Check it out: Bill Gates has a reading list for you this summer

Microsoft CEO Bill Gates needs no introduction. Apart from being a billionaire, he’s also a philanthropist, investor, computer programmer, a role model for thousands and as it turns out-an avid book reader, as well.

This summer however, Gates has a special set of recommendations for you. In his website, Gates Notes , the Microsoft CEO recommended a list of seven books that one should be reading this summer accompanied by a video enlisting reasons why you should be reading these books.

Apart from categorizing these recommended books as a ’light beach read’, the Microsoft CEO also added that each of these books made him laugh and think, or in some cases both.

The  books that Bill Gates recommended for summer reading are:

1. Hyperbole and a Half by Allie Brosh: The book is based on the author’s popular website by the same name. The website consists of ‘brief vignettes and comic drawings about her young life’ and the adventures recounted by her happen mostly inside her head and the reader gets to see and hear thoughts that people are too timid to let out in public. This recommendation of  Gates comes with a warning “You will rip through it in three hours, tops”

2. The Magic of Reality by Richard Dawkins: Dawkins who’s an evolutionary biologist in Oxford has succeeded in making the book a must read for all science geeks. This engaging, well-illustrated science textbook offers compelling answers to frequently asked questions like ‘How did the universe form?’ and ‘What causes earthquakes?’.

3. What If, by Randall Munroe: The contents of the book is summarized by its sub-title ‘Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions’. People write to Munroe asking questions relating to all fields of science and he answers them with a dash of his tongue-in-cheek humour, keeping the science behind them accurate.

4. XKCD, by Randall Munroe: This book contains a series of illustrations from the author’s blog where he makes fun of things, mostly of scientists and computers.

5. On Immunity, by Eula Biss: In this book, Biss, an essayist and lecturer, analyses what lies behind people’s fears of vaccinating their children. As Gates put it, it’s a beautifully written book about an important topic.

6. How to Lie with Statistics, by Darrell Huff: The book is a handy guide for investors and is an useful introduction to the use of statistics. It includes a chapter on how visuals can be used to ’exaggerate trends and give distorted comparisons’ which Gates thinks is a timely reminder.

7. Should We Eat Meat?, by Vaclav Smil: Vaclav Smil in this book tries to give a neutral clear-eyed view of the whole argument regarding eating meat, keeping in mind animal cruelty as well as meat’s role in human evolution.

But, before you head out to get a hold of these, don’t forget to watch the video where Bill Gates himself familiarizes you with these books.