Reading list · 14 books
Patrick O'Shaughnessy's reading list
CEO of O'Shaughnessy Asset Management and Positive Sum, and host of the "Invest Like the Best" podcast (7M+ listens). His reading recommendations are a recurring feature of his show, newsletter, and Twitter, making him one of FinTwit's most-followed book curators.
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01
The Outsiders: Eight Unconventional CEOs and Their Radically Rational Blueprint for Success
William N. Thorndike
O'Shaughnessy repeatedly recommends it for its lessons on capital allocation — a core theme he says every investor should internalize.
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02
Zero to One: Notes on Startups, or How to Build the Future
Peter Thiel
A staple of his "books for would-be entrepreneurs" list; he highlights its contrarian, monopoly-building thinking.
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03
Daniel Yergin
He has called this history of oil "possibly the greatest book" he's ever read.
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04
Benoit Mandelbrot
He ranks it among his top-five investing books for reframing risk and market randomness.
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06
7 Powers: The Foundations of Business Strategy
Hamilton Helmer
Featured on his entrepreneurs reading list as a rigorous framework for durable competitive advantage.
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07
Edward Chancellor
He calls it essential reading for investors, on the capital-cycle approach.
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08
Eric Hoffer
He recommends it because "so much of investing is herd behavior" and it teaches you to think against the crowd.
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09
Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind
Yuval Noah Harari
He praises it as "entertaining and useful" for understanding the evolved psychology behind investor behavior.
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10
Will & Ariel Durant
He calls the audiobook "incredible" and the Durants "among the best historians ever."
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11
Scott Davis, Carter Copeland & Rob Wertheimer
A direct "I highly recommend this book" endorsement on industrial-company case studies.
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12
Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of Nike
Phil Knight
He recommends Knight's Nike memoir as a near-perfect business-story hybrid.
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13
Peter Matthiessen
Among his adventure/philosophy recommendations, for readers who like travel and meaning.
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14
Against the Gods: The Remarkable Story of Risk
Peter L. Bernstein
Featured on his "global perspective" reading list as the definitive popular history of risk.
More on Patrick O'Shaughnessy's picks
O'Shaughnessy surfaces books through "Invest Like the Best" episodes, his "Reading" recommendations, and frequent Twitter threads (including curated "5 books for…" lists he has promoted). He ranges far beyond finance into history, creativity, psychology, and adventure narrative. Note: "What Works on Wall Street" is his father Jim O'Shaughnessy's book, not Patrick's own pick, so it's excluded here.
