--- title: 9 Books Everyone Should Read, According to Warren Buffett description: From business models to practical life advice canonical: https://time.com/4106735/book-recommendations-warren-buffett/ author: Business Insider article:opinion: true article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-11-11T17:11:18.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-22T12:29:26.770Z article:section: Ideas og:title: 9 Books Everyone Should Read, According to Warren Buffett og:description: From business models to practical life advice og:url: https://time.com/4106735/book-recommendations-warren-buffett/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt59d1075eadf724f9/69887056196cf4e86c038e74/warren-buffett.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: Warren Buffett during an interview with CNBC's Becky Quick in New York City on Sept. 9, 2015. og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: 9 Books Everyone Should Read, According to Warren Buffett twitter:description: From business models to practical life advice twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt59d1075eadf724f9/69887056196cf4e86c038e74/warren-buffett.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # 9 Books Everyone Should Read, According to Warren Buffett ## Video: Amazon Improves Parental Leave, Opens Physical Bookstore [Watch (HLS stream): Amazon Improves Parental Leave, Opens Physical Bookstore](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/NXTn02kx.m3u8) (1:51)  _Published 2015-11-03. Amazon has made a few changes recently that show the company will do what it takes to remain a leader in retail — online or off._ by [Drake Baer / Business Insider](https://time.com/author/business-insider/) ## Drake Baer / Business Insider Nov 11, 2015 5:11 PM UTC  Warren Buffett during an interview with CNBC's Becky Quick in New York City on Sept. 9, 2015. Warren Buffett during an interview with CNBC's Becky Quick in New York City on Sept. 9, 2015.CNBC—NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images by [Drake Baer / Business Insider](https://time.com/author/business-insider/) ## Drake Baer / Business Insider Nov 11, 2015 5:11 PM UTC When Warren Buffett started his investing career, he would read 600, 750, or 1,000 [_pages a day_](http://www.omaha.com/money/investors-earn-handsome-paychecks-by-handling-buffett-s-business/article%5Fbb1fc40f-e6f9-549d-be2f-be1ef4c0da03.html)_._ Even now, he still spends about 80% of his day reading. “Look, my job is essentially just corralling more and more and more facts and information, and occasionally seeing whether that leads to some action,” [he once said in an interview](http://theweek.com/article/index/248655/the-warren-buffett-formula-how-you-can-get-smarter). “We don’t read other people’s opinions,” [he says](http://theweek.com/article/index/248655/the-warren-buffett-formula-how-you-can-get-smarter). “We want to get the facts, and then think.” To help you get into the mind of the billionaire investor, we’ve rounded up his book recommendations over 20 years of interviews and shareholder letters. **_The Intelligent Investor_** **by Benjamin Graham** When Buffett was 19 years old, he picked up a copy of legendary Wall Streeter Benjamin Graham’s _Intelligent Investor_. It was the one of the luckiest moments of his life, [he said](http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2013/12/25/buffettbooks.aspx), because it gave him the intellectual framework for investing. “To invest successfully over a lifetime does not require a stratospheric IQ, unusual business insights, or inside information,” [Buffett said.](http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2013/12/25/buffettbooks.aspx) “What’s needed is a sound intellectual framework for making decisions and the ability to keep emotions from corroding that framework. This book precisely and clearly prescribes the proper framework. You must provide the emotional discipline.” [Buy it here](http://www.amazon.com/Intelligent-Investor-Definitive-Investing-Practical/dp/0060555661/?tag=timecom-20). **_Security Analysis_** **by Benjamin Graham** [Buffett said that](http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2013/12/25/buffettbooks.aspx) _Security Analysis_, another groundbreaking work of Graham’s, had given him “a road map for investing that I have now been following for 57 years.” The book’s core insight: If your analysis is thorough enough, you can figure out the value of a company — and if the market knows the same. Buffett has said that Graham was the second-most influential figure in his life, after only his father. “Ben was this incredible teacher; I mean he was a natural,” [he said](http://www.businessinsider.com/eight-lessons-from-benjamin-graham-2013-2?op=1). [Buy it here](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0071592539/?tag=timecom-20). **_Common Stocks and Uncommon Profits_** **by Philip Fisher** While investor [Philip Fisher](http://www.amazon.com/Common-Stocks-Uncommon-Profits-Writings/dp/0471445509/ref=sr%5F1%5F1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1409237575&sr=1-1&keywords=%22Common+Stocks+and+Uncommon+Profits%22+by+Philip+Fisher&tag=bisafetynet-20) — who specialized in investing in innovative companies — didn’t shape Buffett in quite the same way as Graham did, he still holds him in the highest regard. “I am an eager reader of whatever Phil has to say, and I recommend him to you,” [Buffett said](http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2013/12/25/buffettbooks.aspx). In “Common Stocks and Uncommon Profits,” Fisher [emphasizes](http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2013/12/25/buffettbooks.aspx) that fixating on financial statements isn’t enough — you also need to evaluate a company’s management. [Buy it here](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0071592539/?tag=timecom-20). **_Stress Test: Reflections on Financial Crises_** **by Tim Geithner** Buffett says that the former Secretary of the Treasury’s book about the financial crisis is [a must-read](http://www.businessinsider.com/gates-munger-buffett-reading-list-2014-5) for any manager. Lots of books have been written about how to manage an organization through tough times. Almost none are firsthand accounts of steering a wing of government through economic catastrophe. “This wasn’t just a little problem on the fringes of the U.S. mortgage market,” Geithner [writes](http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2014/05/excerpt-stress-test-by-timothy-geithner/). “I had a sick feeling in my stomach. I knew what financial crises felt like, and they felt like this.” [Buy it here](http://www.amazon.com/Stress-Test-Reflections-Financial-Crises/dp/0804138591/?tag=timecom-20). **_The Essays of Warren Buffett_** **by Warren Buffett** If you want to get to know the way Buffett thinks, go straight to the Sage himself. In this collection, he keeps it very real — in his signature folksy-intellectual fashion. “What could be more advantageous in an intellectual contest — whether it be chess, bridge, or stock selection — than to have opponents who have been taught that thinking is a waste of energy?” he asks. [Buy it here](http://www.amazon.com/The-Essays-Warren-Buffett-Corporate/dp/1611634091/?tag=timecom-20). **_Jack: Straight From The Gut_** **by Jack Welch** In [his 2001 shareholder letter](http://www.berkshirehathaway.com/2001ar/2001letter.html), Buffett gleefully endorses _Jack: Straight From The Gut_, a business memoir of longtime GE exec Jack Welch, whom Buffett describes as “smart, energetic, hands-on.” In commenting on the book, [Bloomberg Businessweek wrote that](http://www.businessweek.com/stories/2008-06-10/jack-straight-from-the-gutbusinessweek-business-news-stock-market-and-financial-advice) “Welch has had such an impact on modern business that a tour of his personal history offers all managers valuable lessons.” Buffett’s advice: “Get a copy!” [Buy it here](http://www.amazon.com/Jack-Straight-Gut-Welch/dp/0446690686/?tag=timecom-20). **_The Outsiders_** **by William Thorndike, Jr.** In his [2012 shareholder letter](http://www.berkshirehathaway.com/letters/2012ltr.pdf) Buffett praises _Outsiders_ as “an outstanding book about CEOs who excelled at capital allocation.” Berkshire Hathaway plays a major role in the book. One chapter is on director Tom Murphy, who Buffett says is “overall the best business manager I’ve ever met.” The book — which finds patterns of success from execs at The Washington Post, Ralston Purina, and others — has been praised as “one of the most important business books in America” by [_Forbes_](http://www.forbes.com/sites/nathanvardi/2014/05/08/how-the-outsiders-became-one-of-the-most-important-business-books-in-america/). [Buy it here](http://www.amazon.com/Outsiders-Unconventional-Radically-Rational-Blueprint/dp/1422162672/?tag=timecom-20). **_The Clash of the Cultures_** **by John Bogle** Bogle’s “The Clash of the Cultures” is another recommendation from the [2012 shareholder letter](http://www.berkshirehathaway.com/letters/2012ltr.pdf). In it, Bogle — creator of the index fund and founder of the Vanguard Group, now managing $2 trillion in assets — argues that long-term investing has been crowded out by short-term speculation. But the book isn’t all argument. [It finishes with practical tips, like](http://www.cbsnews.com/news/john-bogles-10-rules-of-investing/): 1. **Remember reversion to the mean.** What’s hot today isn’t likely to be hot tomorrow. The stock market reverts to fundamental returns over the long run. Don’t follow the herd. 2. **Time is your friend, impulse is your enemy.** Take advantage of compound interest and don’t be captivated by the siren song of the market. That only seduces you into buying after stocks have soared and selling after they plunge. [Buy it here](http://www.amazon.com/Clash-Cultures-Investment-vs-Speculation/dp/1118122771/?tag=timecom-20). **_Business Adventures: Twelve Classic Tales from the World of Wall Street_** **by John Brooks** Back in 1991, [Bill Gates asked Buffett what his favorite book was](http://www.businessinsider.com/lessons-in-bill-gates-favorite-book-business-adventures-2014-7). To reply, Buffett sent the Microsoft founder his personal copy of _Business Adventures_, a collection of New Yorker stories by John Brooks. Gates says that the book serves as a reminder that the principles for building a winning business stay constant. He [writes](http://www.businessinsider.com/lessons-in-bill-gates-favorite-book-business-adventures-2014-7): --- > “” --- The book has become a media darling as of late; Slate [wrote](http://www.slate.com/articles/business/moneybox/2014/07/business%5Fadventures%5Fbill%5Fgates%5Fand%5Fwarren%5Fbuffett%5Flove%5Fjohn%5Fbrooks%5Fclassic.html) that it’s “catnip for billionaires.” [Buy it here](http://www.amazon.com/Business-Adventures-Twelve-Classic-Street/dp/1497644895/?tag=timecom-20). _This_ [_article_](http://www.businessinsider.com/warren-buffett-favorite-business-books-2014-8) _originally appeared on_ [_Business Insider_](http://www.businessinsider.com) _More from Business Insider:_ * [The 6 most influential business books of 2015](http://www.businessinsider.com/the-6-most-influential-business-books-2015-8) * [9 brilliant business books you can read in an afternoon](http://www.businessinsider.com/9-brilliant-business-books-you-can-read-in-an-afternoon-2015-6) * [12 sports books that will teach you how to succeed in business](http://www.businessinsider.com/sports-books-teach-business-skills-2015-9) * [The top business lessons you can learn from 9 classic children’s books](http://www.businessinsider.com/the-top-business-lessons-you-can-learn-from-9-classic-childrens-books-2015-8) * [50 books that transformed my life and my business](http://www.businessinsider.com/books-that-transformed-my-life-and-business-2015-3) ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"OpinionNewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4106735/book-recommendations-warren-buffett/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4106735/book-recommendations-warren-buffett/"},"headline":"9 Books Everyone Should Read, According to Warren Buffett","datePublished":"2015-11-11T17:11:18.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T12:29:26.770Z","description":"From business models to practical life 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