Some of the Books That Shape Our Thinking
At Rootstock, we’re big thinkers, which means we’re also big readers. The thought leaders who author many of our favorite books challenge, enlighten, and inspire us to do a little better every day. Though our personal To-Read lists are ever evolving, here are a few solids we recommend you add to your own if you haven’t already. — Rootstock
Business, Writing, and Self-Growth Books We Recommend
Disrupt-Her
Miki Agarawak
Disrupt-Her is an unabashed manifesto that inspires us to move past outrage and take positive steps on the personal, professional, and societal levels. It galvanizes us to action in 13 major areas of our lives with as much firepower as possible. These are the credos we live by, the advice we give to friends, the tenets we instill in our companies and peers on a daily basis. It’s a whole body F*CK YES to your work, your love, your relationships, and your mission.
“In Disrupt-Her, Miki Agrawal invites all us humans to reexamine the beliefs and behaviors that keep us from living a fully expressed and authentic life. If you have ever wondered how to break free of group think and be who you are, read this book. In a world where more of us need to live in a way that adds to goodness, creativity, and innovation, this book is your guide.” — Mark Hyman, M.D., #1 New York Times best-selling author of Food: What the Heck Should I Eat? and director, Cleveland Clinic Center for Functional Medicine
Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking
Susan Cain
“At least one-third of the people we know are introverts. They are the ones who prefer listening to speaking; who innovate and create but dislike self-promotion; who favor working on their own over working in teams. It is to introverts—Rosa Parks, Chopin, Dr. Seuss, Steve Wozniak—that we owe many of the great contributions to society. In Quiet, Susan Cain argues that we dramatically undervalue introverts and shows how much we lose in doing so. She charts the rise of the Extrovert Ideal throughout the twentieth century and explores how deeply it has come to permeate our culture. She also introduces us to successful introverts—from a witty, high-octane public speaker who recharges in solitude after his talks, to a record-breaking salesman who quietly taps into the power of questions. Passionately argued, impeccably researched, and filled with indelible stories of real people, Quiet has the power to permanently change how we see introverts and, equally important, how they see themselves.”
“Superbly researched, deeply insightful, and a fascinating read, Quiet is an indispensable resource for anyone who wants to understand the gifts of the introverted half of the population.” — Gretchen Rubin, author of The Happiness Project
Good to Great
Jim Collins
“Built To Last, the defining management study of the nineties, showed how great companies triumph over time and how long-term sustained performance can be engineered into the DNA of an enterprise from the very beginning.
“But what about companies that are not born with great DNA? How can good companies, mediocre companies, even bad companies achieve enduring greatness? Are there those that convert long-term mediocrity or worse into long-term superiority? If so, what are the distinguishing characteristics that cause a company to go from good to great?”
Good to Great is a must-read for anyone committed to one day leading an organization that truly represents excellence, no matter its tax status.” — ProInspire
The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business
Charles Duhigg
“In The Power of Habit, award-winning business reporter Charles Duhigg takes us to the thrilling edge of scientific discoveries that explain why habits exist and how they can be changed. Distilling vast amounts of information into engrossing narratives that take us from the boardrooms of Procter & Gamble to the sidelines of the NFL to the front lines of the civil rights movement, Duhigg presents a whole new understanding of human nature and its potential. At its core, The Power of Habit contains an exhilarating argument: The key to exercising regularly, losing weight, being more productive, and achieving success is understanding how habits work. As Duhigg shows, by harnessing this new science, we can transform our businesses, our communities, and our lives.”
“Few [books] become essential manuals for business and living. The Power of Habit is an exception. Charles Duhigg not only explains how habits are formed but how to kick bad ones and hang on to the good.” — Financial Times
Range: Why Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World
David Epstein
“Plenty of experts argue that anyone who wants to develop a skill, play an instrument, or lead their field should start early, focus intensely, and rack up as many hours of deliberate practice as possible. If you dabble or delay, you’ll never catch up to the people who got a head start. But a closer look at research on the world’s top performers, from professional athletes to Nobel laureates, shows that early specialization is the exception, not the rule.
“David Epstein examined the world’s most successful athletes, artists, musicians, inventors, forecasters and scientists. He discovered that in most fields—especially those that are complex and unpredictable—generalists, not specialists, are primed to excel. Generalists often find their path late, and they juggle many interests rather than focusing on one. They’re also more creative, more agile, and able to make connections their more specialized peers can’t see.
“Provocative, rigorous, and engrossing, Range makes a compelling case for actively cultivating inefficiency. Failing a test is the best way to learn. Frequent quitters end up with the most fulfilling careers. The most impactful inventors cross domains rather than deepening their knowledge in a single area. As experts silo themselves further while computers master more of the skills once reserved for highly focused humans, people who think broadly and embrace diverse experiences and perspectives will increasingly thrive.”
“Urgent and important. . . an essential read for bosses, parents, coaches, and anyone who cares about improving performance.” — Daniel H. Pink, #1 NYT bestselling author of When and Drive
Small by Design: The Entrepreneur’s Guide For Growing Big While Staying Small
David Feldman
“In Small by Design: The Entrepreneur’s Guide For Growing Big While Staying Small, entrepreneur David Feldman reveals how small businesses can make a major impact with a minimalist mindset. The value a company creates is not a function of its size, and according to Feldman, the clutter of conventional growth often crowds out actual impact. It’s far better to assemble the truly essential resources and learn to apply them well, all while staying deliberately, intentionally, and proudly small by design.
“Small by Design is not for companies hoping to appear bigger than they are; it’s about becoming confident in their small size and being proud of that choice. Staying small often lends itself to a competitive advantage, and though this doesn’t happen automatically, neither does mimicking the strategies of multinationals.”
If you’re an entrepreneur with big ideas and a compelling purpose, this brilliant, heartfelt book will help you create a life of abundance and meaningful impact while staying small, by design.” — Joey Reiman, Founder BCG Brighthouse
The Most Powerful Woman in the Room is You
Lydia Fenet
“The Senior Vice President of Christie’s and seasoned auctioneer Lydia Fenet, with her ‘razor-sharp humor and her don’t-mess-with-me gavel strike’ (Mariska Hargitay, star of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit), shares the secrets of success and the strategies behind her revolutionary sales approach to show you how to embrace and channel your own power in any room.
“Who is the most powerful woman in the room? She’s the one who can raise a million dollars in a minute. She’s the one who can command the attention of a group of any size from one person to five thousand. She’s the one who can sell anything to anyone. And she can be you.
“As a senior executive at Christie’s, leader in her field, and one of Gotham magazine’s Most Influential Women in New York, Lydia Fenet knows firsthand that the one skill that can set women apart in both their personal life and career is the ability to sell. The Most Powerful Woman in the Room Is You equips you with everything you need to know—from how to sell authentically and how to network (or die), to the importance of never apologizing (start negotiating instead), how to perfect your poker face, and always, always, tell the truth. Most of all, she offers plenty of encouragement to take ownership in your position and look for opportunities to innovate.”
We all agree that we need more women leaders—the question is how to get there. One of the answers is Lydia Fenet.” — Arianna Huffington, founder and CEO of Thrive, and The Huffington Post
Sapiens
Yuval Noah Harari
“From a renowned historian comes a groundbreaking narrative of humanity’s creation and evolution—a #1 international bestseller—that explores the ways in which biology and history have defined us and enhanced our understanding of what it means to be “human.”
“One hundred thousand years ago, at least six different species of humans inhabited Earth. Yet today there is only one—homo sapiens. What happened to the others? And what may happen to us?
“Most books about the history of humanity pursue either a historical or a biological approach, but Dr. Yuval Noah Harari breaks the mold with this highly original book that begins about 70,000 years ago with the appearance of modern cognition. From examining the role evolving humans have played in the global ecosystem to charting the rise of empires, Sapiens integrates history and science to reconsider accepted narratives, connect past developments with contemporary concerns, and examine specific events within the context of larger ideas.
“Dr. Harari also compels us to look ahead, because over the last few decades humans have begun to bend laws of natural selection that have governed life for the past four billion years. We are acquiring the ability to design not only the world around us, but also ourselves. Where is this leading us, and what do we want to become?”
The great debates of history aired out with satisfying vigor.” — Kirkus Reviews
Supremely Tiny Acts: A Memoir of a Day
Sonya Huber
“’I think we have to get to the real, to catch the facts we have, to hold on to what we see. . . .in this time where lies are currency,’ Sonya Huber writes in her book-length essay Supremely Tiny Acts: A Memoir of a Day. On the theory that naming the truths of quotidian experience can counter the dangerous power of lies, she carefully recounts two anxiety-fueled days one fall. On the first, she is arrested as part of a climate protest in Times Square. On the other, she must make it to her court appearance while also finding time to take her son to get his learner’s permit. Paying equal attention to minor details, passing thoughts, and larger political concerns around activism and parenting in the Trump-era United States, Huber asks: How can one simultaneously be a good mother, a good worker, and a good citizen? As she reflects on the meaning of protest and on whiteness and other forms of privilege within political activism, Huber offers a wry, self-aware, and stirring testament to the everyday as a seedbed for meaningful change.”
“Traveling both literally and figuratively with Huber through her day is an intimate pleasure. . . . Her quirkiness, her vulnerability, and her worldview are offered up in a way that invites familiarity: readers leave the book feeling that they know someone who was previously a stranger but not anymore.” — PopMATTERS
Company of One – Why Staying Small is the Next Big Thing for Business
Paul Jarvis
“What if the real key to a more fulfilling career was not to scale up but to work for yourself and become a successful and sustainable company of one? The New York Times bestselling author of Deep Work Cal Newport calls this book a ‘must-read for any entrepreneur who prioritizes a rich life over riches.’
“Company of One offers a refreshingly original business strategy that’s focused on a commitment to being better instead of bigger. Why? Because staying small provides one with the freedom to pursue more meaningful pleasures in life—and avoid the headaches that come with traditional growth-oriented business.
“Having personally discovered the benefits of cutting out the corporate hierarchy that constantly demands more, author Paul Jarvis explains how you can do the same. With this groundbreaking guide, you’ll learn how to set up your shop, determine your desired revenues, deal with unexpected crises, keep your key clients happy, and find self-fulfillment every step of the way.”
“Jarvis makes a compelling case for making your business better instead of bigger. A must-read for any entrepreneur who prioritizes a rich life over riches.” — Cal Newport, bestselling author of Deep Work
How to Be an Antiracist
Ibram X. Kendi
“Antiracism is a transformative concept that reorients and reenergizes the conversation about racism—and, even more fundamentally, points us toward liberating new ways of thinking about ourselves and each other. At its core, racism is a powerful system that creates false hierarchies of human value; its warped logic extends beyond race, from the way we regard people of different ethnicities or skin colors to the way we treat people of different sexes, gender identities, and body types. Racism intersects with class and culture and geography and even changes the way we see and value ourselves.
“In How to Be an Antiracist, Kendi takes readers through a widening circle of antiracist ideas—from the most basic concepts to visionary possibilities—that will help readers see all forms of racism clearly, understand their poisonous consequences, and work to oppose them in our systems and in ourselves.
“Kendi weaves an electrifying combination of ethics, history, law, and science with his own personal story of awakening to antiracism. This is an essential work for anyone who wants to go beyond the awareness of racism to the next step: contributing to the formation of a just and equitable society.”
“The most courageous book to date on the problem of race in the Western mind.” — The New York Times
On Writing
Stephen King
“Immensely helpful and illuminating to any aspiring writer, this special edition of Stephen King’s critically lauded, million-copy bestseller shares the experiences, habits, and convictions that have shaped him and his work.
“’Long live the King’ hailed Entertainment Weekly upon publication of Stephen King’s On Writing. Part memoir, part master class by one of the bestselling authors of all time, this superb volume is a revealing and practical view of the writer’s craft, comprising the basic tools of the trade every writer must have. King’s advice is grounded in his vivid memories from childhood through his emergence as a writer, from his struggling early career to his widely reported, near-fatal accident in 1999—and how the inextricable link between writing and living spurred his recovery. Brilliantly structured, friendly and inspiring, On Writing will empower and entertain everyone who reads it—fans, writers, and anyone who loves a great story well told.”
“A one-of-a-kind classic.” — The Wall Street Journal
Bird by Bird
Ann Lamott
“For a quarter century, more than a million readers—scribes and scribblers of all ages and abilities—have been inspired by Anne Lamott’s hilarious, big-hearted, homespun advice. Advice that begins with the simple words of wisdom passed down from Anne’s father—also a writer—in the iconic passage that gives the book its title:
“’Thirty years ago my older brother, who was ten years old at the time, was trying to get a report on birds written that he’d had three months to write. It was due the next day. We were out at our family cabin in Bolinas, and he was at the kitchen table close to tears, surrounded by binder paper and pencils and unopened books on birds, immobilized by the hugeness of the task ahead. Then my father sat down beside him, put his arm around my brother’s shoulder, and said, “Bird by bird, buddy. Just take it bird by bird.”’”
“Superb writing advice…. Hilarious, helpful, and provocative.” — The New York Times Book Review
The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck
Mark Manson
“In this generation-defining self-help guide, a superstar blogger cuts through the crap to show us how to stop trying to be ‘positive’ all the time so that we can truly become better, happier people. …
“Manson makes the argument, backed both by academic research and well-timed poop jokes, that improving our lives hinges not on our ability to turn lemons into lemonade, but on learning to stomach lemons better. Human beings are flawed and limited—’not everybody can be extraordinary, there are winners and losers in society, and some of it is not fair or your fault.’ Manson advises us to get to know our limitations and accept them. Once we embrace our fears, faults, and uncertainties, once we stop running and avoiding and start confronting painful truths, we can begin to find the courage, perseverance, honesty, responsibility, curiosity, and forgiveness we seek.
“There are only so many things we can give a f**k about so we need to figure out which ones really matter, Manson makes clear. While money is nice, caring about what you do with your life is better, because true wealth is about experience. A much-needed grab-you-by-the-shoulders-and-look-you-in-the-eye moment of real-talk, filled with entertaining stories and profane, ruthless humor, The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F**k is a refreshing slap for a generation to help them lead contented, grounded lives.”
“Resilience, happiness and freedom come from knowing what to care about—and most importantly, what not to care about. This is a masterful, philosophical and practical book that will give readers the wisdom to be able to do just that.” — Ryan Holiday, NYT bestselling author of The Obstacle is the Way and Ego is the Enemy
Reality Is Broken: Why Games Make Us Better and How They Can Change the World
Jane McGonigal
“A visionary game designer reveals how we can harness the power of games to boost global happiness.
“With 174 million gamers in the United States alone, we now live in a world where every generation will be a gamer generation. But why, Jane McGonigal asks, should games be used for escapist entertainment alone? In this groundbreaking book, she shows how we can leverage the power of games to fix what is wrong with the real world-from social problems like depression and obesity to global issues like poverty and climate change-and introduces us to cutting-edge games that are already changing the business, education, and nonprofit worlds. Written for gamers and non-gamers alike, Reality Is Broken shows that the future will belong to those who can understand, design, and play games.”
“Powerful and provocative . . . McGonigal makes a persuasive case that games have a lot to teach us about how to make our lives, and the world, better.” — San Jose Mercury News
What If?: Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions
Randall Munroe
“Randall Munroe left NASA in 2005 to start up his hugely popular site XKCD ‘a web comic of romance, sarcasm, math and language’ which offers a witty take on the world of science and geeks. It now has 600,000 to a million page hits daily. Every now and then, Munroe would get emails asking him to arbitrate a science debate. ‘My friend and I were arguing about what would happen if a bullet got struck by lightning, and we agreed that you should resolve it . . . ‘ He liked these questions so much that he started up What If. …
“In pursuit of answers, Munroe runs computer simulations, pores over stacks of declassified military research memos, solves differential equations, and consults with nuclear reactor operators. His responses are masterpieces of clarity and hilarity, studded with memorable cartoons and infographics. They often predict the complete annihilation of humankind, or at least a really big explosion. Far more than a book for geeks, WHAT IF: Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions explains the laws of science in operation in a way that every intelligent reader will enjoy and feel much the smarter for having read.”
“What If? is one of my Internet must-reads, and I look forward to each new installment, and always read it with delight.” — Cory Doctorow, New York Times bestselling author
Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World
Cal Newport
“Deep work is the ability to focus without distraction on a cognitively demanding task. It’s a skill that allows you to quickly master complicated information and produce better results in less time. Deep Work will make you better at what you do and provide the sense of true fulfillment that comes from craftsmanship. In short, deep work is like a super power in our increasingly competitive twenty-first century economy. And yet, most people have lost the ability to go deep-spending their days instead in a frantic blur of e-mail and social media, not even realizing there’s a better way.
“In Deep Work, author and professor Cal Newport flips the narrative on impact in a connected age. Instead of arguing distraction is bad, he instead celebrates the power of its opposite. Dividing this book into two parts, he first makes the case that in almost any profession, cultivating a deep work ethic will produce massive benefits. He then presents a rigorous training regimen, presented as a series of four “rules,” for transforming your mind and habits to support this skill.”
“This is a deep, not shallow, book which can enrich your life.” — The Globe and Mail
Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us
Daniel H. Pink
“Most people believe that the best way to motivate is with rewards like money—the carrot-and-stick approach. That’s a mistake, says Daniel H. Pink (author of To Sell Is Human: The Surprising Truth About Motivating Others). In this provocative and persuasive new book, he asserts that the secret to high performance and satisfaction-at work, at school, and at home—is the deeply human need to direct our own lives, to learn and create new things, and to do better by ourselves and our world.
“Drawing on four decades of scientific research on human motivation, Pink exposes the mismatch between what science knows and what business does—and how that affects every aspect of life. He examines the three elements of true motivation—autonomy, mastery, and purpose-and offers smart and surprising techniques for putting these into action in a unique book that will change how we think and transform how we live.”
“Pink’s analysis—and new model—of motivation offers tremendous insight into our deepest nature.” — Publishers Weekly
Little Bets: How Breakthrough Ideas Emerge from Small Discoveries
Peter Sims
“What do Apple CEO Steve Jobs, comedian Chris Rock, prize-winning architect Frank Gehry, and the story developers at Pixar films all have in common? Bestselling author Peter Sims found that rather than start with a big idea or plan a whole project in advance, they make a methodical series of little bets, learning critical information from lots of little failures and from small but significant wins.
“Reporting on a fascinating range of research, from the psychology of creative blocks to the influential field of design thinking, Sims offers engaging and illuminating accounts of breakthrough innovators at work, and a whole new way of thinking about how to navigate uncertain situations and unleash our untapped creative powers.”
“An enthusiastic, example-rich argument for innovating in a particular way—by deliberately experimenting and taking small exploratory steps in novel directions. Light, bright, and packed with tidy anecdotes” — The Wall Street Journal
You are a Badass: How to Stop Doubting Your Greatness and Start Living an Awesome Life
Jen Sincero
“In this refreshingly entertaining guide to reshaping your mindset and your life, mega-bestselling author and world-traveling success coach Jen Sincero serves up 27 bite-sized chapters full of hilarious and inspiring stories, sage advice, loving yet firm kicks in the rear, and easy-to-implement exercises to help you:
- Identify and change the self-sabotaging beliefs and behaviors that stop you from getting what you want.
- Shift your energy and attract what you desire.
- Create a life you totally love. And start creating it NOW.
- Make some damn money already. The kind you’ve never made before.
“By the end of You Are a Badass, you’ll understand how to blast past what’s holding you back, make some serious changes, and start living the kind of life that once seemed impossible.”
“If touchy-feely self-help tomes make you feel, shall we say, less than inspired, this no-nonsense manifesto to awesomeness might be just what you’re looking for. Filled with blunt and sassy advice, do-it-yourself exercises in personal transformation, and a whole lot of hilarity, You Are a Badass will silence your inner critic, and help you build a life worthy of the kind of Facebook news feed that others envy. Take a day off from looking for your inner goddess, and spending some time cultivating your outer badass instead.” — Bustle.com
Leading Gracefully: A Woman’s Guide to Confident, Authentic & Effective Leadership
Monique Svazlian Tallon
“Leading Gracefully by Monique Tallon offers a new roadmap for women who want to lead differently from the status-quo.
“Since women entered the workplace, they have made the incorrect assumption that in order to get ahead, they must behave like men to be taken seriously, to get ahead, and to lead. While trying to get into the boy’s club, women have subsequently forgotten how to bring their unique strengths to the table – qualities like vulnerability, humility, collaboration and compassion which are essential to leading in today’s highly complex and volatile world.
“Leading Gracefully is a self-coaching guide that is designed to help you rediscover your strengths, identifies the gaps in your leadership style, and introduces the Feminine Leadership Model to help you develop the skill set necessary to thrive in the modern workplace. An insightful and step-by-step guide to helping you step into your leadership more fully and to discover what authentic and effective leadership can really look like.”
“I think working women in all stages of their career from entry level to senior executives could benefit from reading this book.” — Patti Solaski, Global Diversity & Inclusion Manager, Microsoft
Consolations
David Whyte
“With the imagery of a poet and the reflection of a philosopher, David Whyte turns his attention to 52 ordinary words, each its own particular doorway into the underlying currents of human life.
“Beginning with Alone and closing with Work, each chapter is a meditation on meaning and context, an invitation to shift and broaden our perspectives on the inevitable vicissitudes of life: pain and joy, honesty and anger, confession and vulnerability, the experience of feeling besieged and the desire to run away from it all. Through this lens, procrastination may be a necessary ripening; hiding an act of freedom; and shyness the appropriate confusion and helplessness that accompanies the first stage of revelation.
“Consolations invites readers into a poetic and thoughtful consideration of words whose meaning and interpretation influence the paths we choose and the way we traverse them throughout our lives.”
Keep this book by your bedside forever. I know I will.” — Elizabeth Gilbert, #1 NYT bestselling author of Eat, Pray, Love
Pushing Up People – Art Williams
“Art Williams had a gift. He knew that to win not just one game for his high school team, but begin a legacy of winning, he had to work with the only assets available – his team. Art had learned from the other mentoring coaches in his life that winning had far more to do with what was in the heart of his players and their “will to win”, than what they looked like, where they came from. Focusing on the hearts absolutely built winning teams, and garnered two ‘Georgia Coach of Year’ awards.
“From these simple yet powerful principles, Art Williams went on to build a company that changed the face of one of the largest industries in the world…the life insurance industry. By applying the philosophy of “Pushing Up People”, a group of 85 former teachers, policeman, fireman, and coaches, built a company of 200,000 strong and literally changed forever the lives of countless families.”
“One of the best, motivational books I have ever read! If you want to be a good leader or just a better person in general, read this book!” — Annie Meyer
Novels and Short Story Collections We Like a Great Deal and Think You May, Too
The Hakawati – Rabih Alameddine
The Handmaid’s Tale – Margaret Atwood
Parable of the Sower – Octavia E. Butler
Becoming Mrs. Lewis – Patti Callahan
The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay – Mark Chabon
Stories of Your Life and Others – Ted Chiang
The Three-Body Problem – Liu Cixin
Libra – Don DeLillo
Cloud Cuckoo Land – Anthony Doerr
Valeria’s Last Stand – Marc Fitten
Leaf Storm and Other Stories – Gabriel García Márquez
The Dispossessed – Ursula K. Le Guin
A Prayer for Owen Meany – John Irving
The Broken Earth Trilogy: The Fifth Season, The Obelisk Gate, The Stone Sky – N. K. Jemisin
The Paper Menagerie and Other Stories – Ken Liu
Life of Pi – Yann Martel
Criminal – Terra Elan McVoy
Circe – Madeline Miller
Cloud Atlas – David Mitchell
13 1/2 Lives of Captain Bluebear – Walter Moers
The Night Circus – Erin Morgenstern
Song of Solomon – Toni Morrison
Norwegian Wood – Haruki Murakami
I’ll Give You the Sun – Jandy Nelson
The Overstory – Richard Powers
Jitterbug Perfume – Tom Robbins
The Satanic Verses – Salman Rushdie
The Tenth of December – George Saunders
How to Be Both – Ali Smith
Cryptonomicon – Neal Stephenson
The Temple of My Familiar – Alice Walker
The Underground Railroad – Colson Whitehead