Read by LeBron James, Daniel Ek, Pharrell Williams and 8 others
What books does Kobe Bryant recommend?
The Kobe Bryant book recommendations gathered here follow the curiosity of a five-time NBA champion and Academy Award winner whose relentless "Mamba Mentality" carried well beyond the court. Eighteen titles are sourced from his School of Greatness interview, curated library and Amazon reading lists, a book foreword, and posts to his own social accounts. The selections move between psychology, literary fiction, biography and self-improvement. His signature pick is Paulo Coelho's The Alchemist, a book he always recommended, urging readers not just to read it once but to go through it multiple times. Doris Kearns Goodwin's Team of Rivals shaped how he thought about leadership as he moved from basketball to building a company, while Tim Grover's Relentless, for which Kobe wrote the foreword, he called a blueprint for discovering what you are capable of achieving. He also authored five books, among them The Mamba Mentality: How I Play.
Last updated February 2026 · Every recommendation cited to its original source.
The Alchemist
A Fable About Following Your Dream
byPaulo Coelho
2014208 Pages(3,580,036)
“I always recommend this book... however I think the most important thing is to be able to not just read it once but go through it multiple times.”
— Kobe Bryant
Source: The School of Greatness Interview
Read by Warren Buffett, Brian Armstrong, Chip Wilson and 3 others
Shoe Dog
A Memoir by the Creator of Nike
byPhil Knight
2016400 PagesSource: Kobe Bryant's Recommended Reading List (LA Public Library)
Read by LeBron James, Chip Wilson, Kobe Bryant and 2 others
The Tipping Point
How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference
byMalcolm Gladwell
2000301 PagesSource: Kobe Bryant's Recommended Reading List (LA Public Library)
byTim Grover, Shari Lesser Wenk
2013256 Pages“This book is the blueprint for discovering what you are capable of achieving, getting results you never imagined, and reaching the highest level of success.”
— Kobe Bryant
Source: Foreword to Relentless
Read by Barack Obama, Bill Gates, Jamie Dimon and 3 others
Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln
The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln
byDoris Kearns Goodwin
2005944 Pages“I loved Team of Rivals, and Leadership really built on the things I had taken away from that book. Moving from basketball to building a company, I needed to learn new and different leadership skills.”
— Kobe Bryant
Source: Kobe Bryant's Summer Reading List (Amazon)
byDoris Kearns Goodwin
2018473 Pages“Goodwin outlines the different skill-sets of Lincoln, both Roosevelts, and Lyndon Johnson, accessibly.”
— Kobe Bryant
Source: Kobe Bryant's Summer Reading List (Amazon)
Read by Kobe Bryant, Peter Attia, Robin Sharma and 1 others
Jonathan Livingston Seagull
A Story
byRichard Bach
2014144 PagesSource: Kobe Bryant's Recommended Reading List (LA Public Library)
Read by Ryan Holiday, Kobe Bryant, Changpeng Zhao and 3 others
Range: Why Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World
How Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World
byDavid Epstein
2019352 Pages“This book looks at how an emphasis on specialization can actually hamper our ability to really excel at something. It aligns with what I try to do when I am coaching... create all-around athletes who can think critically.”
— Kobe Bryant
Source: Kobe Bryant's Summer Reading List (Amazon)
Read by Kobe Bryant
byTomi Adeyemi
2018531 Pages(251,523)
Source: Kobe Bryant's Recommended Reading List (LA Public Library)
Read by Kobe Bryant
The Hero's Journey: Joseph Campbell on His Life and Work
Joseph Campbell on His Life and Work
byJoseph Campbell
2003255 PagesSource: Kobe Bryant's Recommended Reading List (LA Public Library)
Read by Kobe Bryant
A Game of Thrones
Book One of A Song of Ice and Fire
byGeorge R.R. Martin
1996836 Pages(2,400,000)
“Learning about the art of story from one of my muses today.”
— Kobe Bryant
Source: Direct Twitter Post
byJ.K. Rowling
1998309 Pages(9,400,000)
“I’m a huge, huge Harry Potter fan. I’m a big fan of J.K. Rowling.”
— Kobe Bryant
Source: Interview with Jimmy Fallon
Read by Kobe Bryant
byMarlon James
2019620 Pages“I am a big fan of epic fantasy series and the world-building by James is excellent. It’s immersive and makes for a powerful story.”
— Kobe Bryant
Source: Kobe Bryant's Summer Reading List (Amazon)
Read by Kobe Bryant
byJason Reynolds
2018176 PagesSource: Kobe Bryant's Recommended Reading List (LA Public Library)
Read by Kobe Bryant
byTiffany D. Jackson
2018448 PagesSource: Kobe Bryant's Recommended Reading List (LA Public Library)
Read by Kobe Bryant
Thirty Rooms to Hide In
Insanity, Addiction, and Rock 'n' Roll in the Shadow of the Mayo Clinic
byLuke Sullivan
2012320 PagesSource: Kobe Bryant's Recommended Reading List (LA Public Library)
Read by Kobe Bryant
Tuff Juice
My Journey from the Streets to the NBA
byCaron Butler, Steve Springer
2015264 PagesSource: Kobe Bryant's Recommended Reading List (LA Public Library)
Read by Kobe Bryant
The Silver Linings Playbook
A Novel
byMatthew Quick
2008304 PagesSource: Kobe Bryant's Recommended Reading List (LA Public Library)
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Frequently asked questions
What books does Kobe Bryant recommend?
His 18 recommendations feature The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho, Phil Knight's Shoe Dog, Malcolm Gladwell's The Tipping Point, Tim Grover's Relentless, and Doris Kearns Goodwin's Team of Rivals, spanning fiction, sports and leadership.
What is Kobe Bryant's favorite book?
Bryant repeatedly recommended Paulo Coelho's The Alchemist, saying the most important thing is to not just read it once but to go through it multiple times, treating it as a book to revisit across a lifetime.
Where do Kobe Bryant's book recommendations come from?
They are drawn from his School of Greatness interview, his recommended reading list for the LA Public Library, his summer reading lists on Amazon, a foreword he wrote for Relentless, and his own Twitter posts.
Has Kobe Bryant written any books?
Yes. Bryant authored five titles here, including The Mamba Mentality: How I Play and, through Granity Studios, young-reader series such as The Wizenard Series, Epoca: The Tree of Ecrof, and Geese Are Never Swans.
What genres did Kobe Bryant read most?
His list is weighted toward psychology and human behavior and fiction and literature, including epic fantasy like A Game of Thrones and Black Leopard, Red Wolf, alongside biographies, memoirs and self-improvement titles.
All 18 Books Kobe Bryant Has Recommended
- The Alchemist · Paulo Coelho
- Shoe Dog · Phil Knight
- The Tipping Point · Malcolm Gladwell
- Relentless: From Good to Great to Unstoppable · Tim Grover
- Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln · Doris Kearns Goodwin
- Leadership: In Turbulent Times · Doris Kearns Goodwin
- Jonathan Livingston Seagull · Richard Bach
- Range: Why Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World · David Epstein
- Children of Blood and Bone · Tomi Adeyemi
- The Hero's Journey: Joseph Campbell on His Life and Work · Joseph Campbell
- A Game of Thrones · George R.R. Martin
- Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone · J.K. Rowling
- Black Leopard, Red Wolf · Marlon James
- Sunny · Jason Reynolds
- Monday's Not Coming · Tiffany D. Jackson
- Thirty Rooms to Hide In · Luke Sullivan
- Tuff Juice · Caron Butler
- The Silver Linings Playbook · Matthew Quick