Elon Musk Book Recommendations

Twelve Against the Gods

The Story of Adventure

by William Bolitho

"It's really quite good." - Elon Musk (Source)

The Big Picture

On the Origins of Life, Meaning, and the Universe Itself

by Sean Carroll

"Highly recommend." - Elon Musk (Source)

Deep Learning

by Ian Goodfellow

"Written by three experts in the field, [this book] is the only comprehensive book on the subject." - Elon Musk (Source)

Dune (6 books)

"Brilliant. [The author] advocates placing limits on machine intelligence." - Elon Musk (Source)

Lying

by Sam Harris

"Excellent cover art and lots of good reasons not to lie!" - Elon Musk (Source)

Screw Business As Usual

Turning Capitalism into a Force for Good

by Richard Branson

"This approach should be taken to heart by all, as it really is the smart move." - Elon Musk (Source)

Superintelligence

Paths, Dangers, Strategies

by Nick Bostrom

"Worth reading [this book]. We need to be super careful with AI. Potentially more dangerous than nukes." - Elon Musk (Source)

Game of Thrones (5 books)

"Best books in recent years imo are Iain Banks & George Martin." - Elon Musk (Source)

Daemon

by Daniel Suarez

"A great read." - Elon Musk (Source)

Stalin

The Court of the Red Tsar

by Simon Sebag Montefiore

"One of the few books so dark I had to stop reading." - Elon Musk (Source)

Ignition!

An Informal History of Liquid Rocket Propellants

by John Drury Clark

One of Elon Musk's favorite books about space. (Source)

Culture (10 books)

"Compelling picture of a grand, semi-utopian galactic future. Hopefully not too optimistic about AI." - Elon Musk (Source)

A Woman Makes a Plan

Advice for a Lifetime of Adventure, Beauty, and Success

by Maye Musk

"My Mom wrote a book ❤️." - Elon Musk (Source)

Acts of Love

by Talulah Riley

"All characters – even those based on real people – are entirely fictional..." - Elon Musk (Source)

The Wealth of Nations

by Adam Smith

"Adam Smith FTW obv." - Elon Musk (Source)

Foundation (7 books)

"[This series is] fundamental to [the] creation of SpaceX." - Elon Musk (Source)

If the Universe Is Teeming with Aliens ... Where is Everybody?

Seventy-Five Solutions to the Fermi Paradox and the Problem of Extraterrestrial Life

by Stephen Webb

"Great book. Read it when it came out." - Elon Musk (Source)

The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress

by Robert A. Heinlein

One of Elon Musk's favorite books about space. (Source)

Atlas Shrugged

by Ayn Rand

"A counterpoint to communism and useful as such, but should be tempered with kindness." - Elon Musk (Source)

The Lord of the Rings (4 books)

"I know it's cliche, but [this] is my favorite book ever." - Elon Musk (Source)

Das Kapital

A Critique of Political Economy

by Karl Marx

"Read [this book] when I was 14." - Elon Musk (Source)

Merchants of Doubt

How a Handful of Scientists Obscured the Truth on Issues from Tobacco Smoke to Global Warming

by Naomi Oreskes

"Worth reading [this book]. Same who tried to deny smoking deaths are denying climate change." - Elon Musk (Source)

Modern Engineering for Design of Liquid Propellant Rocket Engines

by Dieter K Huzel

One of Elon Musk's favorite books about space. (Source)

The Story of Civilization (11 books)

"The first books are a little dry. Gets much better when Ariel is co-author." - Elon Musk (Source)

The Machine Stops

by E. M. Forster

"Worth reading." - Elon Musk (Source)

Our Final Invention

Artificial Intelligence and the End of the Human Era

by James Barrat

"Worth reading." - Elon Musk (Source)

Benjamin Franklin

An American Life

by Walter Isaacson

"A great biography. [...] Highly recommended." - Elon Musk (Source)

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

by Douglas Adams

"A book of philosophy disguised as a silly humor book." - Elon Musk (Source)

Human Compatible

Artificial Intelligence and the Problem of Control

by Stuart Russell

"Worth reading." - Elon Musk (Source)

Howard Hughes

His Life and Madness

by Donald L. Barlett

"A cautionary tale." - Elon Musk (Source)

Steve Jobs

by Walter Isaacson

"Quite interesting." - Elon Musk (Source)

Waiting for Godot

A Tragicomedy in Two Acts

by Samuel Beckett

"Have recently come to appreciate the awesome, absurdist humor of [this book]." - Elon Musk (Source)

The Fault in Our Stars

by John Green

"Must admit to liking [this book]. Sad, romantic and beautifully named." - Elon Musk (Source)

Catherine the Great

Portrait of a Woman

by Robert K. Massie

"I know what you're probably thinking ... did she really f* a horse?" - Elon Musk (Source)

Starhammer

by Christopher B. Rowley

"A bit more obscure." - Elon Musk (Source)

The Stainless Steel Rat

by Harry Harrison

"A bit more obscure." - Elon Musk (Source)

The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire

by Edward Gibbon

"[The author]'s famous book." - Elon Musk (Source)

The Parasitic Mind

How Infectious Ideas Are Killing Common Sense

by Gad Saad

"Great book." - Elon Musk (Source)

Destined for War

Can America and China Escape Thucydides's Trap?

by Graham Allison

"Worth reading." - Elon Musk (Source)

The Capitalist Manifesto

by Johan Norberg

"An excellent explanation of why capitalism is not just successful, but morally right, especially chapter 4." - Elon Musk (Source)

The Iliad

by Homer

"Best story ever." - Elon Musk (Source)

Designing Brand Identity

An Essential Guide for the Whole Branding Team

by Alina Wheeler

"Great book." - Elon Musk (Source)

What's Our Problem?

A Self-Help Book for Societies

by Tim Urban

"Worth reading." - Elon Musk (Source)

Explore/Create

My Life in Pursuit of New Frontiers, Hidden Worlds, and the Creative Spark

by Richard Garriott

"A chronicle of wonder, and the many wondrous things the future may hold." - Elon Musk (Source)

What We Owe the Future

by William MacAskill

"Worth reading. This is a close match for my philosophy." - Elon Musk (Source)

The Wages of Destruction

The Making and Breaking of the Nazi Economy

by Adam Tooze

Elon Musk recommended this book on Twitter. (Source)

Not Much of an Engineer

by Sir Stanley Hooker

Elon Musk recommended this book on Twitter. (Source)

American Caesar

Douglas MacArthur 1880 - 1964

by William Manchester

Elon Musk recommended this book on Twitter. (Source)

The Life of Greece

The Story of Civilization, Book 2

by Will & Ariel Durant

"Rereading [this book]." - Elon Musk (Source)

The Fifteen Decisive Battles of the World

From Marathon to Waterloo

by Edward Shepherd Creasy

"Insightful analysis, ensconced in eloquent prose." - Elon Musk (Source)

Liftoff

Elon Musk and the Desperate Early Days That Launched SpaceX

by Eric Berger

"Book is accurate." - Elon Musk (Source)

Masters of Doom

How Two Guys Created an Empire and Transformed Pop Culture

by David Kushner

"A great book." - Elon Musk (Source)

Britannica Concise Encyclopedia

by Britannica Editors

"Read through [this book]. I'd recommend that." - Elon Musk (Source)

The Skeptics' Guide to the Universe

How to Know What's Really Real in a World Increasingly Full of Fake

by Steven Novella

"[This] book is 👍" - Elon Musk (Source)

On War

by Carl von Clausewitz

"There should be a chapter saying 'if you have a decisive technology advantage, you can actually win with minimal casualties.'" - Elon Musk (Source)

The Art Of War

by Sun Tzu

"I've read [this book] many times." - Elon Musk (Source)

The Age of Napoleon

The Story of Civilization, Book 11

by Will & Ariel Durant

"An amazing book." - Elon Musk (Source)

Storm of Steel

by Ernst Jünger

"Intense. Great book." - Elon Musk (Source)

The Selfish Gene

by Richard Dawkins

"Most people don't realize that the origin of the word 'meme' is [this book]." - Elon Musk (Source)

Zero to One

Notes on Startups, or How to Build the Future

by Peter Thiel

"[This author] has built multiple breakthrough companies, and [this book] shows how." - Elon Musk (Source)

Life 3.0

Being Human in the Age of Artificial Intelligence

by Max Tegmark

"A compelling guide to the challenges and choices in our quest for a great future of life, intelligence and consciousness—on Earth and beyond." - Elon Musk (Source)

Structures

Or Why Things Don't Fall Down

by J. E. Gordon

"Really, really good if you want a primer on structural design." - Elon Musk (Source)

Stranger in a Strange Land

by Robert A. Heinlein

"I like [this book], although it kind of goes off the rails at the end." - Elon Musk (Source)

The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin

by Benjamin Franklin

"Really good." - Elon Musk (Source)