Bill Gates has four books he thinks you should dig into this summer.
The Microsoft co-founder and philanthropist shared his annual summer reading list on Tuesday, and the books share a theme: “the idea of service to others—why we do it, the things that can make it difficult, and why we should do it anyway.”
Gates recommended Chris Anderson’s Infectious Generosity, in which the TED curator urges readers to practice acts of giving. “If you want to help create a more equitable world but don’t know where to start, Infectious Generosity is for you,” Gates wrote.
He had praise for nonprofit leader Salman Khan’s Brave New Words, a nonfiction book about artificial intelligence and education, writing, “No one has sharper insights into the future of education than Sal does.” He also recommended David Brooks’ How To Know a Person, which he called a “blueprint for a more connected and humane way of living.”
Gates had one work of fiction to recommend: Kristin Hannah’s The Women, which follows Frances “Frankie” McGrath, a U.S. Army nurse in Vietnam. “It’s a beautifully written tribute to a group of veterans who deserve more appreciation for the incredible sacrifices they made,” Gates wrote.
Gates also had one television recommendation, but it has a literary bent: Slow Horses, the Apple TV+ series based on Mick Herron’s Slough House series of spy novels. “I’ve read several of John le Carré’s novels.…I’d put Slow Horses up there with the best of them,” he wrote.
Michael Schaub is a contributing writer.
CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story misstated the title of Salman Khan’s book.
