Jeremy Black

Losing My Virginity - Richard Branson

My favourite biography of all time. Mostly because of the setting. London + the height of British Rock n' Roll + Branson's laissez faire attitude makes this autobiobraphy at once fun and inspiring.

Kitchen Confidential - Anthony Bourdain

The book that introduced him to the World. A perfectly executed memoir of life in the kitchen before celebrity chefs.

Pour Your Heart Into It - Howard Schultz

In 2013, in front of 5000 people, I saw someone ask Howard Schultz if he was going to run for President. You could hear a pin drop as Howard took a thoughtful pause. I would have bet anything he was going to run at some point. This is Howard's original autobiography. It's a great story about an iconic entrepreneur.

Getting More - Stuart Diamond

Hands down my favourite book about negotiation. Stuart's core hypothesis; everything is a negotiation and the key to successful negotiation is understanding the other parties emotions and perceptions. Sales = negotiation so consider this my favourite sales book as well.

The Hard Thing About Hard Things - Ben Horrowitz

I read this book in late 2016 after leaving the comfort of high paying management job. In early 2017, someone anonymously sent me a copy of the book. I gave away my copy and kept the gifted one as a reminder to pay it forward.

Frontier City - Shawn Micallef

This book is an exploration of a changing Toronto. It also happens to be set during the height of Rob Ford's influence at city hall.

A History of Future Cities - Daniel Brook

I can't remember how I found this book but I'm glad I did. It's a combination of history & economics, with a dash of "travelogue" style escapism built in. The book explores how four cities, St. Petersburg, Shanghai, Mumbai, and Dubai, are places made partially of globalization, modernness, and Westernization.

Hitching Rides with Buddha - Will Ferguson

Will draws you in with humour and humility as he hitchhikes from the South to North of Japan during Cherry Blossom season. I've never been to Japan. It's been #1 on my bucket list for a decade but we just can't seem to carve out the time. I keep reading this book as a way to keep the dream alive 😀.

The Geography of Bliss - Eric Weimer

The escapism of a travelogue with the feel-good optimism of a self-improvement narrative. Because we could all use more happiness.

10% Happier - Dan Harris

Dan finds incremental happiness through meditation. It's an incredibly engaging and completely true account of how Dan's work as a network news reporter led him to question the nature of his anxieties and why people might turn to spiritualism as a cure.

Got a Recommendation?

As you can see I haven't found my grove yet with fiction. If you have a recommendation, you know where to find me: @jeremywblack or jb@jeremyblack.ca.