his year-end post.
Listed in the source as “Bird By Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life”.
The Very Best Books I Read in 2014 Blog postryanholiday.net
+3 other recommenders: Maria Popova, James Clear, Mark Manson
The (Very) Best Books I Read in 2015
Ryan Holiday's year-end post picking the best books he read in 2015.
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The Score Takes Care of Itself
Year-end favouriteOne of the best books Ryan Holiday read in 2015, from his year-end post.
The (Very) Best Books I Read in 2015 Blog postryanholiday.net
+1 other recommender: Noah Kagan
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So You've Been Publicly Shamed
Year-end favouriteOne of the best books Ryan Holiday read in 2015, from his year-end post.
The (Very) Best Books I Read in 2015 Blog postryanholiday.net
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Howard Hughes
Year-end favouriteOne of the best books Ryan Holiday read in 2015, from his year-end post.
Listed in the source as “Howard Hughes: His Life and Madness”.
The (Very) Best Books I Read in 2015 Blog postryanholiday.net
The (Very) Best Books I Read In 2016
Ryan Holiday's year-end post picking the best books he read in 2016.
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The Years of Lyndon Johnson
Year-end favouriteOne of the best books Ryan Holiday read in 2016, from his year-end post.
The (Very) Best Books I Read In 2016 Blog postryanholiday.net
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The Last Lion
Year-end favouriteOne of the best books Ryan Holiday read in 2016, from his year-end post.
Listed in the source as “The Last Lion: Winston Spencer Churchill”.
The (Very) Best Books I Read In 2016 Blog postryanholiday.net
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Shoe Dog
Year-end favouriteOne of the best books Ryan Holiday read in 2016, from his year-end post.
Listed in the source as “Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of Nike”.
The (Very) Best Books I Read In 2016 Blog postryanholiday.net
+3 other recommenders: Bill Gates, Mark Manson, Tom Bilyeu
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The Count of Monte Cristo
Year-end favouriteOne of the best books Ryan Holiday read in 2016, from his year-end post.
The (Very) Best Books I Read In 2016 Blog postryanholiday.net
+3 other recommenders: Jeffrey Archer, James Clear, Mark Manson
The (Very) Best Books I Read In 2017
Ryan Holiday's year-end post picking the best books he read in 2017.
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Magellan
Year-end favouriteOne of the best books Ryan Holiday read in 2017, from his year-end post.
The (Very) Best Books I Read In 2017 Blog postryanholiday.net
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Bright Shiny Morning
Year-end favouriteOne of the best books Ryan Holiday read in 2017, from his year-end post.
The (Very) Best Books I Read In 2017 Blog postryanholiday.net
The (Very) Best Books I Read in 2018
Ryan Holiday's year-end post picking the best books he read in 2018.
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A Calendar of Wisdom
Year-end favouriteOne of the best books Ryan Holiday read in 2018, from his year-end post.
Listed in the source as “A Calendar of Wisdom: Daily Thoughts To Nourish the Soul”.
The (Very) Best Books I Read in 2018 Blog postryanholiday.net
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The Captain Class
Year-end favouriteOne of the best books Ryan Holiday read in 2018, from his year-end post.
Listed in the source as “The Captain Class: A New Theory of Leadership”.
The (Very) Best Books I Read in 2018 Blog postryanholiday.net
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Victoria
Year-end favouriteOne of the best books Ryan Holiday read in 2018, from his year-end post.
Listed in the source as “Victoria: The Queen: An Intimate Biography of the Woman Who Ruled an Empire”.
The (Very) Best Books I Read in 2018 Blog postryanholiday.net
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Clementine
Year-end favouriteOne of the best books Ryan Holiday read in 2018, from his year-end post.
Listed in the source as “Clementine: The Life of Mrs. Winston Churchill”.
The (Very) Best Books I Read in 2018 Blog postryanholiday.net
The (Very) Best Books I Read in 2019
Ryan Holiday's year-end post picking the best books he read in 2019.
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The Woman's Hour
Year-end favouriteOne of the best books Ryan Holiday read in 2019, from his year-end post.
Listed in the source as “The Woman's Hour: The Great Fight to Win the Vote”.
The (Very) Best Books I Read in 2019 Blog postryanholiday.net
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Memoirs of Hadrian
Year-end favouriteOne of the best books Ryan Holiday read in 2019, from his year-end post.
The (Very) Best Books I Read in 2019 Blog postryanholiday.net
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The Second Mountain
Year-end favouriteOne of the best books Ryan Holiday read in 2019, from his year-end post.
Listed in the source as “The Second Mountain: The Quest for a Moral Life”.
The (Very) Best Books I Read in 2019 Blog postryanholiday.net
+1 other recommender: Ali Abdaal
The (Very) Best Books I Read in 2020
Ryan Holiday's year-end post picking the best books he read in 2020.
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The Great Influenza
Year-end favouriteOne of the best books Ryan Holiday read in 2020, from his year-end post.
Listed in the source as “The Great Influenza: The Story of the Deadliest Pandemic in History”.
The (Very) Best Books I Read in 2020 Blog postryanholiday.net
+1 other recommender: Bill Gates
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Leadership
Year-end favouriteOne of the best books Ryan Holiday read in 2020, from his year-end post.
Listed in the source as “Leadership: In Turbulent Times”.
The (Very) Best Books I Read in 2020 Blog postryanholiday.net
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Parting the Waters
Year-end favouriteOne of the best books Ryan Holiday read in 2020, from his year-end post.
Listed in the source as “Parting the Waters: America in the King Years 1954-63”.
The (Very) Best Books I Read in 2020 Blog postryanholiday.net
The (Very) Best Books I Read In 2021
Ryan Holiday's year-end post picking the best books he read in 2021.
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How the Word Is Passed
Year-end favouriteOne of the best books Ryan Holiday read in 2021, from his year-end post.
Listed in the source as “How The Word is Passed: A Reckoning with the History of Slavery Across America”.
The (Very) Best Books I Read In 2021 Blog postryanholiday.net
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The Choice
Year-end favouriteOne of the best books Ryan Holiday read in 2021, from his year-end post.
Listed in the source as “The Choice: Embrace the Possible”.
The (Very) Best Books I Read In 2021 Blog postryanholiday.net
+1 other recommender: Bill Gates
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Indian Givers
Year-end favouriteOne of the best books Ryan Holiday read in 2021, from his year-end post.
Listed in the source as “Indian Givers: How Native Americans Transformed the World”.
The (Very) Best Books I Read In 2021 Blog postryanholiday.net
The (Very) Best Books I Read In 2022
Ryan Holiday's year-end post picking the best books he read in 2022.
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Caste
Year-end favouriteOne of the best books Ryan Holiday read in 2022, from his year-end post.
Listed in the source as “Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents”.
The (Very) Best Books I Read In 2022 Blog postryanholiday.net
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Plain Speaking
Year-end favouriteOne of the best books Ryan Holiday read in 2022, from his year-end post.
Listed in the source as “Plain Speaking: An Oral Biography of Harry S. Truman”.
The (Very) Best Books I Read In 2022 Blog postryanholiday.net
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The Psychology of Money
Year-end favouriteOne of the best books Ryan Holiday read in 2022, from his year-end post.
Listed in the source as “The Psychology of Money: Timeless Lessons on Wealth, Greed, and Happiness”.
The (Very) Best Books I Read In 2022 Blog postryanholiday.net
+1 other recommender: Mark Manson
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Nomadland
Year-end favouriteOne of the best books Ryan Holiday read in 2022, from his year-end post.
Listed in the source as “Nomadland: Surviving America in the Twenty-First Century”.
The (Very) Best Books I Read In 2022 Blog postryanholiday.net
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Outdoor Kids in an Inside World
Year-end favouriteOne of the best books Ryan Holiday read in 2022, from his year-end post.
Listed in the source as “Outdoor Kids in an Inside World: Getting Your Family Out of the House and Radically Engaged with Nature”.
The (Very) Best Books I Read In 2022 Blog postryanholiday.net
Written by Ryan Holiday
Books Ryan Holiday wrote
Their most-published books, from Open Library. These are books they wrote, not recommendations.
Cross-recommendations
Picks others agree on
17 books Ryan recommends that at least one other person in the directory also recommends, each from their own source.
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9recommendersThe War of Art 9 recommendersDerek Sivers, Ryan Holiday, Chris Guillebeau, Darius Foroux, Dickie Bush, James Clear, Mark Manson, Matt D'Avella, Chris Williamson
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7recommendersMeditations 7 recommendersStewart Brand, Shane Parrish, Ryan Holiday, Darius Foroux, James Clear, Mark Manson, Naval Ravikant
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4recommendersBird by Bird 4 recommendersMaria Popova, James Clear, Ryan Holiday, Mark Manson
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4recommendersJames 4 recommendersBarack Obama, Ryan Holiday, The Booker Prize, The Pulitzer Prizes
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4recommendersShoe Dog 4 recommendersBill Gates, Ryan Holiday, Mark Manson, Tom Bilyeu
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4recommendersThe Count of Monte Cristo 4 recommendersJeffrey Archer, James Clear, Ryan Holiday, Mark Manson
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3recommendersThe Theory of Moral Sentiments 3 recommendersRobert J. Shiller, Karl Rove, Ryan Holiday
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3recommendersTiny Beautiful Things 3 recommendersRyan Holiday, Mark Manson, Reese Witherspoon
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2recommendersAverage Is Over 2 recommendersRyan Holiday, Scott H. Young
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2recommendersThe Choice 2 recommendersBill Gates, Ryan Holiday
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2recommendersThe Fish that Ate the Whale 2 recommendersNat Eliason, Ryan Holiday
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2recommendersThe Great Influenza 2 recommendersBill Gates, Ryan Holiday
Plus 5 more below, marked with the other recommenders.
Cross-recommendations
Who agrees with Ryan
People in the directory who recommended at least one of the same books.
Mark Manson7 books in commonMeditations · The War of Art · Tiny Beautiful Things · Bird by Bird · Shoe Dog · The Count of Monte Cristo · The Psychology of Money
James Clear4 books in commonMeditations · The War of Art · Bird by Bird · The Count of Monte Cristo
Bill Gates3 books in commonShoe Dog · The Great Influenza · The Choice- DFDarius Foroux2 books in commonMeditations · The War of Art
Barack Obama1 book in commonJames- TBThe Booker Prize1 book in commonJames
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