Book Category: Essential
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Dilla Time: The Life and Afterlife of J Dilla, the Hip-Hop Producer Who Reinvented Rhythm by Dan Charnas
I learned a bunch of interesting music theory, and it was a fascinating look at hip hop starting in the mid 90s.
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Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes
It’s great, if you’re a certain demographic.
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Birnam Wood by Eleanor Catton
A tense cat-and-mouse story full of believable and shocking twists.
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In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts by Gabor Maté
This book is transformative. Even if your life isn’t directly affected by addiction, this book might change the way you see the world and other people.
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Infomocracy by Malka Older
Older has a lot to say about democracy, fading American hegemony and the power of (dis)information.
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Chip War: The Fight for the World’s Most Critical Technology by Chris Miller
I wish it was longer. The chapters are short and there’s a lot of whitespace in here – it could easily have had another 150 pages, and benefitted from it.
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A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles
Opening this book was like curling up with a dog and a blanket and a warm beverage. It was so warm and charming and comforting.
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The Deluge by Stephen Markley
This book stressed me out more than any fiction I’ve read in recent memory. It’s ambitious, bold and frankly genius.
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Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury
This seems like the book that Stephen King has been trying to write for 50 years.
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The Shallows: What the Internet is Doing to our Brains by Nicholas Carr
If you work in any creative field, this is essential reading.