My ten most influential books of 2020
Not everything I read — the books from 2020 that left the deepest mark, counted down from the honorable mentions to number one.
Honorable mentions
Click a cover to turn it over. After the first one, hovering another turns it too.
Fooled by Randomness: The Hidden Role of Chance in Life and in the Markets
Nassim Nicholas Taleb
One sentence on what this one was — to be written.
Of Mice and Men
John Steinbeck
One sentence on what this one was — to be written.
The Knowledge Illusion: Why We Never Think Alone
Steven Sloman & Philip Fernbach
One sentence on what this one was — to be written.
In Love with the World: A Monk’s Journey Through the Bardos of Living and Dying
Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche & Helen Tworkov
One sentence on what this one was — to be written.
Souverän investieren mit Indexfonds und ETFs
Gerd Kommer
One sentence on what this one was — to be written.
Nos. 15–11
This America: The Case for the Nation
Jill Lepore
End This Depression Now!
Paul Krugman
Go Wild: Free Your Body and Mind from the Afflictions of Civilization
John J. Ratey & Richard Manning
Doing Good Better: How Effective Altruism Can Help You Make a Difference
William MacAskill
The Feeling of Life Itself: Why Consciousness Is Widespread but Can’t Be Computed
Christof Koch
The ten
No.10
Evolution: What Everyone Needs to Know
Robin Dunbar
What this one changed — to be written. One or two sentences on the idea that moved something, not a summary of the book.
No.9
The Culture Map: Breaking Through the Invisible Boundaries of Global Business
Erin Meyer
What this one changed — to be written. One or two sentences on the idea that moved something, not a summary of the book.
No.8
Risk Savvy: How to Make Good Decisions
Gerd Gigerenzer
What this one changed — to be written. One or two sentences on the idea that moved something, not a summary of the book.
No.7
Norwegian Wood
Haruki Murakami
What this one changed — to be written. One or two sentences on the idea that moved something, not a summary of the book.
No.6
The Myths of Happiness: What Should Make You Happy, but Doesn’t, What Shouldn’t Make You Happy, but Does
Sonja Lyubomirsky
What this one changed — to be written. One or two sentences on the idea that moved something, not a summary of the book.
No.5
Steve Jobs
Walter Isaacson
What this one changed — to be written. One or two sentences on the idea that moved something, not a summary of the book.
No.4
How to Change Your Mind: What the New Science of Psychedelics Teaches Us About Consciousness, Dying, Addiction, Depression, and Transcendence
Michael Pollan
What this one changed — to be written. One or two sentences on the idea that moved something, not a summary of the book.
No.3
The Inflamed Mind: A Radical New Approach to Depression
Edward Bullmore
What this one changed — to be written. One or two sentences on the idea that moved something, not a summary of the book.
No.2
The Formula: The Universal Laws of Success
Albert-László Barabási
What this one changed — to be written. One or two sentences on the idea that moved something, not a summary of the book.
No.1
Scale: The Universal Laws of Growth, Innovation, Sustainability, and the Pace of Life in Organisms, Cities, Economies, and Companies
Geoffrey West
What this one changed — to be written. One or two sentences on the idea that moved something, not a summary of the book.