Books like Subtract: The Untapped Science of Less

01

Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less

Greg McKeown · Self-help

Essentialism is Greg McKeown's argument that the way most people approach work and life — saying yes to almost everything — is a slow form of defeat.

02

Deep Work

Cal Newport · Self-help

Deep Work is Cal Newport's case that the ability to focus without distraction on a cognitively demanding task is becoming both rarer and more valuable, and that people who cultivate it will thrive while everyone else stays stuck in shallow busywork.

03

Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals

Oliver Burkeman · Self-help

Four Thousand Weeks is Oliver Burkeman's philosophical attack on the entire project of time management as it is usually practiced.

04

Thinking, Fast and Slow

Daniel Kahneman · Psychology

Thinking, Fast and Slow is Daniel Kahneman's account of the two cognitive systems that govern human thought.

05

A Brief History of Time

Stephen Hawking · Science

A Brief History of Time is Stephen Hawking's attempt to explain the biggest questions in physics — where the universe came from, how it behaves, and where it might be going — to readers with no scientific training.

06

A Crack in Creation: Gene Editing and the Unthinkable Power to Control Evolution

Jennifer A. Doudna and Samuel H. Sternberg · Science

A Crack in Creation is Jennifer Doudna and Samuel Sternberg's account of how CRISPR-Cas9 works, what it can do, and why its possibilities should give everyone pause.