It’s been a busy summer of reading for us here at USV. Since we often receive requests about what books people are reading, we polled the USV team internally to find out what picks and recommendations they each wanted to share with all of you.
As summer is quickly coming to an end, we hope you can consider this your “Back to School” reading list from the team at USV. (If you have other book suggestions or recommendations, please leave them in the comments!)
Our Top Fiction Picks:
The Little House by Virginia Lee Burton
Recommended by: Jed Schmidt
“It’s a popular children’s book from the 1940s about a house in the countryside that slowly gets engulfed by the growing city. It’s pretty poignant, especially considering its intended audience.”
Lexicon by Max Barry
Recommended by: Dani Grant
“The book is a thriller. It’s summer. Enjoy.”
Sweetbitter by Stephanie Danler
Recommended by: Lauren Maz
“If you’ve ever worked in any restaurant, anywhere you might find this engaging.”
The Man in the Basement by Walker Mosley
Recommended by: Nick Grossman
“So good”
Less by Andrew Sean Greer
Recommended by: Nick Grossman
“Also Fantastic”
Another Brooklyn by Jacqueline Woodson
Recommended by: Lauren Maz
“It’s a lovely quick read”
A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles
Recommended by: Lauren Maz
You Should Come With Me Now by M John Harrison
Recommended by: Andy Weissman
“Collection of genre subversive short stories and flash fiction.”
Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders
Recommended by: Andy Weissman
His tweet speaks for itself
Autonomous by Annalee Newitz
Recommended by: Albert Wenger
Non-Fiction Recommendations:
When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalinithi}
Recommended by: Naomi Shah
“One of my favorite books. It illustrates an interesting dynamic when the doctor becomes the patient. Having had a family member with cancer, this book hit home for me.”
Bad Blood by John Carreyrou
Recommended by: Zach Goldstein
“In a world where technology companies can be glorified, this is the story — from the perspective of the WSJ reporter who broke the news — of a generation changing business called Theranos gone terribly wrong, with lessons about business, life, and human nature intertwined.”
Fantasyland by Kurt Andersen
Recommended by: Albert Wenger
Savage Inequalities by Jonathan Kozol
Recommended by: Bethany Crystal
“This book takes a deep dive look at the education system in the U.S. and the vast disparity of funding gaps and opportunities seen for children in urban areas in the 1990s. It’s an examination of how the design of this system continues to compound the impact of segregation of predominantly White communities from Black, Latinx, and Asian communities.”
Cable Cowboy by Mark Robichaux
Recommended by: Andy Weissman
“A well written, fast paced, history of the entrepreneurs who invented the cable tv business.”
The Founder’s Dilemma by Noam Wasserman
Recommended by: Jennifer Greenberg
“This book walks you through all of the decisions that founders have to make by showing you actual startups and their journeys”
Ghost In The Wires by Kevin Mitnick
Recommended by: Dani Grant
“This is the book I read that first interested me in computer security. If I hadn’t read this book, I wouldn’t have applied to join Cloudflare and then wouldn’t have met the USV network. Oh and one tip: it’s great as an audiobook too.”
Slugfest by Reed Tucker
Recommended by: Fred Wilson
“Still reading it, but enjoying it so far”