Soham Pal

If you loved the story of how Nike started in Shoe Dog, this list is for you. I put together 15 founder stories and business memoirs with the same mix of risk, hustle and close calls, starting with Shoe Dog itself. Some links are affiliate links, so I may earn a small commission if you buy, at no extra cost to you.

Secret Santa budgets are small, and nobody wants to be the person who brought the sad gift. These are 15 things under $25 that look nicer than they cost, sorted by the kind of person you drew. Some links are affiliate links, so I may earn a small commission if you buy, at no extra cost to you.

Okay this one hit different. Bing West isn't some random pundit, he's been in the room for actual war planning since Vietnam, all the way through Afghanistan. First half of the book is basically his life story, which is wild on its own. But then he gets into the real stuff: what happens when our debt catches up with us, China makes a move on Taiwan, and cyberattacks start hitting banks and gas stations at the same time. Sounds like a movie plot but the guy's done the math and talked to enough generals that you start to believe it. Not light reading but I couldn't put it down.

"A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies. The man who never reads lives only one." — George R.R. Martin