Person
Chris Williamson's book recommendations
Chris Williamson appears on podcasts such as Modern Wisdom and The Joe Rogan Experience as a curious host and conversationalist exploring psychology, historical events, physical fitness, and human behavior. Throughout these discussions, he has recommended and discussed several notable titles. He brought up John Lisle's book The Dirty Tricks Department to discuss the OSS and unconventional tactics used in World War II, and he recommended Robert Plomin's book Blueprint, suggesting it could replace all other child rearing books. Williamson also mentioned Bill Perkins' book Die with Zero to discuss how driven people get trapped in extreme delayed gratification, Christopher Dunn's The Giza Power Plant regarding theories about the Great Pyramid, and Norman Ohler's Blitzed during a historical conversation on drug consumption in Nazi Germany. Additionally, he discussed Matthew White's Atrocitology to understand the history of human atrocities, David Robson's The Expectation Effect in a conversation about popular science and mindset, and Rick Hanson's Hardwiring Happiness while exploring neurobiology and mindfulness.
Books Chris Williamson recommends
-
Hardwiring Happiness
Hardwiring Happiness by Rick Hanson is a practical psychological guide that offers actionable strategies for rewiring the brain to cultivate greater resilience, joy, and emotional well-being by internalizing positive everyday experiences.
Discussed“Rick Hansen, if you're familiar with Rick from Hardwiring Happiness, I think he's just so great.”
Where to get it
-
The Moral Animal
Why people recommend it: The Moral Animal is a foundational book by Robert Wright that explores evolutionary psychology and the ways human behavior is shaped by natural selection.
Discussed“cuz the the book that got me into u EP was u The Moral Animal from 1991 or 1992 or something. And it's still some of the stuff little u replication crisis, but most of it's [ __ ] on.”
Where to get it
-
Blitzed
Blitzed: Drugs in the Third Reich by Norman Ohler is a historical investigation that explores the widespread use of mind-altering substances, particularly methamphetamine, among German soldiers and high-ranking officials during World War II.
Recommended“I mean, Norman Oler's book, Blitz, I loved those episodes that you did with Yeah. incredible. It's just an incredible story that they they literally went through Poland in three days.”
Where to get it
-
Blueprint
Recommended“I think all of the uh dating advice in the world and all of the child rearing books in the world could be replaced with blueprint by Robert Plowman maybe.”
Where to get it
-
Die with Zero
Die with Zero by Bill Perkins and William O.
Recommended“My friend Bill wrote a great book, Die with Zero. And in it, he says, "Delayed gratification in the extreme results in no gratification."”
Where to get it
-
The Dirty Tricks Department
Recommended“A guy called John Lyle. So he wrote a book called The Dirty Tricks Department. It was a a book about the founding of the OSS and the insane tactics that they used in World War II to try and stop World War II.”
Where to get it
-
The Giza Power Plant
Recommended“Christopher Dunn had long ago theorized and wrote a book that he believes that the Great Pyramid of Giza is a gigantic power plant.”
Where to get it
-
Atrocitology
Discussed“I've been spending a good bit of time reading more um like military history and and and trying to get a bit more of an understanding of there's a a great book called Atrocitology, which is the hundred greatest human atrocities across time.”
Where to get it
-
Daring Young Men
Discussed“I had a conversation with Richard rebs sat here um Richard oh my gosh yes of boys and men yeah so he's great American Institute of boys and men”
Where to get it
-
Eat Pray Love
Discussed“What do you think about the story of the book Eat, Pray, Love?”
Where to get it
-
Endurance
Discussed“Have you ever read uh Endurance by Alfred Lansing? It's about Sir Ernest Shackleton's crossing of the Antarctic. So it's the best I think the best retelling of that.”
Where to get it
-
Lost Connections
Lost Connections by Johann Hari is a widely recognized book that investigates the environmental and social root causes of depression and anxiety.
Discussed“I seem to remember in uh lost connections Johan Harry's book man what a great book uh that there's a carve out in the DSM for grief around depression”
Where to get it
-
Of Boys and Men
Of Boys and Men is a sociology and cultural commentary book by Richard V.
Discussed“I had a conversation with Richard rebs sat here um Richard oh my gosh yes of boys and men yeah so he's great American Institute of boys and men”
Where to get it
-
Seveneves
Seveneves is a sweeping science fiction novel by Neal Stephenson in which humanity must band together to survive an apocalyptic lunar cataclysm by repurposing the International Space Station into a space-faring ark.
Discussed“Well, there's also there's a book called Seven Esses by Neil Stevenson. In in the first line, the moon explodes. So, spoiler alert, the moon explorers in the first line.”
Where to get it
-
The Evolution of Desire
Discussed“This guy reached out to him after he read the evolution of desire and in it David talks about u an area of the brain that specifically gets turned on in men.”
Where to get it
-
The Expectation Effect
The Expectation Effect by David Robson is a popular science book that examines how human beliefs, mental framing, and psychological expectations can profoundly influence physical health, aging, and overall life outcomes.
Discussed“There's a a great book called The Expectation Effect by David Robinson. Just popular science book.”
Where to get it
-
Trying Not to Try
Discussed“I had this guy Edward Sling England on he wrote a book called Trying Not to Try which is about Wooi which you'll be familiar with”
Where to get it
-
Why Buddhism is True
Why Buddhism is True by Robert Wright is a popular psychology and philosophy book that examines mindfulness, evolutionary psychology, and Buddhist meditation practices to explain how mental afflictions distort human happiness.
Discussed“There's this gorgeous idea from u Robert Wright's Why Buddhism is True. That's a nice book.”
Where to get it
Appearances
Other mentions (3: passing, ad reads, own books)
“Before you know it, you're reading the threebody problem.”
“You're supposed to be playing Call of Duty first person, but they're actually playing it third person, right? and they're observing it happen and it's taking them out of the moment”
“Victor Franklman, Search for Meaning in some ways, too.”