Read by Oprah Winfrey, Shonda Rhimes, Tim Cook and 3 others
What books does Tim Cook recommend?
Tim Cook's book recommendations lean toward character, conviction, and lives lived under pressure. The CEO who succeeded Steve Jobs and scaled Apple past a $3 trillion market cap describes himself as drawn to nonfiction "about people and how they lived and how they fought." This list of 8 titles is anchored by a wide-ranging conversation on the Dua Lipa: At Your Service podcast, plus his official accounts and interviews, and its themes are biographies and memoirs, society and politics, and history. He calls Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird "the best book written in the 20th century" and "the book that I have gifted the most," and names Phil Knight's Shoe Dog "the best business book of the century." Paul Kalanithi's When Breath Becomes Air he calls "phenomenal" and the "best book on re-examining life and values," while he hopes John Lewis's graphic memoir March becomes "required reading in every school."
Last updated February 2026 · Every recommendation cited to its original source.
byHarper Lee
1960281 Pages(6,752,249)
“I think it is the best book written in the 20th century. I realized that the book had a much wider appeal... it is the book that I have gifted the most.”
— Tim Cook
Source: Dua Lipa: At Your Service Podcast
Read by Warren Buffett, Brian Armstrong, Chip Wilson and 3 others
Shoe Dog
A Memoir by the Creator of Nike
byPhil Knight
2016400 Pages“I think it’s the best business book of the century.”
— Tim Cook
Source: Dua Lipa: At Your Service Podcast
Read by Tim Cook, Eric Topol, Fei-Fei Li and 2 others
byPaul Kalanithi
2016256 Pages(1,300,000)
“Phenomenal... Best book on re-examining life and values.”
— Tim Cook
Source: Dua Lipa: At Your Service Podcast
Competing Against Time
How Time-Based Competition is Reshaping Global Markets
byGeorge Stalk Jr., Thomas M. Hout
1990285 PagesSource: Business Insider reporting on Apple internal practices
byJohn Lewis, Andrew Aydin, Nate Powell
2013128 Pages“My hope is that everyone reads this, and I would love to see the day that it is required reading in every school.”
— Tim Cook
Source: Official X (Twitter) Account
Read by Sheryl Sandberg, Sundar Pichai, Tim Cook and 2 others
Trillion Dollar Coach
The Leadership Playbook of Silicon Valley's Bill Campbell
byEric Schmidt, Jonathan Rosenberg, Alan Eagle
2019240 Pages“Bill shared his wisdom generously, expecting nothing back but the joy he got from teaching others. I was privileged to have him as my coach for several years. Many times since then, when asked for advice by others, I think of Bill and try to live up to the example he set.”
— Tim Cook
Source: Official Book Endorsement
byLarry Tye
2016608 Pages“I have two books going right now: One is the Bobby Kennedy book by Larry Tye that just came out... I tend to like nonfiction and particularly reading about people and how they lived and how they fought.”
— Tim Cook
Source: Washington Post Interview
I Am Malala
The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban
byMalala Yousafzai, Christina Lamb
2013352 Pages“I love Malala's story and her passion around young girls' education.”
— Tim Cook
Source: Dua Lipa: At Your Service Podcast
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Frequently asked questions
What books does Tim Cook recommend?
His 8 recommendations include To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Shoe Dog by Phil Knight, When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi, March: Book One by John Lewis, and I Am Malala.
What is Tim Cook's favorite book?
He calls To Kill a Mockingbird "the best book written in the 20th century" and "the book that I have gifted the most," pointing to its wide appeal and moral clarity.
Where do Tim Cook's book recommendations come from?
Many come from the Dua Lipa: At Your Service podcast, along with his official X account, a Washington Post interview, and Business Insider reporting on Apple's internal practices.
What business books does Tim Cook recommend?
He calls Phil Knight's Shoe Dog "the best business book of the century" and points to Competing Against Time, a book on speed-based competition reportedly influential in Apple's operations.
What genres does Tim Cook read most?
His list favors biographies and memoirs and society and politics, with a recurring interest in history and civil-rights figures, reflecting his stated preference for nonfiction about how people lived and fought.