As we kick off the summer, I have compiled a list of summer reading recommendations from my colleagues on Edelman Smithfield’s leadership team. The nonfiction books cover a range of topics from AI, financial markets and consumer behavior. We also included a handful of fiction books; two people (myself included) picked Virginia Evans’s award-winning book “The Correspondent.”
We hope that there is something to be found here for every reader.
Recommendations:
Carole Barrow, Vice President:
Harlem Shuffle by Colson Whitehead:
It’s a fast-moving novel that blends crime, family drama and civil rights era struggles. Set in 1960s Harlem, it centers on furniture salesman Ray Carney as he gets pulled into the city’s underworld. The book reads like a page-turning neo-noir, and for readers who want more, Crook Manifesto is a satisfying sequel.
Amir Beshay, Senior Vice President:
Babel by R.F. Kuang:
For a group of people who work with language every day, it's a very interesting look into linguistics and translation.
Deidre Campbell, Managing Director:
The Happiness Files: Insights on Work and Life by Arthur C. Brooks
In this collection of reflections and essays, Arthur C. Brooks examines the habits, mindsets, and emotional patterns that shape happiness at work and in everyday living. He combines behavioral science with practical wisdom, encouraging readers to prioritize relationships, gratitude, meaningful work, and emotional self-awareness over ambition, wealth, and external validation.
The Next Renaissance: AI and the Expansion of Human Potential by Zack Kass
This book explores how artificial intelligence can amplify creativity, productivity, learning, and human capability rather than replace people. Framing AI as a catalyst for a new renaissance, it examines ethical innovation, collaboration between humans and machines, and the opportunities for individuals and societies to expand knowledge, solve complex problems, and unlock human potential.
Jordan Fisher, Executive Vice President:
I Regret Almost Everything: A Memoir by Keith McNally
McNally’s memoir provides an inside look at the stories and operations behind some of New York’s most iconic restaurants. Told with dry humor, it also features honest reflections on business successes and failures, navigating personal hardships and leadership.
Ira Gorsky, Managing Director:
Thank You for Arguing, Third Edition: What Aristotle, Lincoln, and Homer Simpson Can Teach Us About the Art of Persuasion by Jay Heinrichs
“Thank You for Arguing” is a popular guide to rhetoric and persuasion, using historical figures like Aristotle and Lincoln, and pop culture icons like Homer Simpson, to teach practical techniques for winning arguments constructively. The book covers classical rhetorical strategies (logos, ethos, pathos) and modern applications, explaining how to use logic, credibility, and emotion to persuade, not just fight, in everyday life, politics, and media.
Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds and Confusion de Confusiones by Martin Fridson
Exploring the sometimes hilarious, sometimes devastating impact of crowd behavior and trading trickery on the financial markets, this book brilliantly combines two all-time investment classics. Extraordinary Popular Delusions and Confusión de Confusiones take us from Tulip mania in 1634-when tulips actually traded at a higher price than gold-to the South Sea "bubble" of 1720, and beyond. Securities analyst and author Martin Fridson guides you on a quirky, entertaining, and intriguing journey back through time.
Lisa Leiter, Financial Services Co-Lead:
1929: The Inside Story of The Greatest Crash in Wall Street History by Andrew Ross Sorkin
Andrew Ross Sorkin's 1929 is deeply researched, and I am enjoying learning more about this historic period through the personalities and relationships of the people at the center of it.
Nicole Sackett (Hakimi), Executive Vice President:
The Correspondent by Virginia Evans
“The Correspondent” totally deserves all the hype and awards it gets. It’s written in the form of letters sent to and received from quirky septuagenarian Sybil Van Antwerp, a retired judge who prefers exchanging letters over phone calls or text messages. Through these letters, Sybil reflects on her life and builds real connections. The book was light enough for a beach read, but at the same time, it had real depth.
Africa Is Not a Country: Notes on a Bright Continent by Dipo Faloyin
I listened to this audiobook after my honeymoon in East Africa and highly recommend it to anyone looking to learn more about Africa. Dipo Faloyin, a senior editor and writer at VICE, wrote the book and narrated the audiobook. Faloyin corrects Western assumptions about Africa and embraces the diversity of the continent. My favorite chapter was the one about the author’s own hometown, Lagos, Nigeria.
Natalie Short, Vice President:
The Road to Tender Hearts by Annie Hartnett
I just finished this book that came out last year and didn't want it to end! It's a darkly comic story about an older man who embarks on a cross-country road trip to reunite with his high school sweetheart. It manages to be heartwarming and hopeful even as the characters handle major life traumas. I'm also a sucker for a good dad/daughter story.
What We Can Know by Ian McEwan
Another excellent book from last year. Set in a 2119 post-apocalyptic, climate-ravaged Britain, it follows a scholar navigating a ruined world to reconstruct a lost 2014 poem. I think the author puts it best himself; this story is: "science fiction without the science...a novel about history, and what we can know of it, and of each other."
Katie Spring, U.S. President:
The Correspondent by Virginia Evans
It’s told entirely in letter format and while I thought that would be strange/boring/contrived, there are many voices and developments, and it’s just a wonderful homage to the written word, and the impact it has on us.
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith
I also just read A Tree Grows in Brooklyn which is a classic that I’d never read before. For anyone who lives in or spends time in Brooklyn, it’s this amazing love letter to a place, for better or worse, good times and bad. I really enjoyed it.
Lauren Torres, Executive Vice President:
Eat Your Ice Cream: Six Simple Rules for a Long and Healthy Life by Dr. Ezekiel J. Emanuel
This book is a combination of common sense, wisdom and humor. Dr. Emanuel helps us consider which lifestyle changes are worth making and how to most easily implement them for longer, healthier, and happier lives. And if you’re curious, the six simple rules are: Don’t Be a Schmuck, Talk to People, Expand Your Mind, Eat Your Ice Cream, Move It and Sleep Like a Baby.
Stacy Turnof, Executive Vice President:
Why We Buy: The Science of Shopping by Paco Underhill
Provides fascinating, data-driven insights into how consumers make purchasing decisions and interact with brands in real-world environments. The book is especially relevant for our work with consumer and retail clients, as it helps sharpen thinking around customer behavior, brand strategy, communications, and the overall consumer experience. The book uses entertaining examples which make the book a quick and fun read, and it may just change the way you navigate the mall the next time you shop.
Nina Wilson, Senior Vice President:
Barbarians at the Gate: The Inside Story of America’s Most Notorious Corporate Takeover by Bryan Burrough
It’s been considered required reading for decades as the definitive account of the RJR Nabisco buyout, but what interested me most was how communications and public perception helped shape the outcome. Beyond the deal mechanics and boardroom drama, some of the secondary themes around reputation, media narratives, and executive ego are still relevant today - particularly the way press coverage of management influenced the independent board committee evaluating the bids, despite management assuming its longstanding relationships with the board would carry weight. It might not seem like a go-to summer read, but there's plenty of thriller-level drama to keep you turning the page.
By Nicole Hakimi, EVP, Asset Management Lead, Edelman Smithfield