Notable business books of 2025

This year has included a fair amount of economic volatility and anxiety, and as we close it out, you may be looking for that perfect gift for a colleague, friend or family member. We build resiliency in uncertain times by reading, learning and listening more deeply. This year, I’ve read more great books that will appeal to the most entrepreneurial minds on your list. Check them out:

The Experimentation Machine. Venture capitalist and Harvard Business School professor Jeff Bussgang lays out how artificial intelligence is transforming the way new ventures can and will find product-market fit and scale in the years ahead. Leaders don’t need to become technical AI experts, but those without an “experimentation” mindset will be left behind. This is a great AI primer, with lots of practical advice.

Epic Disruptions: 11 Innovations That Shaped Our Modern World. Dartmouth professor Scott Anthony explains how the most disruptive innovators across time — from soldiers fashioning gunpowder into cannonballs to Julia Child creating soufflés on television — have been those most committed to making the complicated simple and the expensive affordable.

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Sharing Risk: The Path To Economic Well-Being For All. Millions of Americans have nothing in the bank. Consumer Protection Bureau founder and law professor Patricia McCoy illustrates the economics of returning to a social compact of implementing policies that do the greatest good for the greatest number of people.

Mailman. Marketing executive Stephen Grant is laid off and finds a job with the only place that’s hiring at the start of Covid: the U.S. Postal Service. This chronicle of his stint as a rural letter carrier in Appalachia will renew your faith in an institution that has sustained America from the beginning.

A Living: Working-Class Americans Talk to Their Doctor.  Boston University public health professor Dr. Michael Stein talks with resilient working-class Americans in an eye-opening book that every CEO should consider.

You Already Know. Northeastern professor Laura Huang describes how successful leaders can hone the confidence needed to make decisions using a skill they already have: their intuition.

How To Be Bold.  HBS Professor Ranjay Gulati’s compelling “courage” playbook for modern leaders and everyday citizens is packed with insightful stories and timeless wisdom. 

Dancing Between the Toes of Elephants. Demystifying business jargon is a special skill — and private equity partner Mike Magliochetti has mastered it in this fun and engaging new book. For business students, growth company CEOs, and anyone wanting to learn more about how investors make consequential decisions — this is the book for you!

The Second Estate: How The Tax Code Made An American Aristrocracy.  Professor Ray Madoff breaks down how the uber wealthy are creating dynasties by avoiding W-2 income and manipulating tax rules designed to promote charitable giving in this must-read book. The implications for our overall economy, democracy and the rule of law are sobering.  

Custom Fit. Entrepreneur and talent acquisition expert Kate Morgan has written a smart, usable guide to hiring and team building that every resilient leader should read. 

Meaningful Work. Professor Tamara Myles and co-author Wes Adams cover the most significant transformation for employers and employees over the last hundred years: the search for meaning and purpose at work.

Clamor: How Noise Took Over the World and How We Can Take It Back. Journalist Chris Berdik explores how the increasingly noisy world impacts our health, well-being, and productivity.  An important read for all of us who need a regular fast from the glowing screen.

Sweet and Deadly.  Science journalist Murray Carpenter follows up his terrific book Caffeinated with another, this time, with a focus on how a favorite drink of entrepreneurs is contributing to the epidemic of chronic disease. 

Give First. Venture investor and Tech Stars co-founder Brad Feld urges leaders to consider empathic mentorship an act of faith and community building. This is how we rebuild and sustain an innovation economy.

Now more than ever, consider giving a gift that keeps on giving: a great book from an independent bookstore.

Read in the Boston Business Journal

Larry Gennari is a business lawyer and chief curator of Authors & Innovators, an annual business book and ideas festival. Watch recent interviews with authors here. Gennari also teaches Project Entrepreneur, a business fundamentals bootcamp for returning citizens, at BC Law School.