#1836 - Ryan Holiday

“The discussion revolves around the book 'Amusing Ourselves to Death' by Neil Postman, which compares television's impact to social media today.”

“The speaker recommends 'What Made Maddy Run' by Kate Fagan, discussing its themes of mental health and pressure in sports.”

“The speaker talks about 'The War of Art' by Steven Pressfield, mentioning that they read it every time they start a project.”

“The speaker reflects on reading 'Meditations' for the first time and how it presented a unique perspective, being notes written by a powerful man for himself, not intended for publication.”

“Robert E. Howard is the guy who wrote Conan the Barbarian. He wrote about this unstoppable, unconquerable man who slayed everyone before him and fought demons and dragons.”

“The speaker describes 'The Tiger' as a book about a man-eating tiger in Siberia, claiming it's one of the best non-fiction books ever written.”

“The speaker mentions 'The Black Count' and discusses its connection to Alexander Dumas and his father's incredible real-life story.”

“The book 'The Image' by Daniel Boorstin is mentioned in relation to the concept of pseudo-events and media attention.”

“The title of your book, The Obstacle is the Way, emphasizes that getting through things is how you build a stronger foundation and develop character.”

“The speaker mentions a book about people who lost their houses due to the financial crisis and now live in vans or campers, working at various seasonal jobs.”

“The speaker refers to a book they wrote about media manipulation, discussing the implications of journalists' conflicts of interest.”

“'River of Doubt' is described as a book about Theodore Roosevelt's exploration of a river in the Amazon.”

“It's about this Jewish agent, Hollywood agent in the 20s or 30s, endlessly ambitious. A cautionary tale about success and the lengths people go to achieve it.”

“Napoleon Hill, who wrote that book Think and Grow Rich. He was a literal con man.”

“The book 'The Brass Check' by Upton Sinclair is referenced in the context of media and attention, alongside his more famous work 'The Jungle'.”

“The speaker suggests 'Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World' as a different view on Genghis Khan.”

“But when it came out and it sold enough copies to hit the list and it wasn't there, you're like, oh wait, is this something I control or not?”

“The speaker mentions trying to pick some books that the other person hasn't heard about, starting with 'Empire of the Summer Moon'.”

“'Wicked River' is mentioned as a book about the Mississippi River.”

“I did a book called Lives of the Stoics, which is like a set of biographies of all of the main Stoics.”

“'Shadow Divers' is mentioned as a book about diving a sunk German U-boat off the coast of New Jersey.”