The Everything Store: Jeff Bezos and the Age of Amazon

by Brad Stone

Jeff’s Reading List Books have nurtured Amazon since its creation and shaped its culture and strategy. Here are a dozen books widely read by executives and employees that are integral to understanding the company. The Remains of the Day, by Kazuo Ishiguro (1989). Jeff Bezos’s favorite novel, about a butler who wistfully recalls his career in service during wartime Great Britain. Bezos has said he learns more from novels than nonfiction. Sam Walton: Made in America, by Sam Walton with John Huey (1992). In his autobiography, Walmart’s founder expounds on the principles of discount retailing and discusses his core values of frugality and a bias for action—a willingness to try a lot of things and make many mistakes. Bezos included both in Amazon’s corporate values. Memos from the Chairman, by Alan Greenberg (1996). A collection of memos to employees by the chairman of the now-defunct investment bank Bear Stearns. In his memos, Greenberg is constantly restating the bank’s core values, especially modesty and frugality. His repetition of wisdom from a fictional philosopher presages Amazon’s annual recycling of its original 1997 letter to shareholders. The Mythical Man-Month, by Frederick P. Brooks Jr. (1975). An influential computer scientist makes the counterintuitive argument that small groups of engineers are more effective than larger ones at handling complex software projects. The book lays out the theory behind Amazon’s two-pizza teams. Built to Last: Successful Habits of V...