Episode · Modern Wisdom · 2019-07-25
Books mentioned on The Five Best Books You've Never Read - Nat Eliason - #088
Nat Eliason is the founder of GrowthMachine.com and the host of the Made You Think Podcast.
Chris Williamson discussed The Laws of Human Nature by Robert Greene, Infinite jest by David Foster Wallace, Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman, and Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl. Nat Eliason recommended Peak by Anders Ericsson and others, Endurance by Alfred Lansing, The Forgotten Highlander by Alistair Urquhart, The Sovereign Individual by James Dale Davidson and others, Gödel, Escher, Bach by Douglas R. Hofstadter, and The Denial of Death by Ernest Becker, and discussed Antifragile by Nassim Nicholas Taleb, The 48 Laws of Power by Robert Greene and others, and Plato's Symposium.
Books mentioned, in the order they came up
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The Laws of Human Nature
The Laws of Human Nature by Robert Greene is an exhaustive examination of human psychology, social behavior, and the underlying motivations that drive people's actions.
Discussed“recently had Robert Greene on talking about laws of human nature and your guys summary of that was a big big help in prepping it's a big old book”
Where to get it
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Antifragile
Antifragile by Nassim Nicholas Taleb is an intellectual and business book that explores how systems and leaders can gain from disorder, adversity, and volatility rather than merely withstand them.
Discussed“and we said or we thought it might be fun to do a second episode on a book that we both really liked Angie fragile by Nassim Taleb”
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.
Discussed“isn't it like some ridiculously difficult sci-fi book Infinite Jest”
Where to get it
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The 48 Laws of Power
The 48 Laws of Power by Robert Greene and Joost Elffers is a strategic manual that examines historical power dynamics, influence, and survival.
Discussed“so if you google like 48 laws of power or summary I think I'm like in the top three that come up for that and that you know but a lot of traffic to the site”
Where to get it
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Thinking, Fast and Slow
Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman is a celebrated book exploring cognitive biases, loss aversion, and the dual systems that drive human decision-making.
Discussed“but for me personally I find it's a bit of an open loop when I've got a book that so Thinking Fast and Slow is a perfect example”
Where to get it
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Peak
Peak by Anders Ericsson and Robert Pool is a comprehensive guide examining the science of skill acquisition and the mechanisms behind achieving peak performance in various fields.
Recommended“so piqued by Anders Ericsson Robert Poole is probably the best book on learning and skill acquisition”
Where to get it
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Endurance
Endurance by Alfred Lansing is a gripping historical non-fiction account detailing Ernest Shackleton's ill-fated 1914 Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition and the harrowing survival story of his stranded crew.
Recommended“I'll say endurance by Alfred Lansing is very good all right so that's the story of Shackleton and his crew”
Where to get it
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Man's Search for Meaning
Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor E.
Discussed“so man's search for meaning is one book I guess that kind of comes to mind with regards to that like turmoil and people going through things”
Where to get it
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The Forgotten Highlander
The Forgotten Highlander by Alistair Urquhart is a harrowing memoir detailing the author's survival as a Scottish soldier captured by the Japanese during World War II, enduring forced labor on the infamous railway and the atomic bombing of Nagasaki.
Recommended“or the last Highlander I think it is by Alistair no I haven't heard that so this man if you if you need a new order biography style book to read I really highly recommend this one”
Where to get it
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The Sovereign Individual
The Sovereign Individual by James Dale Davidson and Lord William Rees-Mogg is a provocative economic and political study exploring how the shift toward a digital information economy empowers individuals at the expense of the nation-state.
Recommended“I'll say sovereign individual by James Dale Davidson and William Reece mark that's really really really phenomenal books”
Where to get it
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Plato's Symposium
Plato's Symposium and related classical works by Plato represent foundational texts in Western philosophy, exploring the nature of love, ideal forms, political justice, and the pursuit of ultimate truth through structured Socratic dialogues.
Discussed“well I think it's like you know Plato's Republic right”
Where to get it
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Gödel, Escher, Bach
Gödel, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid by Douglas R.
Recommended“gödel Escher Bach is amazing is sorry it's a gödel Escher Bach by douglas hofstadter”
Where to get it
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The Denial of Death
The Denial of Death by Ernest Becker is a Pulitzer Prize-winning psychological and philosophical study exploring how human behavior is driven by the fear of mortality.
Recommended“and then last one I'll throw out would be denial of death by Ernest Becker that's another super interesting one”
Where to get it
Other mentions in this episode (9) — ad reads, self-promotion and passing references, never counted
“I've got a lot of like the popular ones in there including laws of human nature of course and yes auntie Fraggle and all the ones on on made you think”
“I've got a lot of like the popular ones in there including laws of human nature of course and yes auntie Fraggle and all the ones on on made you think”
“so if you google like 48 laws of power or summary I think I'm like in the top three that come up for that”
“as more and more people find like more and more people read expert secrets by Russell Brunson or whatever whatever”
“I've got him on this week talking about ultra learning which is his new book”
“and he references peek in that he references make it stick by Peter C Brown who's been on this podcast as well”
“and atomic habits as well I suppose”
“and atomic habits as well”
“well I think it's like you know Plato's Republic right the the ideal government is a philosopher-king”