Top 10 Books That Make You Smarter

Updated: Oct 19, 2021
By Ajibike Maryam Olaitan
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Ever heard the phrase “the more your read, the smarter you become”?. I doubt you have, I haven’t either, but I am sure you know that reading makes you super smart and you do not need a phrase to tell you how important reading is. You can go from reading the Holy Quran, the Holy Bible, articles, magazines, newspapers, books about science, facts, novels, psychological books to making you super smart in the art of mind-reading, you can read anything to enlighten and awaken the intellectual guru in you. And trust me, I am not just going to stop by telling you how reading helps you become smart, I will take you on a journey of 10 easy to read books to make you smarter.

There is more treasure in books than in all the pirate’s loot on Treasure Island

Walt Disney

The first set of books we would look into are the most important, easy to read, must read books in our 10 easy to read books to make you smarter list.

So fasten your seatbelt and let me take you on a ride to smartness.

10 Easy to Read Books That Will Make You Smarter

1. The Glorious Quran

The Holy Quran is a compilation of the revelations given to the Holy Prophet Muhammad(SAW) over a period of twenty-three years. The Holy Quran is the Holy Book or the Scriptures of the Muslims. It lays down the law and commandments, codes for social and moral behaviour, and contains a comprehensive religious philosophy.

The language of the Quran is Arabic. The book is no doubt full of wisdom and will make you smarter.

2. The Holy Bible

The Bible is a sacred book that contains the word of God for Christians. Throughout its pages, the Holy Bible teaches that God never stops loving His children. It contains the most important document(s) of both Judaism and Christianity and has been wielded as a weapon throughout most of its history.

It is one of the best books that will make you smarter

3. Moonwalking With Einstein: The Art and Science of Remembering Everything by Joshua Foer

In this book, Joshua makes use of Ancient memory techniques to test how we remember things that are familiar to our domain of expertise but fail to remember things that are new or unimportant to us. Joshua spends a year training for the U.S. Memory Championship and went on to win and also breaks the U.S. speed record for memorizing a deck of cards.

The author draws on cutting-edge research, surprising cultural history of remembering, and venerable tricks of the mentalist’s trade to transform our understanding of human memory. This book is an electrifying work of journalism that reminds us that, in every way that matters, we are the sum of our memories.

Bill Gates reviewed this book after its release in 2012 and he called it, absolutely phenomenal, one of the most interesting books I’ve read this summer.

If this isn’t one of the 10 easy to read books that make you smarter, I don’t what is.

4. This Will Make You Smarter: New Scientific Concepts to Improve Your Thinking (Edge Question Series by John Brockman

This Will Make You Smarter presents brilliant, but accessible ideas to expand every mind. What scientific concept would improve everybody’s cognitive toolkit? This is the question John Brockman, the man who runs the world’s smartest website posed to the world’s most influential thinkers.

Their visionary answers flow from the frontiers of psychology, philosophy, economics, physics, sociology, and more. Surprising and enlightening, these insights will revolutionize the way you think about yourself and the world.

5. The Sixth Extinction by Elizabeth Kolbert.

This is a book about the future of the world, blending intellectual and natural history and field reporting into a powerful account of the mass extinction unfolding before our eyes.

In The Sixth Extinctiontwo-time winner of the National Magazine Award and New Yorker writer Elizabeth Kolbert draws on the work of scores of researchers in half a dozen disciplines, accompanying many of them into the field.

Through these stories, Kolbert provides a moving account of the disappearances occurring all around us and traces the evolution of extinction as a concept.

The sixth extinction is likely to be mankind’s most lasting legacy; as Kolbert observes, it compels us to rethink the fundamental question of what it means to be human.

6. Thinking Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman

Thinking, Fast and Slow by renowned psychologist and winner of the Nobel Prize in Economics is a book that explains the two systems that drive the way we think. Kahneman reveals where we can and cannot trust our intuitions and how we can tap into the benefits of slow thinking.

He also offers practical and enlightening insights into how choices are made in both our business and our personal lives — and how we can use different techniques to guard against the mental glitches that often get us into trouble.

This is one of my favourites among the top 10 books that will make you smarter.

7. Train Your Brain: 60 Days to a Better Brain by Dr Ryuta Kawashima

This short book undertakes to stimulate your brain to prevent its ageing and loss of capabilities. It consists of a series of spreadsheets with daily exercises to boost your brainpower.

A bestseller in Japan, it is a practical and engaging way to stimulate your mind.

8. The Art of War by Sun Tzu

Sun Tzu’s The Art of War is a book about human conflict, which also talks about virtually all forms of human interaction, from business and marketing to relationships in general.

This book helps you understand human interaction on a fundamental level and how to achieve victory without conflict.

This book has inspired Generals going to the war front, Presidents, Top Executives and will no doubt make you smarter too.

9. Think Like a Freak by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dinner

Think Like a Freak by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner is a blend of captivating storytelling and unconventional analysis, the book takes us inside the thought of the writers’ process and teaches us all to think a bit more productively, more creatively, more rationally—to think, like a Freak.

Levitt and Dubner offer a blueprint for an entirely new way to solve problems, whether your interest lies in minor lifehacks or major global reforms. As always, no topic is off-limits. They range from business to philanthropy to sports to politics, all intending to retrain your brain.

Along the way, you’ll learn the secrets of a Japanese hot-dog-eating champion, the reason an Australian doctor swallowed a batch of dangerous bacteria, and many more. This is definitely one of the books that will make you smarter.

10. Seeking Wisdom: From Darwin To Munger by Peter Bevelin

Peter Bevelin begins his fascinating book with Confucius’ great wisdom: “A man who has committed a mistake and doesn’t correct it is committing another mistake.”

Seeking Wisdom is the result of Bevelin’s learning about attaining wisdom. His quest for wisdom originated partly from making mistakes himself and observing those of others but also from the philosophy of super-investor and Berkshire Hathaway Vice Chairman Charles Munger.

This book is for those who love the constant search for knowledge. It is in the spirit of Charles Munger, who says, “All I want to know is where I’m going to die so I’ll never go there.” Some roads lead to unhappiness. An understanding of how and why we can “die” should help us avoid them. We can’t eliminate mistakes, but we can prevent those that can really hurt us.

Conclusion

The above 10 easy to read books to make you smarter, will help you achieve the intelligence needed to go about the world and all the challenges in it as they come.

Which book do you think should be up there? Share with me in the comments box. You should definitely check out these 7 books every entrepreneur should read.

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2 Comments

  1. Darius Jerome

    Love the compilation.

    Reply
  2. Abdulganiyu Ibraheem

    I must atleast read one of those books too. I can’t wait to widen my horizon.

    Reply

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