Bill Gates mentioned that as he was growing older he began reading more non-fiction books. But his interest still remained in the literature about the consequences of innovation, although it was more necessary to understand our real world as well. Lately, he again got attracted to the kinds of books that he enjoyed as a child.

This year, he read a lot of fantastic books, but he mentions about 5 books that remained his favorite books for the year.

1. A Thousand Brains: A New Theory of Intelligence, by Jeff Hawkins.

Artificial intelligence is one of the few topics that has caught the minds of science fiction writers. If you’re curious about what it could take to construct a true AI, this book presents an intriguing perspective.

2. The Code Breaker: Jennifer Doudna, Gene Editing, and the Future of the Human Race, by Walter Isaacson

The CRISPR gene-editing technique is one of the most fascinating and potentially significant scientific developments of the last decade. There is a lot from Nobel Prize-winning biochemist Jennifer Doudna and her colleagues in this detailed and approachable book.

3. Klara and the Sun, by Kazuo Ishiguro.

Bill Gates mentioned that this book got him thinking about what life would be like if extremely intelligent robots existed—and whether we’d see them as machines or as something more.

4. Hamnet, by Maggie O’Farrell

If you like Shakespeare, you’ll like this poignant tale about how his personal life may have influenced one of his most renowned plays.

5. Project Hail Mary, by Andy Weir

He has also written the famous book “The Martians”. In this book, Weir has written a wild tale about a high school science teacher who wakes up in a different star system with no memory of how he got there.

[Via]