Billionaire and avid reader Bill Gates says winter is the perfect time to “read” as the weather gets colder and many people have more time off.
“There’s something about the quiet days of the holiday season that makes it easier to read a good book,” Gates said in a blog post published Tuesday with an updated list of recommended holiday books.
Gates’ list of “recent favorites” includes a wide range of authors and genres, from a book by a Harvard psychologist that analyzes the concept of “common sense” to a work of fiction about an elderly night caretaker at an aquarium. The list also features the media mogul’s recent memoir, a book Gates calls a “hopeful, fact-based overview” of the current climate crisis, and a nonfiction political bestseller about government regulation and American innovation.
Don’t miss: Exclusive Black Friday discounts on courses that will help you make more money and get ahead at work
“Each of these books pulls back the curtain on how important things actually work: how people find purpose later in life, how we should think about climate change, how creative industries evolve, how humans communicate, and how America lost its ability to build big things and how to get it back,” Gates wrote.
Here are the five books Gates recommends reading this holiday season.
“Remarkably Bright Creatures” by Shelby Van Pelt
Van Pelt’s 2022 novel, which is told partially from the perspective of an octopus, meets Gates’ best criteria for a work of fiction, writing: “I want to read about interesting characters who help me see the world in a new way.”
Gates, who turned 70 in October, also wrote that he empathizes with the book’s human protagonist, a 70-year-old widow named Tovah, who works the night shift at the aquarium where Marcellus the octopus is kept. The book follows the developing friendship between Tovah and Marcellus, and Gates described it as a thought-provoking exploration of “relationships and aging,” particularly the struggle with loneliness and the search for meaning as we approach the final chapters of life.
“Van Pelt’s story got me thinking about the challenges of filling the days after work and what communities can do to help older adults find meaning in life,” wrote Gates, who previously said retirement “sounds terrible.”
“Clearing the Air” by Hannah Ritchie
Hannah Ritchie is a data scientist at the University of Oxford who Gates has previously praised for her “surprisingly optimistic” analysis of the ongoing fight against climate change. Her latest book, published in the UK on September 18 and scheduled for publication in the US in March 2026, is “one of the clearest explanations of the problem of climate change I have ever read,” Gates wrote.
In “Clearing the Air,” Ritchie focuses on 50 questions about the climate crisis, providing answers that are “realistic about the risks but grounded in data that show real progress,” including whether renewable energy alternatives are too expensive to be effective and whether it’s too late to limit global warming and avoid further climate disasters, Gates wrote.
Gates, like Ritchie, touts the progress of the environmental movement, from the increased use of solar and wind power to the widespread use of electric vehicles, and rejects the “apocalyptic outlook” on climate change that billionaire concerns could distract from other areas of concern, he said in another blog post in October.
Gates has spent decades and billions of dollars fighting climate change. He recently came under fire from scientists for arguing that some of the resources earmarked for tackling climate change should be better spent on issues like welfare and poverty.
Gates wrote about Ritchie’s book on Tuesday: “If you want a hopeful, fact-based overview of the current state of climate action, this is the book for you.”
Barry Diller’s “Who Knew”
Billionaire Barry Diller, chairman of IAC and Expedia and co-founder of Fox Broadcasting, published his memoir in May 2025. Although Gates considers Diller a longtime friend, he wrote that the media mogul’s book “yet surprised me and taught me so much about him, his career, and the many industries he transformed.”
Diller is credited with inventing concepts such as made-for-TV movies and TV miniseries during his time as an entertainment executive. Mr. Diller then acquired Expedia from Microsoft in 2001 and built IAC into one of the earliest media and Internet conglomerates, Mr. Gates said, “recognizing the potential of the Internet early and willingly betting on it when others did not.”
Gates considered Diller’s book insightful about his rise to corporate power and wrote that it was “raw and honest” about Diller’s personal life, including his decision to come out as gay at age 83 earlier this year.
“When Everyone Knows What Everyone Knows” by Steven Pinker
“Few people explain the mysteries of human behavior better than Steven Pinker,” Gates wrote of the Harvard psychology professor who studies human interactions. Pinker’s latest book, published on September 23, is “a must-read for anyone who wants to learn more about how people communicate,” Gates wrote.
In “When Everyone Knows What Everyone Knows,” Pinker explores how “common knowledge” shapes many aspects of our lives. This includes how you communicate and collaborate with others. And, as Gates wrote, “most of us would benefit from understanding how common knowledge underpins all our conversations” and how to leverage that common understanding to work more effectively with others.
“Although the topic itself is quite complex, this book was easy to read, practical, and gave me a new perspective on everyday social interactions,” Gates wrote.
“Abundance” by Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson
Written by two journalists, Mr. Thompson is a contributor to The Atlantic and Mr. Klein is a New York Times columnist and co-founder of Vox, “Abundance” offers “an incisive look at why America seems to be having a hard time building things and what it will take to fix it,” Gates wrote.
Klein and Thompson argue that regulations, especially those championed by progressive politicians, are holding back U.S. progress in areas ranging from infrastructure and affordable housing to scientific progress. To resolve this bottleneck, the authors propose an “abundance agenda” that would encourage spending on development while cutting red tape to accelerate the pace of new projects.
The book has critics on both sides of the political spectrum, with Gates writing that the book “doesn’t have all the answers.” But the authors “are asking the right questions,” he wrote, drawing on Gates’ own experience working with government agencies on large-scale global health and climate technology projects.
“I’ve seen how the bottlenecks discussed in ‘Abundance’ – from improving seeds to designing better toilets to eradicating polio – are holding back progress in global health,” Gates wrote. “The science itself can be difficult, but the logistics and execution are often even more difficult.”
Earn more and get ahead with CNBC’s online courses. Black Friday has begun! Use coupon code GETSMART to get 25% off select courses and 30% off exclusive bundles. Offer valid from November 17th to December 5th, 2025.
Plus, sign up for the CNBC Make It newsletter for tips and tricks to succeed at work, money, and life, and request to join our exclusive community on LinkedIn to connect with experts and colleagues.
