Bill Gates shares his top 5 books of 2020

In these unprecedented and difficult times of the pandemic, books have provided comfort and solace to many readers. With the year 2020 coming to an end, billionaire, philanthropist and avid reader Bill Gates recently shared his top five book recommendations for the year. Calling it a "lousy year", Gates wrote on his official blog "In a year like this, sometimes you want to go deep on a tough issue. Other times you need a break." So, checkout Bill Gates' top five book recommendations for 2020 to help you "finish the year on a good note".

P.S: You can also give these books to your book lover friend this holiday season!

(Photo: Gatesnotes.com)

Considering the Black Lives Matter protests that gained momentum across the world earlier this year, Gates picked Michelle Alexander's 'The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness' as one of this top five reads for this year. Talking about the book, he wrote, "Like many white people, I’ve tried to deepen my understanding of systemic racism in recent months. Alexander’s book offers an eye-opening look into how the criminal justice system unfairly targets communities of color, and especially Black communities...I finished the book more convinced than ever that we need a more just approach to sentencing and more investment in communities of color."

(Photo: The New Press)

Gates not only recommends people to read David Epstein's book 'Range: Why Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World' but to also watch his 2014 TED Talk on sports performance, which actually got him interested in Epstein's works. In this book Epstein explains that though it seems that people who specialise in certain fields of work are more in demand, in reality it's generalists and people with a diverse field of work who are really sought after. "If you’re a generalist who has ever felt overshadowed by your specialist colleagues, this book is for you," Gates wrote.

(Photo: Macmillan)

Adding diversity to his book list, Gates further recommends a book on World War 2. The reason: "The fear and anxiety they felt—while much more severe than what we’re experiencing with COVID-19—sounded familiar," he wrote. Talking about the book, Gates said, "Larson gives you a vivid sense of what life was like for average citizens during this awful period, and he does a great job profiling some of the British leaders who saw them through the crisis, including Winston Churchill and his close advisers."

(Photo: William Collins)

"This nonfiction account focuses on Oleg Gordievsky, a KGB officer who became a double agent for the British, and Aldrich Ames, the American turncoat who likely betrayed him. Macintyre’s retelling of their stories comes not only from Western sources (including Gordievsky himself) but also from the Russian perspective. It’s every bit as exciting as my favorite spy novels," Gates wrote on his official blog.

(Photo: Penguin)

As the title suggests, in this book Trivedi documents how a scientific innovation has improved the lives of not only many cystic fibrosis patients but also their families. Calling it a "truly uplifting" story, Gates also said, "I suspect we’ll see many more books like this in the coming years, as biomedical miracles emerge from labs at an ever-greater pace."

(Photo: BenBella Books)