Bill Gates’s 2022 Reading List

The 8 books Bill Gates recommended in 2022, with the reasons in their own words. See all the books Bill Gates recommends.

Other years: 2023 · 2021 · 2019 · 2018 · 2017 · 2015 · 2013

8 books recommended in 2022

The Power

by Naomi Alderman

I’m glad that I followed my older daughter’s recommendation and read this novel.

Source: 5 great books for the summer · Also recommended by 1 other

Why We’re Polarized

by Ezra Klein

The book is fundamentally about American politics, but it’s also a fascinating look at human psychology.

Source: 5 great books for the summer

The Lincoln Highway

by Amor Towles

I put Towles’s A Gentleman in Moscow on my summer books list back in 2019, but I liked this follow-up novel even more.

Source: 5 great books for the summer

The Ministry for the Future

by Kim Stanley Robinson

I’m glad I picked it up, because it’s terrific.

Source: 5 great books for the summer

How the World Really Works

by Vaclav Smil

Another masterpiece from one of my favorite authors.

Source: 5 great books for the summer

Stranger in a Strange Land

by Robert A. Heinlein

Paul Allen and I fell in love with Heinlein when we were just kids, and this book is still one of my favorite sci-fi novels of all time.

Source: 5 of my all-time favorite books

Surrender

by Bono

Even if you’re not, it’s a super fun read about how a boy from the suburbs of Dublin grew up to become a world-famous rock star and philanthropist.

Source: 5 of my all-time favorite books

Mendeleyev’s Dream

by Paul Strathern

It’s a fascinating look at how science develops and how human curiosity has evolved over the millennia.

Source: 5 of my all-time favorite books