Bill Gates recomendations

Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates recommends his 5 favorite books every year. This time the list got a little bigger ...

Due to social isolation, the traditional list of the richest man in the world is a little different. There are 13 books and 6 series to “escape” from reality during the pandemic. According to him, "A good book is my favorite way to disconnect at the end of the day, and I know that I am not alone."

“Most of my conversations and meetings these days are about Covid-19 and how we can contain the pandemic," wrote Microsoft co-founder Gates Notes on his blog. "But they also often ask me what I'm reading and seeing, whether it's because people want to learn more about pandemics or because they're looking for a distraction," he added.

Check out Bill Gates' suggestions and comments below:

Books:

1. The Choice (released in Brazil as A Bailarina de Auschwitz, by Sextante), by Edith Eger: "It is, in part, a memoir by the author and a guide to process the trauma", says Gates.

2. Cloud Atlas (Atlas of Clouds, ed. Companhia das Letras), by David Mitchell: it is a novel of "the best and the worst of humanity".

3. Bob Iger's The Ride of a Lifetime, with "the lessons learned in 15 years as CEO of The Walt Disney Company" (Iger passed the job to Bob Chapek last February), is the "best business book" that Gates has read in recent years.

4. The Great Influenza, (The Great Flu, ed. Intrinsic) by John M. Barry: is a 1918 Spanish flu pandemic history book. Although more than 100 years have passed, "it is a good reminder that it is still we are facing many of the same challenges, "says Gates.

5. Good Economics for Hard Times, by Abhijit V. Banerjee and Esther Duflo: The authors are, together with Michael Kremer, the winners of the 2019 Nobel Prize in Economics, and the book deals with inequality and political divisions.

6. Andy Puddicombe's The Headspace Guide to Meditation and Mindfulness: "For years, I was skeptical of meditation. Now I do it whenever I can," says Gates in his blog.

7. Moonwalking with Einstein (The Art and Science of Memorizing Everything, ed. Nova Fronteira), by Joshua Foer: it is a book about how memory works and techniques to optimize it.

8. The Martian (Lost on Mars, ed. Arrow), by Andy Weir: a novel that turned into a film, starring the American actor Matt Damon. Its plot has similarities with the treatment of the new coronavirus, analyzes Gates.

9. A Gentleman in Moscow (A Gentleman in Moscow, ed. Intrinsic), by Amor Towles: romance about a man who is locked up in his building, "a situation that now looks very similar to the one we are living in," says Gates.

10. The Rosie Trilogy, (two books in the trilogy were released in Brazil by Record publisher: The Rosie Project, The Rosie Effect) by Graeme Simsion: Trilogy "to laugh out loud", describes Gates. "The protagonist discovers that he is not so different from the others. Melinda (Gates, Bill Gates' wife) recommended me, I am grateful to her for that," he points out.

11. The Best We Could Do, by Thi Bui: It is a "deeply personal novel that explores what it means to be a father and a refugee," says Gates.

12. Hyperbole and a Half: Unfortunate Situations, Flawed Coping Mechanisms, Mayhem, and Other Things that Happened book to laugh a lot. "Fun and tremendously intelligent," says Gates of the work, which highlights the setbacks of everyday life.

13. What If ?: Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions (What If? - Scientific Answers to Absurd Questions and XKCD Volume 0, both by Randall Munroe: "This former NASA engineer transforms lessons from unconventional science in super cute comics, "says Gates.

Series:

14. Pandemic, from Netflix: "Although the documentary series was recorded before the current coronavirus outbreak, it gives an idea of the inspiring work that doctors, researchers and aid workers are doing to avoid what we are going through at the moment."

15. A Million Little Things: “an American family drama”.

16. This Is Us: “about family life and the connections of several people who share the same birthday”.

17. Ozark: “another American drama about a money laundering scheme”.

18. I, Claudius: “about the Roman Empire. I read a lot about ancient Rome, but this series seems like an interesting representation at the time ”.

19. Spy Game: “Starring Robert Redford and Brad Pitt, there are a lot of good surprises”.