The Investor's Shelf — one person
FW

Fred Wilson

Recommendations

12 books they recommend

Books they recommend 12

Wilson has written explicit "Books for Entrepreneurs" posts on AVC and frequently reviews books in his "Books" category, often crediting fiction and philosophy as much as business titles. He famously says USV's worldview draws on sci-fi and classics; his recommendations surface in dedicated AVC posts and his engagement in the comments. Picks range from Ayn Rand and Machiavelli to Neal Stephenson.

Superbook reading list 12

Fiction 4

Snow Crash
Snow Crash
Neal Stephenson · not in an entry yet
source
“Wilson cites it as guiding USV's investment philosophy and view of the future; a recurring touchstone on AVC.”
Atlas Shrugged
Atlas Shrugged
Ayn Rand · not in an entry yet
source
“Listed on his original "Books for Entrepreneurs" post as a formative read.”
The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay
The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay
Michael Chabon · not in an entry yet
source
“A favorite novel he put at the top of his entrepreneurs reading list.”
Siddhartha
Siddhartha
Hermann Hesse · not in an entry yet
source
“He wrote "I loved that book when I read it in college," recommending it in an AVC discussion.”

Not yet given a topic 2

One Hundred Years of Solitude
One Hundred Years of Solitude
Gabriel García Márquez · not in an entry yet
source
“He called it "another amazing book" in his reading recommendations.”
Founders at Work: Stories of Startups' Early
Founders at Work: Stories of Startups' Early Days
Jessica Livingston · not in an entry yet
source
“Recommended for entrepreneurs in his AVC book threads.”

Politics and Government 1

The Prince
The Prince
Niccolò Machiavelli · not in an entry yet
source
“He says "a lot of what we invest in and how we look at the future comes from that book," recommending it for entrepreneurs.”

Company Histories 1

The Soul of a New Machine
The Soul of a New Machine
Tracy Kidder
source
“He praises it for capturing "the passion of engineers who are driven to ship a revolutionary product."”

War and Strategy 1

The Art of War
The Art of War
Sun Tzu
source
“He conceded it "has to get onto my list" of essential entrepreneur reading.”

Business and Management 1

Setting the Table
Setting the Table
Danny Meyer
source
“He has reviewed and recommended Meyer's hospitality memoir on AVC.”

Entrepreneurship and Startups 1

The Monk and the Riddle
The Monk and the Riddle
Randy Komisar · not in an entry yet
source
“A recommended entrepreneurship read surfaced in his AVC book discussions.”

Technology and Computing 1

The Business Blockchain
The Business Blockchain
William Mougayar · not in an entry yet
source
“He praised it (and wrote its foreword) for making blockchain "accessible for the non-technical."”

Where they publish 3