In Q3 of 2022, I decided I had to keep a better record of what books I was reading. This means I now jot down on a Notion page a title, author, finish date, rating, web link, time to read, topic tag, and short note on what I liked about the book. As part of the process, I thought it would be a good exercise to rank my top 3 reads of 2025, which I highly recommend to everyone, and a small review on how my reading went.
So here goes...
Last year I got through 20 books, some fiction, but mainly non-fiction, almost all were read on a kindle, with (unsurprisingly) Bitcoin and investing as a key theme. Here are my top 3 (in no particular order):
1- Gambling Man: The wild ride of Japan's Masayoshi Son by Lionel Barber******
My note 7/3/2025: I wondered: who is the guy behind SoftBank? Then I found this book. Amazing story. Inspiring. Risk taker. What a ride! The SoftBank vision fund in particular was interesting, with a 7% yield, very unusual in venture. Loved the origins of east meets west in terms of tech adoption, Japan & US. Whilst the type of deals he did, especially early on Alibaba, stuff of legend. Always left wondering though: what happens to these guys with no money printer?… Highly recommend
My note 12/3/2025: Top 5 most important investment book I’ve read yet… it’s like something I’d been looking for, and kind of knew deep down, but was never able to coherently explain, all fell into place reading this book. Inter-generational family wealth is very hard to keep, but somehow both sides of my family have been doing it, and this explains how. Now gives a North Star or guiding light on how to implement a plan for me and my lifetime. Particular love the break-down of humanistic, intellectual, and financial capital. Highly recommend
My note 9/9/2025: Best book I’ve read in ages. Literally flew through it in a few days. Always love learning how people end up doing what they do, and running the largest western investment firm in Russia is a great one to investigate. Preferred the first half, which was more focused on the investing he did in post Soviet Poland and Russia etc. but amazing story of human rights justice, and unbelievable corruption. Doing business in Russia is whole new level of risk. Highly recommend
Concluding thoughts:
The rise of AI without doubt shifts the reason to read. It's no longer about stumbling across information you might need, as now you have the ability to search what you want, when you want, receive a bespoke answer, and apply it to whatever problem you may have. So it's important to reflect that information is now cheaper than ever, yet the wisdom required to actually use it remains rare, so I do believe there is still a place in my life for a healthy reading habit. Context is key, and it's via reading that I get that.
The full list (again in no particular order):
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The Big Print - Lawrence Lepard
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Trading Game - Gary Stevenson
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Private Equity - Carrie Sun
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The Mandibles - Lionel Shriver
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Essence of Permaculture - David Holmgren
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Relentless - Tim S Grover
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How to Live an Extraordinary Life - Anthony Pompliano
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Resistance Money - Andrew M Bailey et al
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Benefits of Bitcoin - Levi Johnson
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Your Next Five Moves - Patrick Bet-David
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The Lessons of History - Will Durant
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What it Takes - Mark Bouris
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Rise - Mark Bouris
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No Tenants, No Troubles - Dale Warburton
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The Bitcoin Age - Nik Bhatia
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Healing Beyond the Diagnosis - Dr Jin Ong
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Blood of the Bourgeoisie - Michael R Sullivan
Thanks so much for checking this out!
Best,
Jake
Ps - what did you read that you would recommend I take a look at?
