Read by Barack Obama, Oprah Winfrey, Richard Branson and 2 others
What books does Bill Clinton recommend?
A lifelong student of history and human nature, Bill Clinton, the 42nd U.S. President, offers book recommendations with a range that matches his own restless curiosity. His 36 titles are gathered from his published list of favorite books, his New York Times 'By the Book' interview, and official endorsements, and they span history, society and politics, philosophy, and fiction and literature. Near the top sits Gabriel Garcia Marquez's One Hundred Years of Solitude, which Clinton calls 'one of my favorites from the time I was young,' alongside Marcus Aurelius's Meditations, Maya Angelou's I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, and Carroll Quigley's The Evolution of Civilizations. Clinton is also a prolific author, having written My Life, Back to Work, Citizen, and, with James Patterson, the novels The President Is Missing and The President's Daughter.
Last updated March 2026 · Every recommendation cited to its original source.
byGabriel García Márquez
1967422 Pages(1,100,000)
“One of my favorites from the time I was young.”
— Bill Clinton
Source: Clinton's 21 Favorite Books list (2003)
Read by Naval Ravikant, Arianna Huffington, Tobias Lütke and 12 others
Meditations
A New Translation
byMarcus Aurelius
2003256 Pages(1,240,000)
Source: Clinton's 21 Favorite Books list (2003)
The Cure at Troy: A Version of Sophocles' Philoctetes
A Version of Sophocles' Philoctetes
bySeamus Heaney
199096 Pages“These books had a profound impact on my thinking.”
— Bill Clinton
Source: New York Times 'By the Book' Interview (2018)
Read by Bill Clinton
The Evolution of Civilizations
An Introduction to Historical Analysis
byCarroll Quigley
1979444 Pages“These books had a profound impact on my thinking.”
— Bill Clinton
Source: New York Times 'By the Book' Interview (2018)
byMaya Angelou
1969304 Pages(1,600,000)
Source: Clinton's 21 Favorite Books list (2003)
byRalph Ellison
1995581 Pages“Books by Richard Wright and Ralph Ellison made me want to do more about civil rights.”
— Bill Clinton
Source: New York Times 'By the Book' Interview (2018)
Read by Bill Clinton
The Worth of Water
Our Story of Chasing Solutions to the World's Greatest Challenge
byGary White, Matt Damon
2022240 Pages“This book isn't only an exciting read, it's a rewarding and important one. The Worth of Water is a powerful testament to every person's ability to overcome their own challenges.”
— Bill Clinton
Source: Official Book Endorsement
Read by Mark Manson, Eric Weinstein, Tai Lopez and 2 others
byErnest Becker
1973352 Pages“These books had a profound impact on my thinking.”
— Bill Clinton
Source: New York Times 'By the Book' Interview (2018)
Read by Bill Clinton
byHillary Rodham Clinton
2003562 PagesSource: Clinton's 21 Favorite Books list (2003)
Read by Bill Clinton
Parting the Waters
America in the King Years 1954-1963
byTaylor Branch
19891088 PagesSource: Clinton's 21 Favorite Books list (2003)
byDavid Herbert Donald
1995714 Pages“A book you could read if you wanted to read a novel... an astonishing book.”
— Bill Clinton
Source: Today Show Appearance (2011)
byThomas à Kempis
1427160 Pages“These books had a profound impact on my thinking.”
— Bill Clinton
Source: New York Times 'By the Book' Interview (2018)
The Guns of August
The Outbreak of World War I
byBarbara W. Tuchman
1962511 Pages(84,763)
“These books had a profound impact on my thinking.”
— Bill Clinton
Source: New York Times 'By the Book' Interview (2018)
Read by Bill Clinton
Beyond Charlottesville: Taking a Stand Against White Nationalism
Taking a Stand Against White Nationalism
byTerry McAuliffe
2019192 Pages“I highly recommend Terry McAuliffe's book... A powerful reminder of what real leadership looks like.”
— Bill Clinton
Source: Verified Twitter Account (@BillClinton)
Read by Bill Clinton
A Better Man
A Chief Inspector Gamache Novel
byLouise Penny
2019448 Pages“She never gives up on Gamache and he keeps coming through.”
— Bill Clinton
Source: Verified Twitter Account (@BillClinton)
Read by Bill Clinton
byDavid Baldacci
2019416 Pages“One of his finest books. Great character, great story, great portrait of an era.”
— Bill Clinton
Source: Verified Twitter Account (@BillClinton)
Read by Bill Clinton
This America
The Case for the Nation
byJill Lepore
2019160 Pages“Short powerful call for inclusive nationalism.”
— Bill Clinton
Source: Verified Twitter Account (@BillClinton)
Read by Bill Clinton
How Do We Look: The Body, the Divine, and the Question of Civilization
The Body, the Divine, and the Question of Civilization
byMary Beard
2018240 Pages“How we see things.”
— Bill Clinton
Source: Verified Twitter Account (@BillClinton)
Read by Bill Clinton
Fantasyland: How America Went Haywire
A 500-Year History
byKurt Andersen
2017480 Pages“An irreverent look at our long embrace of fantasy for better and worse.”
— Bill Clinton
Source: Verified Twitter Account (@BillClinton)
Read by Bill Clinton
byJane Harper
2017328 Pages“This book makes the Australian Outback come alive and breeds respect for its survivors.”
— Bill Clinton
Source: Verified Twitter Account (@BillClinton)
Read by Bill Clinton
The Fifth Domain
Defending Our Country, Our Companies, and Ourselves in the Age of Cyber Threats
byRichard A. Clarke, Robert K. Knake
2019352 Pages“Read this and you'll see what we're all up against in cyberspace.”
— Bill Clinton
Source: Verified Twitter Account (@BillClinton)
Read by Bill Clinton
byJames Patterson, David Ellis
2019480 Pages“America's storyteller keeps finding good ones to tell.”
— Bill Clinton
Source: Verified Twitter Account (@BillClinton)
byGeorge Orwell
1938264 PagesSource: Clinton's 21 Favorite Books list (2003)
Read by Bill Clinton
The Way of the World
From the Dawn of Civilizations to the Eve of the Twenty-first Century
byDavid Fromkin
1998272 Pages“[A] one volume short history of civilization.”
— Bill Clinton
Source: Today Show Appearance (2011)
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Frequently asked questions
What books does Bill Clinton recommend?
His 36 recommendations include One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Meditations by Marcus Aurelius, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou, and The Evolution of Civilizations by Carroll Quigley.
What is Bill Clinton's favorite book?
Gabriel Garcia Marquez's One Hundred Years of Solitude, which he describes as 'one of my favorites from the time I was young.' It appears near the top of the list of 21 favorite books he has shared publicly.
Where do Bill Clinton book recommendations come from?
They come from his published list of 21 favorite books, his New York Times 'By the Book' interview, a Today Show appearance, his verified Twitter account, and official book endorsements he has given.
Has Bill Clinton written any books?
Yes. He wrote My Life, Back to Work, Citizen, and Giving, and co-authored the bestselling thrillers The President Is Missing and The President's Daughter with novelist James Patterson.
What genres does Bill Clinton read most?
His recommendations span history, society and politics, philosophy, and fiction and literature, reflecting the wide-ranging intellectual appetite he has been known for since his student years.
All 36 Books Bill Clinton Has Recommended
- One Hundred Years of Solitude · Gabriel García Márquez
- Meditations · Marcus Aurelius
- The Cure at Troy: A Version of Sophocles' Philoctetes · Seamus Heaney
- The Evolution of Civilizations · Carroll Quigley
- I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings · Maya Angelou
- Invisible Man · Ralph Ellison
- The Worth of Water · Gary White
- The Denial of Death · Ernest Becker
- Living History · Hillary Rodham Clinton
- Parting the Waters · Taylor Branch
- Lincoln · David Herbert Donald
- The Imitation of Christ · Thomas à Kempis
- The Guns of August · Barbara W. Tuchman
- Beyond Charlottesville: Taking a Stand Against White Nationalism · Terry McAuliffe
- A Better Man · Louise Penny
- One Good Deed · David Baldacci
- This America · Jill Lepore
- How Do We Look: The Body, the Divine, and the Question of Civilization · Mary Beard
- Fantasyland: How America Went Haywire · Kurt Andersen
- The Dry · Jane Harper
- The Fifth Domain · Richard A. Clarke
- Unsolved · James Patterson
- Homage to Catalonia · George Orwell
- The Way of the World · David Fromkin
- Nonzero · Robert Wright
- King Leopold's Ghost · Adam Hochschild
- You Can't Go Home Again · Thomas Wolfe
- The Confessions of Nat Turner · William Styron
- Moral Man and Immoral Society · Reinhold Niebuhr
- Four Quartets · T.S. Eliot
- The Collected Poems of W.B. Yeats · W. B. Yeats
- Washington: A Life · Ron Chernow
- The Architecture of Health · Michael P. Murphy Jr.
- Bold · Peter H. Diamandis
- The New Digital Age · Eric Schmidt
- America: What Went Wrong? · Donald L. Barlett