Famous Reading Lists: What Notable People Read, With Reading Times

Every pick on these lists is source-verified against a public, dated recommendation, not a second-hand claim. Reading times are calculated at the average adult speed of 238 WPM, but your own pace will vary, so we show the maths rather than a single guess.

Bill Gates

Microsoft co-founder and chair of the Gates Foundation

12 books · ~101 h 37 min total at 238 WPM

Warren Buffett

Chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway

8 books · ~59 h 49 min total at 238 WPM

Elon Musk

CEO of Tesla and SpaceX

7 books · ~50 h 42 min total at 238 WPM

Oprah Winfrey

Media executive and founder of Oprah's Book Club

12 books · ~86 h 38 min total at 238 WPM

Jordan Peterson

Clinical psychologist and author

10 books · ~68 h 52 min total at 238 WPM

Naval Ravikant

AngelList co-founder and investor

12 books · ~80 h 34 min total at 238 WPM

Book Club and Series Lists

Reading lists tied to a TV show, a book club, or one author's full catalogue, rather than a single person's picks.

Rory Gilmore

TV show reading challenge

339 books · ~2167 h 31 min total at 238 WPM

Read With Jenna

monthly book club

90 books · ~599 h 49 min total at 238 WPM

David Baldacci

author bibliography, in series order

56 books · ~453 h 39 min total at 238 WPM

Prefer browsing by genre or audience?

These lists are tied to a named person, a TV show, or a book club. For nonfiction, book club picks, teen reads, psychological thrillers, fantasy series and student reading, see our Book Recommendations by genre and audience.

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Image credits

Bill Gates: Photo: Bogdan Hoyaux / Christophe Licoppe, European Union, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Warren Buffett: Photo: US International Trade Administration, Public domain (US government work), via Wikimedia Commons.
Elon Musk: Photo: Gage Skidmore, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Oprah Winfrey: Photo: US Embassy South Africa, Public domain (US government work), via Wikimedia Commons.
Jordan Peterson: Photo: Gage Skidmore, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Naval Ravikant: Photo: Elias Bizannes, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Rory Gilmore: Photo: Greg2600, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Read With Jenna: Photo: Moody College of Communication, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
David Baldacci: Photo: Fourandsixty, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.