A Tour of My Personal Library

Neil StraussBooks

Everyone who comes to my house gets a book.

I most often give away non-fiction books—most of them are readings that influenced The Game. Soon, I will update these library giveaways for books that influenced The Truth. For those and more, be sure to sign up for my email list here.

My non-fiction shelf:

Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion by Robert B Cialdini. Best book ever on persuasion and marketing.

Master Your Hidden Self: A Guide to the Huna Way by Serge Kahili King. A great book on inner-game.

The Red Queen: Sex and the Evolution of Human Nature by Matt Ridley. Amazing book on the evolutionary underpinnings on attraction and more.

The Six Pillars of Self-Esteem by Nathaniel Branden. Launched self-esteem movement.

An Introduction to NLP by Joseph O’Connor

The 48 Laws of Power by Robert Greene

Strengths Finder by Tom Rath. Take the test, find what you’re great at, and do more of it.

My Fiction Shelf

Although I am known for writing non-fiction, my real love is literature. Below are my favorite fiction books that I also keep extra copies of for friends and guests. I’ve argued often that you can learn more, deeper, and retain more from great literature than from non-fiction.

It’s a test because if you grab a book from the fiction side, you get big points.

Ulysses by James Joyce—the best book ever written by a human being.

If on a Winter’s Night a Traveler by Italo Calvino. This book taught me how to break form.

The Painted Bird by Jerzy Kosinski. This book spoke to my dark side.

Ask the Dust by John Fante. Great to read if you’re a struggling, self-hating writer. Even if you’re not, it’s a great book.

Life is Elsewhere by Milan Kundera.  If you’re asking yourself whether you’re accepting the norms of your time or you do you speak to your greatness.

One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. One of the best first sentences of ever written.

Laughter in the Dark by Vladimir Nabokov. THE best first sentence of a book ever written. Spoiler below:

“Once upon a time there lived in Berlin, Germany, a man called Albinus. He was rich, respectable, happy; one day he abandoned his wife for the sake of a youthful mistress; he loved; was not loved; and his life ended in disaster.”

My Wisdom Shelf

There are also secret wings to my bookshelves where there are no placards to help you.

*On The Shortness of Life by Seneca. One of the most influential books written in human history—it’s 2000 years old, an it all applies today. There’s a couple essays, but all you have to read is the first essay.

The Prophet by Khalil Gilbran.  Epic life wisdom told through poetry.

*Meditations by Marcus Aurelius.  An amazing example of leadership, and the lessons he learned as he was emperor

Under Saturn’s Shadow by James Hollis.  

The Fear Book by Cheri Huber.  

*And Make sure your version of these books has the same cover as mine—there’s a lot of shitty translations floating around, but these are easy to read and not written in some ancient speak you have to decipher.

And watch my Instagram videos below for the full tour:

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