Episode · How I Write · 2024-05-29
David Perell & Ted Gioia: books mentioned on How I Write
A Conversation with the Genius Mind of Ted Gioia
Ted Gioia recommended Infinite jest by David Foster Wallace, and discussed MOBY-DICK; or, THE WHALE by Herman Melville, Critique of Pure Reason by Immanuel Kant, The white goddess by Robert Graves, The alchemy of finance by George Soros, The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, by Edward Gibbon. Vol. 2. [-3-4]. by Edward Gibbon, and “The” History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire by Edward Gibbon.
Books mentioned, in the order they came up
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MOBY-DICK; or, THE WHALE
Moby-Dick by Herman Melville is an epic American novel that chronicles the obsessive, self-destructive quest of Captain Ahab to hunt down the giant white whale that maimed him.
Discussed“so I'm an admirer of Moby Dick or the few recent authors that have a maximalist style”
Where to get it
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Infinite jest
Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace is a sprawling, maximalist novel exploring addiction, entertainment, and modern American culture.
Recommended“Infinite Jest is one of my favorite books just because of his courage in doing the maximalism”
Where to get it
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Critique of Pure Reason
Critique of Pure Reason is a foundational philosophical work by Immanuel Kant that investigates the limits and structure of human knowledge.
Discussed“so for example I will say I was listening to this music and it awoke me from my dogmatic Slumber which was what Emanuel K said when he wrote the critique of pure reason”
Where to get it
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The alchemy of finance
Discussed“so that's why I will read a book by George Soros called the Alchemy of Finance where he shows how he became a billionaire by understanding the way financial markets especially currency markets would evolve”
Where to get it
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The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, by Edward Gibbon. Vol. 2. [-3-4].
Edward Gibbon’s monumental historical work, The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, details the trajectory and ultimate collapse of Roman civilization across multiple volumes.
Discussed“well I'm going to read the decline and fall of the Roman Empire by Gibb and I'm reading it”
Where to get it
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“The” History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire
The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire by Edward Gibbon is a monumental multi-volume historical work chronicling the trajectory of the Roman world from the height of the empire to its eventual collapse.
Discussed“well I'm going to read the decline and fall of the Roman Empire by Gibb and I'm reading it”
Where to get it
Other mentions in this episode (1) — ad reads, self-promotion and passing references, never counted
“well for example I wrote a book called West Coast Jazz and it is sort of a hip cool thing”