It’s the time of year when publications and organizations issue “best of” book lists. This year’s business award winners, best sellers, and shortlisters include titles on Facebook, entrepreneurship, Shopify, China, and, yes, AI.
Careless People: A Cautionary Tale of Power, Greed, and Lost Idealism
Careless People
by Sarah Wynn-Williams
A New York Times bestseller, this tell-all memoir by a former Facebook executive portrays the company’s leadership as careless and its culture as dysfunctional. It made McKinsey & Company’s annual “what to read next” list, The Economist’s 40 best books, Barnes & Noble’s best business books of 2025, and Goodreads’ hit new books of the year, as well as the Times’ own best books of the year.
The Thinking Machine
The Thinking Machine
by Stephen Witt
I included the story of NVIDIA’s rise from obscure gaming company to global tech disruptor in my spring roundup of new books. Since then, it has landed on best-of lists by McKinsey and The Economist, and shortlisted for “best business book of 2025” by the Financial Times and Schroders, the investment firm.
Abundance
Abundance
by Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson
This ambitious book by Klein, The New York Times podcast host, and Thompson, editor of The Atlantic, argues that the policies of the past cannot solve today’s problems, and what’s needed is a shift from a scarcity mindset to one of abundance. It’s a New York Times bestseller, a best-of-year selection by McKinsey and Goodreads, and shortlisted for best business book by the Financial Times and Schroders.
Start. Scale. Exit. Repeat.
Start. Scale. Exit. Repeat.
by Colin C. Campbell
Included in my June roundup, Campbell’s book has garnered numerous 2025 awards: the Dan Poynter Global Ebook Award, the Axiom Awards Entrepreneurship / Small Business gold medal, and the Nautilus Awards (“Better Books for a Better World”), among others, as well as being a Kirkus Best Indie Book of the Year for 2024 with a starred review that called it “top-notch how-to for business owners.”
The Canary Code: A Guide to Neurodiversity, Dignity, and Intersectional Belonging at Work
The Canary Code
by Ludmila N. Praslova, PhD
Praslova’s guide to inclusive workplaces earned gold medals from both the Independent Publishers Book Awards and the Nautilus Awards.
The Optimist: Sam Altman, OpenAI and the Race to Invent the Future
The Optimist
by Keach Hagey
Hagey’s book made the “best of 2025” lists from McKinsey and The Economist, which called it “deeply researched and gripping.” For a different take on the same subject, “Empire of AI: Dreams and Nightmares in Sam Altman’s OpenAI” by Karen Hao was also listed by The Economist and shortlisted by the Financial Times and Schroders. Time magazine calls it “a page-turner.”
From Click to Boom: The Political Economy of E-Commerce in China
From Click to Boom
by Lizhi Liu
“From Click to Boom” is the story of how China built a $2 trillion ecommerce market — with 800 million users, 70 million jobs, and nearly 50% of global online retail sales — from scratch in just 20 years. It received the Axiom silver medal in International Business and Globalization.
The Shopify Story: How a Startup Rocketed to E-Commerce Giant by Empowering Millions of Entrepreneurs
The Shopify Story
by Larry MacDonald
The Axiom gold medal for Corporate History went to this inspirational story that offers lessons for entrepreneurs, managers, employees, programmers, policymakers, and investors.
The Psychology of Money: Timeless Lessons on Wealth, Greed, and Happiness
The Psychology of Money
by Morgan Housel
McKinsey put this classic bestseller by Housel, a multi-award-winning author, on its “what to read next” list. His latest book, “The Art of Spending Money,” is about making the best of what you have.