Listmania!
One day this list will have my 40 top recommendations.
By an Amazon.com customer
A Perfect Mess: The Hidden Benefits of Disorder--How Crammed Closets, Cluttered Offices, and On-the-Fly Planning Make the World a Better PlaceA Perfect Mess: The Hidden Benefits of Disorder--How Crammed Closets, Cluttered Offices, and On-the-Fly Planning Make the World a Better Place by Eric Abrahamson
Buy new: $10.19 / Used from: $7.85
A wonderful book for someone who's mess seems chaotic and bothersome to others sometimes, but generally has a good memory of the stuff he's done. In other words, people like me. :)
Sync: The Emerging Science of Spontaneous OrderSync: The Emerging Science of Spontaneous Order by Steven H. Strogatz
Buy new: $16.47 / Used from: $4.09
A great read for those interested in multi-agent systems. A little mathematics in your background helps!
The Emergence of Everything: How the World Became ComplexThe Emergence of Everything: How the World Became Complex by Harold J. Morowitz
Buy new: $12.71 / Used from: $4.73
A good step-by-step description of the 'big steps' in the universe (and humanity's) history.
Freedom EvolvesFreedom Evolves by Daniel C. Dennett
Buy new: $11.56 / Used from: $1.35
Another good read for those interested in the free will vs. determinism discussion.
The Quantum Brain: The Search for Freedom and the Next Generation of ManThe Quantum Brain: The Search for Freedom and the Next Generation of Man by Jeffrey Satinover
Buy new: $10.85 / Used from: $7.00
More free will vs. Determinism, this time with more biological focus on brain structure and quantum events. Fun science.
The Burning Wheel: Character BurnerThe Burning Wheel: Character Burner
Buy used from: $26.45
The BW core books - a good RPG that focuses on hitting story elements with your character.
Four Colors Suffice: How the Map Problem Was SolvedFour Colors Suffice: How the Map Problem Was Solved by Robin Wilson
Buy new: $15.61 / Used from: $0.80
A good read for cartologists or map-enthusiasts with a mathematical background.
Vita Brevis : A Letter to St AugustineVita Brevis : A Letter to St Augustine by Jostein Gaarder
Buy used from: $2.59
A compelling short love story.
Foundation (Foundation Novels)Foundation (Foundation Novels) by Isaac Asimov
Buy new: $7.99 / Used from: $0.58
One of the all-time classics of SF.
The Great Book of Amber: The Complete Amber Chronicles, 1-10 (Chronicles of Amber)The Great Book of Amber: The Complete Amber Chronicles, 1-10 (Chronicles of Amber) by Roger Zelazny
Buy new: $16.29 / Used from: $6.95
One of Fantasy's Great Classics - deservedly.
Vellum: The Book of All HoursVellum: The Book of All Hours by Hal Duncan
Buy new: $10.17 / Used from: $0.73
The SF book I could've wanted to have written. Quite good, but I couldn't finish it without roughing the last pages. Throw it away when you can't stand it no more.
A Mapmaker's Dream: The Meditations of Fra Mauro, Cartographer to the Court of VeniceA Mapmaker's Dream: The Meditations of Fra Mauro, Cartographer to the Court of Venice by James Cowan
Buy used from: $0.01
A peek into the mind of a historical map-maker... cannot resist such a book.
The World Is Flat [Updated and Expanded]: A Brief History of the Twenty-first CenturyThe World Is Flat [Updated and Expanded]: A Brief History of the Twenty-first Century by Thomas L. Friedman
Buy new: $23.52 / Used from: $3.99
We all know we've gone global - here you can read just how much.
NeuromancerNeuromancer by William Gibson
Buy new: $7.99 / Used from: $0.76
A classic - absolutely.
Snow Crash (Bantam Spectra Book)Snow Crash (Bantam Spectra Book) by Neal Stephenson
Buy new: $10.20 / Used from: $6.00
Mind-blowing cyberpunk mixed with sumerian mythology.
The Diamond Age: Or, a Young Lady's Illustrated Primer (Bantam Spectra Book)The Diamond Age: Or, a Young Lady's Illustrated Primer (Bantam Spectra Book) by Neal Stephenson
Buy new: $10.20 / Used from: $3.79
More wonderful SF. Read!
Animal Farm and 1984Animal Farm and 1984 by George Orwell
Buy new: $16.32 / Used from: $15.59
Another true classic
Stranger in a Strange LandStranger in a Strange Land by Robert A. Heinlein
Buy new: $7.99 / Used from: $0.01
Grok this.
A Clockwork Orange (Norton Paperback Fiction)A Clockwork Orange (Norton Paperback Fiction) by Anthony Burgess
Buy new: $11.16 / Used from: $4.80
Be a droog - read this.
The 7 Habits of Highly Effective PeopleThe 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Cover
Buy used from: $4.95
It's the one management book I read. American-centric, dated, but has its moments!
Shadowrun. Laß ab von Drachen. Erster Roman der Trilogie. ( Geheimnisse der Macht, 1).Shadowrun. Laß ab von Drachen. Erster Roman der Trilogie. ( Geheimnisse der Macht, 1). by Robert N. Charette
Buy used from: $14.95
I read it in English, but this amazon doesn't have it.
A Short History of Nearly EverythingA Short History of Nearly Everything by Bill Bryson
Buy new: $11.53 / Used from: $7.26
Another good read!
Spelljammer: Adventures in Space (AD&D 2nd Ed Fantasy Roleplaying, 2bks+4maps+cards+counters)Spelljammer: Adventures in Space (AD&D 2nd Ed Fantasy Roleplaying, 2bks+4maps+cards+counters) by Jeff Grubb
Buy used from: $25.24
A RPG classic.
Vampire The Eternal Struggle Players GuideVampire The Eternal Struggle Players Guide by Robert Goudie
Buy new: $27.64 / Used from: $17.49
I'm in the thing, pretty hard to pass that up.
The Tao of Pooh and Te of Piglet (Wisdom of Pooh)The Tao of Pooh and Te of Piglet (Wisdom of Pooh) by Benjamin Hoff
Buy used from: $20.87
I'm not a big Pooh fan, but I recommend this book nonetheless.
Sex, Drugs, Einstein & Elves: Sushi, Psychedelics, Parallel Universes and the Quest for TranscendenceSex, Drugs, Einstein & Elves: Sushi, Psychedelics, Parallel Universes and the Quest for Transcendence by Clifford A. Pickover
Buy new: $11.53 / Used from: $5.43
Get your creativity fed!
Sushi: Easy Recipes for Making Sushi at HomeSushi: Easy Recipes for Making Sushi at Home by Emi Kazuko
Buy new: $11.01 / Used from: $2.12
Purity.
Lila: An Inquiry Into MoralsLila: An Inquiry Into Morals by Robert Pirsig
Buy new: $7.99 / Used from: $0.01
Read it before 'zen'. Never managed to finish zen, did manage to finish this one.
Fontainebleau Climbs (Mountaineers)Fontainebleau Climbs (Mountaineers) by Jo Montchausse
Buy new: $31.96 / Used from: $33.94
The ultimate playground
The Raven and Other Favorite Poems (Dover Thrift Editions)The Raven and Other Favorite Poems (Dover Thrift Editions) by Edgar Allan Poe
Buy new: $2.50 / Used from: $0.01
Quoth the raven: Nevermore.
Coleridge's Ancient Mariner, Kubla Khan and ChristabelColeridge's Ancient Mariner, Kubla Khan and Christabel by Tuley Francis Huntington
Buy used from: $4.15
The Ice was all between. In Xanadu did Kublai Khan a stately pleasure dome decree.
Science and the Akashic Field: An Integral Theory of EverythingScience and the Akashic Field: An Integral Theory of Everything by Ervin Laszlo
Buy new: $10.17 / Used from: $2.77
Nice examples.
Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, WitchGood Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch by Neil Gaiman
Buy new: $7.99 / Used from: $1.71
Yes!
THE SCARTHE SCAR by China Mieville
Buy used from: $14.61
A fresh take!