All books in the vault, organized by category. See Topics for ideas that cross categories.
AI & Technology
| Book | Author | Core Idea |
|---|
| Co-Intelligence | Ethan Mollick | Work alongside AI using the jagged frontier as your guide |
| The Coming Wave | Mustafa Suleyman | AI and synthetic biology create an unprecedented containment challenge |
| The Alignment Problem | Brian Christian | Getting AI to do what we actually want is harder than it looks |
| Power and Prediction | Ajay Agrawal, et al. | AI is a prediction technology; the real disruption is in decision-making |
| Weapons of Math Destruction | Cathy O’Neil | Algorithms encode bias and scale it invisibly |
| Human Compatible | Stuart Russell | AI must be uncertain about human values to remain safe |
| Life 3.0 | Max Tegmark | A survey of AI futures, near and far |
| Superintelligence | Nick Bostrom | The control problem for superintelligent AI may be unsolvable |
| Atlas of AI | Kate Crawford | AI is built on extraction—of labor, data, and natural resources |
Related Concepts: Human-AI Collaboration · AI Ethics · Large Language Models · Future of Work
Christian
C.S. Lewis
Dallas Willard
John Mark Comer
A.W. Tozer
Other Christian
Related Concepts: Spiritual Formation · Discipleship · Kingdom of God · Character Formation · Spiritual Disciplines · Virtue Ethics · The Problem of Evil · Free Will
Classics
| Book | Author | Themes |
|---|
| 1984 | George Orwell | Totalitarianism, surveillance, language as control |
| Brave New World | Aldous Huxley | Technocratic control, pleasure as oppression |
| Anna Karenina | Leo Tolstoy | Marriage, freedom, moral order, passion |
| Les Misérables | Victor Hugo | Law and mercy, redemption, grace |
| The Brothers Karamazov | Fyodor Dostoevsky | Faith, doubt, free will, suffering |
| Crime and Punishment | Fyodor Dostoevsky | Guilt, conscience, redemption |
| East of Eden | John Steinbeck | Free will, the Cain and Abel pattern, timshel |
| The Odyssey | Homer | Identity, homecoming, perseverance |
| Frankenstein | Mary Shelley | Scientific hubris, creation and responsibility |
| Dracula | Bram Stoker | Mortality, evil, Victorian anxiety |
| The Picture of Dorian Gray | Oscar Wilde | Aestheticism, moral corruption, conscience |
| The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde | R.L. Stevenson | Duality, repression, the hidden self |
Related Concepts: Free Will · Human Dignity · Redemption · The Problem of Evil · Virtue Ethics
Consulting
The Craft of Consulting
Strategy
| Book | Author | Core Idea |
|---|
| Playing to Win | Roger Martin | Strategy is a set of reinforcing choices about where to play and how to win |
| Good to Great | Jim Collins | Disciplined people, thought, and action separate great from good |
| Built to Last | Collins & Porras | Visionary companies preserve core ideology while stimulating progress |
| Built to Sell | John Warrillow | Build a business that can run without you before you try to sell it |
| Competing In The Age Of AI | Agrawal et al. | AI breaks the traditional trade-off between scale and judgment |
Solo & Boutique Practice
Client Relationships & Sales
Transitions
Related Concepts: Strategic Thinking · Consulting Methodology · Value-Based Pricing · Thought Leadership · MECE Thinking · Structured Communication
Professional Development
| Book | Author | Core Idea |
|---|
| Deep Work | Cal Newport | The ability to focus without distraction is the superpower of the knowledge era |
| Atomic Habits | James Clear | Small habits compound into identity change over time |
| Essentialism | Greg McKeown | Doing less, but better — the disciplined pursuit of less |
| Range | David Epstein | Breadth and cross-domain thinking beat early specialization in complex fields |
| So Good They Can’t Ignore You | Cal Newport | Build career capital through deliberate practice, then use it for autonomy |
| Thinking, Fast and Slow | Daniel Kahneman | Two systems of thought; most errors come from System 1 overconfidence |
| Never Split the Difference | Chris Voss | Tactical empathy and calibrated questions win negotiations |
| Extreme Ownership | Jocko Willink | Leaders own everything; there are no excuses |
| Dopamine Nation | Anna Lembke | Pain-pleasure balance and the neuroscience of compulsive behavior |
| The Servant | James Hunter | Leadership is servant leadership; authority comes from character |
| How To Lead When You’re Not In Charge | Clay Scroggins | Cultivate influence from any position |
| Unreasonable Hospitality | Will Guidara | Excellence in service requires generosity beyond what is expected |
Related Concepts: Deliberate Practice · Habit Formation · Decision-Making · Deep Work · Servant Leadership
Parenting
| Book | Author | Core Idea |
|---|
| The Whole-Brain Child | Siegel & Bryson | Integrate children’s upstairs and downstairs brains through connection |
| How to Raise an Adult | Julie Lythcott-Haims | Overprotection stunts development; raise capable, resilient adults |
| Boundaries with Kids | Cloud & Townsend | Children need limits to develop character and self-control |
| Hunt, Gather, Parent | Michaeleen Doucleff | Indigenous parenting practices emphasize autonomy and contribution |
Related Concepts: Character Formation · Habit Formation · Attachment Theory · Emotional Regulation