Person
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, Cacilda Jetha
- 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 Hindu scripture that presents a profound philosophical dialogue between Prince Arjuna and Lord Krishna on duty, righteousness, and spiritual liberation.
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
Frank Herbert’s classic science fiction masterpiece Dune is widely celebrated as an epic space opera exploring ecology, religion, and political power on a desert planet.
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 Jetha is a popular book that challenges conventional assumptions about human sexuality and monogamy.
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 a foundational book exploring the future of artificial intelligence and the existential risks posed by the creation of superintelligent systems.
Recommended“nick bostrom super intelligence it's an awesome book it's an awesome book but he just points out that by the time a super intelligence if one gets created via technology”
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“well you know the the Christian stuff the the the John Marco Allegro stuff from um the sacred Mushroom in the cross”
Where to get it
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The Gulag Archipelago
The Gulag Archipelago by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn is a monumental historical exposé documenting the brutal realities of the Soviet forced labor camp system through personal testimony and archival research.
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
David Graeber's sociological examination investigates the proliferation of pointless administrative occupations and their psychological toll on modern workers.
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 Chodron is a spiritual guidebook that offers profound Buddhist perspectives on impermanence, transition, and the art of approaching mortality with mindfulness and grace.
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 gothic horror novel that explores immortality, guilt, and the complex relationships between vampires through the confession of the vampire Louis de Pointe du Lac.
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: Technology, Power, and the Twenty-First Century's Greatest Dilemma by Mustafa Suleyman and Michael Bhaskar examines how rapid advancements in artificial intelligence and synthetic biology threaten to disrupt established political and social structures.
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 prominent techno-futurist book exploring the merging of humans and artificial intelligence and the technological singularity.
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 other 35 books Duncan Trussell recommended or discussed, ranked
- 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
- The Road by Cormac McCarthy
- The Stand by Stephen King
- The Unabomber's Manifesto: Industrial Society and Its Future by Ted Kaczynski
- The Way of the Bodhisattva by Shantideva
- The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali by Patanjali
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, Cacilda Jetha, Superintelligence by Nick Bostrom and The sacred mushroom and the cross by John Marco Allegro. The full book list below has 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
Appearances
Other mentions (13: passing, ad reads, own books)
“We read My Side of the Mountain.”
“I think he was I think I remember reading that he was kind of uh obsessed with that book Lolita. Like he had like something like 30 copies of it or something.”
“the na'vi from the movie Avatar Avatar I'm not I don't want to be a na'vi”
“and you know I'm I'm done with it like I I feel like One Flew Over the [__] Cuckoo's Nest”
“and that's the Tom O'Neill the book chaos”
“yes dianic have you heard of this book”
“Yeah, you can adapt, you can adjust! Have you ever read Grapes of Wrath, dude? That book was a half chapter away from them eating a bowl of boiled placenta!”
“I was listening to 'Gulag Archipelago', which was a very welcome break because I was looking for any excuse to stop.”
“members of the cacophony society was the author of fight club and so if you've seen fight club”
“I mean I got like I think it was the Red Badge of Courage which even now I can't remember”
“it was right around when book of mormon was coming out too you know that hilarious musical and it's great”
“seven years in tibet is about somebody who made it through and became friends of the dalai lama as a kid”
“I'm reading [ __ ] listening to the audio book rather of Moby Dick uh the Frank Mueller narration”