The 10 Best Books for Business

As summer winds down, all of us are trying to squeeze in as much as we can into these last days.

So as you put together your list of “must dos” – we’ve got your “‘must read” list.

These books are all about leadership. True leaders – those with vision and passion, those who inspire and innovate and those who are able to learn from mistakes made - are currently in short supply. But we believe they’re out there.

The books we’ve picked are about those who lead in many unique ways and are found in many different environments; a drought stricken African village, the jungles of the Amazon, the world’s deepest caves, sitting in the toughest boardrooms and of course those inside the Oval Office.

So what are the top books for business today? Click ahead for the list!

By Gloria McDonough-Taub Posted 18 Aug 2010

Each of us has a story about that boss who was a total pain in the, well, you know. And if you're lucky, really lucky, you just might have a story to share about that fabulous boss, the boss you loved—the one you would have walked on hot coals for—the one who made coming to work a genuine treat.

In "Multipliers: How the Best Leaders Make Everyone Smarter," authors Liz Wiseman and Greg McKeown explain how these bosses are able to get the most and the very best from their employees.

For the full review and to read an excerpt, click here.

The ultimate ‘insider,’ is former Treasury secretary Henry Paulson, who tells his story in "On the Brink Inside the Race to Stop the Collapse of the Global Financial System."

Paulson lays out the decisions and reasoning for sacrificing Fannie and Freddie, bailing out Wall Street financial firms and the controversial rescue of AIG – a company who’s seemingly incompetent management perplexed and frustrated so many, including then-President Bush.

For the full review and to read an excerpt, click here.

For some, happiness means getting a little white box. A company delivering just such a box is Zappos, the online shoe marketplace that has found explosive success in recent years.

The CEO of Zappos, Tony Hsieh, is telling his—and his company’s—story in "Delivering Happiness: A Path to Profits, Passion, and Purpose." It seems the "Purpose" for Hsieh and his company begins with serving the customer—truly serving, not just offering lip service.

For the full review and to read an excerpt, click here.

In "Blind Descent: The Quest to Discover the Deepest Place on Earth ," our world is turned upside down by another set of extreme adventurers. James M. Tabor takes us to the bottom of the world in search of the world’s deepest supercaves.

Although on the surface this may not be your typical “business” book, the leadership and teamwork inspired by its pages have a real translation into the corporate world.

For the full review and to read an excerpt, click here.

Few writers are better able to tell the stories of Wall Street and beyond than Michael Lewis. He's the best-selling author behind "Moneyball," "Liar’s Poker" and "The Blind Side."

In “The Big Short: Inside the Doomsday Machine,” Lewis takes the reader on a thrilling ride into the near abyss — as our economy teetered on collapse. His book is a brilliant account of what happened and full of villains, heroes, fools and plenty of good ol' fashioned greed.

Few share Lewis’ gift of storytelling or his ability to take the most complex and make it riveting read.

For the full review and to read an excerpt, click here.

Summertime reading is about escaping from the real world. This book—with its 67,000,000,000,000,000 residents—really takes you away.

This is an adventure book full of glorious color photographs that shrink us down to ant-size so we can see the ants in their roles as leaders, warriors, hunters even slave owners. The author explains how ants create marketplaces and assembly lines and how they deal with issues uniquely human like hygiene, recycling, warfare and leadership.

For the full review and to read an excerpt, click here.

The “End” of Wall Street in Roger Lowenstein’s book does not refer to the end of a place or for a group of financial firms. Instead, it refers to the end of a philosophy and way of life that embraced, championed and even bred greed.

By now we all know pretty much what happened with the financial crisis. But what makes this book so unique is Lowenstein's storytelling and the nearly 200 interviews he conducted with insiders both on Wall Street and in Washington.

For the full review and to read an excerpt, click here.

In his newest book, “The Upside of Irrationality: The Unexpected Benefits of Defyling Logic at Work and at Home, ” Dan Ariely digs even deeper, explaining how all too often we make decisions that seem contrary to our best interest.

The book is full of experiments that tackle things like physical pain, online dating, getting even and procrastination. It seems, according to Ariely, that our decisions are driven by so-called unseen forces like emotions, stress, pride and revenge.

For the full review and to read an excerpt, click here.

"Rework" by Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson is most definitely not like most of the business books you’ve read before.

This book is fun, inspiring and very easy to read – perfect for anyone on a plane, beach or stuck in a rut. The authors offer logical ideas that are instantly applicable, helping you to “rework” your way of thinking, rework your business plan, rework your life.

For the full review and to read an excerpt, click here.

For those looking for inspiration, passion and hope, "The Boy Who Harnessed The Wind" delivers.

It’s the story of a young boy from the African country of Malawi who overcomes all odds to realize a dream that changes his life and those who live in his tiny village.

The story’s protagonist, William, is an industrious youth with a great imagination. The story follows his struggles with poverty and a lack of education and shows how one idea can change an entire society.

For the full review and to read an excerpt, click here.