📚 Author Bookshelf #003

Brad Feld, author of 'Give First'

November 16, 2025

This week, Slightly Smarter is brought to you by GIVE FIRST: The Power of Mentorship. The author has agreed to give 150 copies to Slightly Smarter readers. Enter to win a free book today 👇

Meet Brad Feld, today’s book curator.

Since 2010, Brad has been writing books about startups. He also reads about 100 books a year on a wide range of topics.

Brad is a venture capitalist, entrepreneur and author best known as the cofounder of Techstars and Foundry Group

4 books that influenced Brad:

A narration of a summer motorcycle trip undertaken by a father and his son, the book becomes a personal and philosophical odyssey into fundamental questions of how to live.

The Obstacle Is the Way by Ryan Holiday (2014)

This book presents an infinitely elastic formula for turning our toughest trials into our greatest triumphs. With short stories about icons of history, Holiday introduces Stoicism as a simple but powerful philosophy for life.

Neuromancer by William Gibson (1984)

A science fiction masterpiece—a classic that ranks as one of the twentieth century’s most potent visions of the future.

Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson (1992)

A modern classic that predicted the metaverse and inspired generations of Silicon Valley innovators.

Want more book recommendations?

Brad logs every book he reads in Goodreads. He has over 2,000 books on his bookshelf. But ignore his stars.

Brad is giving away 150 copies of his latest book to Slightly Smarter readers.

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