Non-Fiction
Small Fry by Lisa Brennan-Jobs. "Steve Jobs is a dick, is what you will say to yourself after only a few pages of this book. By the end of it, you’ll want to throw your iPhone into the ocean and cancel your subscription to The Atlantic. Steve and Laurene were maybe not the greatest dad/stepmom. No, I’m sure they’re pretty awful. This book was sad and painful, but so well written."
Small is the New Big: and 183 Other Riffs, Rants, and Remarkable Business Ideas by Seth Godin. "Nerd out with some Seth Godin small-bites goodness. This is a compendium of some of Seth’s most popular blog posts and essays about marketing, idea generation, thought leadership, and entrepreneurship. Not a cheesy “go, girl, you got this” kind of book. Provocative insights throughout."
Smart Networking by Liz Lynch "Wonderful for those for whom networking inspires the heebie-jeebies. Liz Lynch hated networking, too, until she found a way to do it, authentically." This is the essential guidebook for building business relationships in a wired world. Business strategist Liz Lynch demystifies the process and puts strategic systems in place that build connections worldwide and attract opportunities 24/7.
Snobbery: the American Version, by Joseph Epstein: “Rave reviews in NY TIMES. Kind of a New Yorker mag approach to social critiques, what makes people tick….very humorous."
So You've Been Publicly Shamed by Jon Ronson. “For all you PR gals, who might want to brush up on some modern-day crisis comms situations and how individuals handle(d) them.”
Some Assembly Required: A Journal of My Son's First Son by Anne Lamott and Sam Lamott.
Something other than God: How I Passionately Sought Happiness and Accidentally Found It by Jennifer Tutwiler. A woman’s journey from her atheistic upbringing to the Catholic Church. As one reviewer said, “it chronicles that radical grip of grace. From the perspective of a skeptic. A deliberate doubter.”
Start-Up Nation
Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson. [Ed: Almost a top pick, but I doubted you all needed this list to know that this book existed.] “Unsurprisingly, Jobs managed to channel the communication about his life even after his death. The man was brilliant and unapologetically mean at the same time. Undoubtedly he and some of his designers have changed the world --- I would agree for the better! Yet I cannot like the man. The story of Apple is fascinating, also from the business management perspective.” And: “deeper themes about beauty and taste and the idea that great products can create their own demand.” And: “A compelling story of our generation's genius, who is undeniably brilliant but who is also cruel, quirky and insecure. The backdrop of coming of age in Silicon Valley, his deep scars from being given up for adoption, his devotion to his adoptive parents, and the story of Jobs and Gates complex relationship made this a page turner for me :) I also loved learning about the evolution of Apple's products and Jobs impact on the music, computer, and movie industries.”
The Still Point of the Turning World by Emily Rapp. “The heart wrenching story of a mother with a child diagnosed with the fatal Tay Sachs Disease. Sad and profoundly human.”
Stones into Schools: Promoting Peace with Books, Not Bombs, in Afghanistan and Pakistan
Stories I Only Tell My Friends: An Autobiography
Strength in What Remains
Stumbling on Happiness by Daniel Gilbert. This is one of those books in the Malcolm Gladwell tradition. (He wrote Blink and theTipping Point, both of which I think were recommended in years past). I enjoyed this book, but like others in this category, I tend to put them down once I get the gist. "Stumbling…" is about what bad predictors we are of what will make us happy. It's not a self-help book, more of an interesting discussion of memory and the brain, and how that affects our perspective. He explains complicated ideas well.
Suffering Succotash: A Picky Eater's Quest to Understand Why We Hate the Foods We Hate by Stephanie Lucianovic. “Are you a picky eater? Are your kids picky eaters? Wanna read funny stories about Hypomomdriacs? You'll like this book, then. A little science, but mostly just great stories about the lengths we go to in avoiding the foods we hate (die, raisins... die!)”
Suicide of the West by Jonah Goldberg. From Goodreads: “With his trademark blend of political history, social science, economics, and pop culture, two-time NYT bestselling author, syndicated columnist, National Review senior editor, and American Enterprise Institute fellow Jonah Goldberg makes the timely case that America and other democracies are in peril as they lose the will to defend the values and institutions that sustain freedom and prosperity. Instead we are surrendering to populism, nationalism and other forms of tribalism.”
Summer at Tiffany
The Surprising Life of Constance Spry: From Social Reformer to Society Florist by Sue Shephard. “A biography of the highly unconventional, brazen sharp business woman Constance Spry. Best known as 'the’ British society florist of the 1930's (in the way that Cecil Beaton was the 'it' photographer of the era), Constance's life was filled with drama -- from her impoverished beginnings to a violent marriage, lesbian love affair and ultimately her rise as a very successful entrepeneur. Her floral designs still inspire today. It's an interesting read about quite an independent, ambitious woman.”
The Talent Code: Greatness Isn't Born. It's Grown. Here's How.
Talking to Robots: Tales from our Human-Robot Futures by David Ewing Duncan. "The hilarious David Ewing Duncan writes from the future to tell us how our near tech future turns out."