Sam Harris Recommended Books
Sam Harris has recommended 22 books. Browse the complete reading list with quotes and sources below.
Sam Harris is an American author, neuroscientist, philosopher, and podcast host.
(Read more on Wikipedia)22 Books Recommended
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Behave
The Biology of Humans at Our Best and Worst
"I highly recommend. It really is the most accessible discussion of brain science you will find." - Sam Harris (Source)
Also recommended by:
Marc Andreessen, Vinod Khosla, Bryan Johnson, Keith Rabois, Michael Mauboussin
The Flight of the Garuda
The Dzogchen Tradition of Tibetan Buddhism
"Especially beautiful and wise." - Sam Harris (Source)
The Beginning of Infinity
Explanations That Transform the World
"Greatly expanded my sense of the potential power of human knowledge." - Sam Harris (Source)
Also recommended by:
Patrick Collison, Naval Ravikant, Mark Zuckerberg, Steven Pinker, Chris Anderson, Mark Bell, Ryan Shea
Enlightenment Now
The Case for Reason, Science, Humanism, and Progress
Sam Harris picked this as the first book in his Book Club. (Source)
Also recommended by:
Bill Gates, Jordan Peterson, Yuval Noah Harari, A.J. Jacobs, David Deutsch, Michael Mauboussin, Richard Dawkins, David Friedberg
Stumbling on Happiness
"A good book which I recommend." - Sam Harris (Source)
Also recommended by:
Derek Sivers, Maria Popova, Ev Williams, Andrew Wilkinson, Mark Manson
In Cold Blood
"If you just want to forget about the future and lose yourself in the book that forever changed how narrative nonfiction is written, read [this book]." - Sam Harris (Source)
Also recommended by:
Machete Season
The Killers in Rwanda Speak
"If you want to see what it’s like when things go about as wrong as they can go, read [this book]." - Sam Harris (Source)
Also recommended by:
The Anatomy of Disgust
"Fun." - Sam Harris (Source)
History of Western Philosophy
And Its Connection with Political and Social Circumstances from the Earliest Times to the Present Day
"Just a great example of how English should be written and just a great voice to have in your head as a result." - Sam Harris (Source)
The Qur'an
"Read it in a weekend and you will be informed about the central doctrines of Islam in a way that you may not be and it’s good to be informed, given how much influence these ideas have currently in our world." - Sam Harris (Source)
Also recommended by:
Hitch-22
A Memoir
"You can get the benefit of both his voice and his writing if you listen to [this audiobook]." - Sam Harris (Source)
Reasons and Persons
"Brilliant and written as though by an alien intelligence." - Sam Harris (Source)
Also recommended by:
Superintelligence
Paths, Dangers, Strategies
"Made me worry that machine knowledge could ruin everything." - Sam Harris (Source)
Also recommended by:
Elon Musk, Naval Ravikant, Sam Altman, Will MacAskill, Marc Goodman
On Having No Head
"A very useful little volume." - Sam Harris (Source)
Also recommended by:
Mortal Questions
"There are some very good essays in there that were very influential in philosophy and should be more influential in the culture, generally." - Sam Harris (Source)
The Last Word
"Champions rationality in a very compelling way." - Sam Harris (Source)
I Am That
"He said a few crazy things, as many gurus do. But if you stick to what he was claiming about the nature of experience, I think you’re on firm ground." - Sam Harris (Source)
Humiliation
"Just on the phenomenon of being humiliated and differentiating it from embarrassment and other similar emotions." - Sam Harris (Source)
God Is Not Great
How Religion Poisons Everything
"You can get the benefit of both his voice and his writing if you listen to [this audiobook]." - Sam Harris (Source)
One Blade of Grass
Finding the Old Road of the Heart, a Zen Memoir
"Beautifully written." - Sam Harris (Source)
Also recommended by:
What We Owe the Future
"Altogether thrilling and necessary." - Sam Harris (Source)
Also recommended by:
A.J. Jacobs, Ezra Klein, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Julia Galef, Liv Boeree, Stephen Fry, Elon Musk
Other Recommenders
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Software engineer whose passion for tracking book recommendations from podcasts inspired the creation of MRB.
Lead investor at 3one4 Capital whose startup expertise and love for books helped shaped MRB and its growth.
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