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Duncan Trussell's book recommendations
Across 3 podcasts. Every show Duncan Trussell appears on, in one place — not just one.
Duncan Trussell’s most recommended books
- The Bhagavad Gita by Jack Hawley
- Dune by Frank Herbert
- Sex at Dawn by Christopher Ryan
- Superintelligence by Nick Bostrom
- The sacred mushroom and the cross by John Marco Allegro
- The Gulag Archipelago by Aleksandr Isaevich Solzhenit︠s︡yn
- Srimad Bhagavatam by Kamala Subramaniam
- A short history of nearly everything by Bill Bryson
- Abundance by Peter H. Diamandis, Steven Kotler
- Bullshit Jobs by David Graeber
Charles Duncan Trussell is an American actor and stand-up comic, known for his podcast The Duncan Trussell Family Hour. He appeared on and co-created the 2020 Netflix series The Midnight Gospel, and starred alongside Joe Rogan in the SYFY series Joe Rogan Questions Everything. During his appearances on podcasts like The Joe Rogan Experience, Trussell has recommended and discussed numerous books ranging from ancient history and philosophy to speculative technology and horror fiction. When discussing how new technologies radically transform humanity, Trussell brought up Mustafa Suleyman's The Coming Wave, highlighting the author's background with Google's Deep Mind and his breakdown of historic paradigm shifts. To explore the potential risks of superintelligent artificial intelligence, he pointed to Nick Bostrom's Superintelligence, while mentioning Ray Kurzweil's The Singularity Is Near in conversations about technological advancement, energy, and Dyson spheres. Trussell also recommended Pema Chodron's How We Live Is How We Die for listeners interested in spirituality and mortality, Steven Pressfield's The War of Art to discuss creative inspiration and the artistic muse, and Anne Rice's Interview with the Vampire, which he praised as one of the finest horror books he has ever read. Finally, he mentioned reading Herodotus's classic work The Histories to reflect on ancient empires and modern political paranoia.
Books recommended by Duncan Trussell
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The Bhagavad Gita
The Bhagavad Gita, translated by Jack Hawley, is an ancient sacred text that imparts profound spiritual wisdom, ethical duties, and philosophical guidance through a dialogue between Prince Arjuna and Krishna.
Discussed“but so then but you get this is man this is the [ __ ] babad Gita because the babad Gita starts with a warrior R June looking out on this uh this [ __ ] massive Army”
Where to get it
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Dune
Dune by Frank Herbert is a sweeping science fiction epic set on the desert planet Arrakis, chronicling the rise of a young messiah named Paul Atreides amidst intergalactic political betrayal and the extraction of a valuable resource known as spice.
Discussed“No, the books are so good, the first one, honestly the second one, I struggle with, but the first one is, wait a minute, what book? Dune?”
Where to get it
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Sex at Dawn
Sex at Dawn by Christopher Ryan and Cacilda Jethá is an exploration of human sexuality that challenges conventional ideas about monogamy by examining evolutionary biology and primate behavior.
Discussed“Christopher Ryan, the author of Sex at Dawn, talks about this. He was telling me about this how how gorillas have uh have a hair.”
Where to get it
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Superintelligence
Superintelligence by Nick Bostrom is an influential examination of the potential paths, scenarios, and existential risks associated with the emergence of artificial superintelligence.
Recommended“if you read boston i'm sure you have you know bostrom nick bostrom you know super intelligence that incredible book on like the ways this thing is going to happen”
Where to get it
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The sacred mushroom and the cross
The Sacred Mushroom and the Cross by John Marco Allegro is a controversial scholarly study that posits early Christianity originated from ancient fertility cults centered around the sacramental use of psychedelic mushrooms.
Discussed“which is why I think that book you gave me the sacred Mushroom in the cross or you didn't give me it when I was living with you”
Where to get it
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The Gulag Archipelago
The Gulag Archipelago by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn is a monumental historical exposé detailing the brutal Soviet forced labor camp system through survivor testimonies, archival research, and the author's own imprisonment.
Discussed“because i'm reading about torture in the gulag archipelago currently there's a bit of a camaraderie you're in it together”
Where to get it
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Srimad Bhagavatam
Srimad Bhagavatam by Kamala Subramaniam is an epic Hindu sacred text that focuses on devotion to Krishna and the philosophical principles of Bhakti yoga.
Discussed“oh yeah it's their primary text that the sh batam whoa but the the yeah you say that prayer”
Where to get it
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A short history of nearly everything
A short history of nearly everything by Bill Bryson is an engaging and accessible popular science journey that breaks down the vast mysteries of the universe, evolution, and human discovery into terms anyone can understand.
Recommended“you got to read this book Bill Bryson a brief history of nearly everything”
Where to get it
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Abundance
Abundance by Peter H.
Recommended“he wrote this book abundance I I I can never get his name right”
Where to get it
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Bullshit Jobs
Bullshit Jobs by David Graeber is a sociological examination of the proliferation of pointless, high-prestige, and high-paying administrative positions in modern corporate and institutional environments.
Recommended“so it's it's there's a I'm reading this book called [ __ ] jobs by David Graeber [ __ ] it's great man”
Where to get it
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Can't Hurt Me
Can't Hurt Me by David Goggins is a powerful memoir detailing the author's harrowing journey from a brutal, abusive childhood and severe obstacles to becoming a Navy SEAL, ultra-marathon runner, and symbol of extreme mental toughness.
Recommended“he'll run with his foot falling off the step book is really good what's that it's called can't hurt me yeah Jesus”
Where to get it
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Histories
Histories by Herodotus is an ancient foundational work of historical writing that chronicles the traditions, conflicts, and cultures of the ancient Mediterranean and Near East.
Recommended“i'm reading uh herodotus if you ever it's funny it's the histories it sounds like it's it sounds more academic than is this really cool man”
Where to get it
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How We Live Is How We Die
How We Live Is How We Die by Pema Chödrön is a spiritual guide that explores the profound transition of dying and how Buddhist teachings on impermanence can illuminate our daily lives.
Recommended“I'm always trying to listen to like some audiobook on spirituality it's Pima children's book newest book about dying something like how we live is how we die it's very good book”
Where to get it
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Interview With the Vampire
Interview With the Vampire by Anne Rice is a seminal horror novel exploring themes of immortality, grief, and the dark allure of vampirism through the framing of a sweeping journalistic confession.
Recommended“Interview with the Vampire is one of the best horror books I've ever read”
Where to get it
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Substance
Substance by Peter Hook is a memoir written by the bassist of the influential band New Order, offering readers a detailed look into the music industry and the history of the group.
Recommended“really the substance what is that dude I don't want to ruin it for people because it just came out but it's um you ever watch any like Cronenberg movies”
Where to get it
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The Coming Wave
The Coming Wave by Mustafa Suleyman and Michael Bhaskar is a critical examination of artificial intelligence and synthetic biology, warning of the immense disruptive power these technologies pose to global stability and society.
Recommended“He wrote this book, The Coming Wave. He uh he was one of the people who created Google's Deep Mind, right? And The Coming Wave is just a wonderful breakdown of historic examples of new technology completely transforming humanity.”
Where to get it
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The Harvard Psychedelic Club
The Harvard Psychedelic Club by Don Lattin is a non-fiction work that chronicles the lives and controversial experiments of four prominent intellectuals who catalyzed the psychedelic revolution of the 1960s.
Recommended“I'm reading this awesome book called The Harvard psychedelic Club”
Where to get it
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The Rose of Paracelsus
The Rose of Paracelsus is a compelling book written by William Leonard Pickard that delves into the clandestine world of underground chemistry and psychedelic production.
Recommended“He wrote this book called the rose of Pericles and it's this really cool book”
Where to get it
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The Singularity Is Near
Ray Kurzweil's The Singularity Is Near is a visionary technological work that explores the impending merging of human biology and artificial intelligence, mapping an accelerating trajectory for civilization.
Recommended“so I'm reading the singularity is near R Kell's book I [ __ ] love revisiting that book”
Where to get it
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The Tibetan Yogas of Dream and Sleep
The Tibetan Yogas of Dream and Sleep by Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche is a spiritual guide that explores ancient Tibetan practices for harnessing the power of dreams and sleep for spiritual awakening and personal transformation.
Recommended“There's a okay so this is a trip this this is very trippy So I got this book called the Tibetan yoga of dream and sleep Well I feel like it's [ __ ] cool”
Where to get it
- The Utopia of Rules by David Graeber
- The Walking Dead Vol. 14 by Robert Kirkman
- The War of Art by Steven Pressfield
- The Wisdom of No Escape by Pema Chodron
- Why We Meditate by Daniel Goleman
- Wilson's Tales of the Borders, Etc by John Mackay Wilson
- A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin
- Acid Dreams by Martin A. Lee
- Bagavad Gita by C Rajagopalachari
- Black Gold Stranglehold by Jerome R. Corsi
- Foundation by Isaac Asimov
- Games People Play by Eric Berne
- High Magick by Damien Echols
- John by Merrill C. Tenney
- Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov
- Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl
- Naked Lunch by William S. Burroughs
- On the Road by Jack Kerouac
- Psycho-cybernetics by Maxwell Maltz
- Science of Mind by Ernest Holmes
- Sleep by Nick Littlehales
- Tell Your Children by Alex Berenson
- The Book of Five Rings by Miyamoto Musashi
- The Book of John by Lin Johnson
- The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky
- The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
- The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams
- The Kingdom of God Is Within You by Лев Толстой
- The Painted Bird by Jerzy Kosinski
- The Passion of the Christ by Greg Laurie
Questions about Duncan Trussell’s book recommendations
What book does Duncan Trussell recommend most?
The Bhagavad Gita by Jack Hawley. Duncan Trussell discussed it in 4 episodes.
How many books has Duncan Trussell recommended on podcasts?
We have found 55 books Duncan Trussell recommended or discussed, across 36 episodes of 3 podcasts. Ad reads and passing mentions are not counted.
What books are on Duncan Trussell's reading list?
The books Duncan Trussell has recommended most on podcasts are The Bhagavad Gita by Jack Hawley, Dune by Frank Herbert, Sex at Dawn by Christopher Ryan, Superintelligence by Nick Bostrom and The sacred mushroom and the cross by John Marco Allegro. The year-by-year lists below have all 55.
What did Duncan Trussell recommend on The Joe Rogan Experience?
The Bhagavad Gita, Dune and Sex at Dawn, among 46 books in all.
What is the latest book Duncan Trussell recommended?
Psycho-cybernetics, discussed on This Past Weekend w/ Theo Von (2026-07-08).
People who recommend the same books
Duncan Trussell’s latest episodes with books
Duncan Trussell’s book recommendations by year
All 55 books Duncan Trussell recommended or discussed across 36 episodes, filed by the year each episode came out. Each year goes episode by episode, with the minute every book came up.