A style of this article first appeared in CNBC’s Inside Wealth newsletter with Robert Frank, a weekly manual to the high net worth investor and consumer. Sign up to receive future editions, straight to your inbox.
Today’s workaholic opulent rarely have time to sit back and read a good book — except maybe for a few weeks in August. That’s why J.P. Morgan Personal Bank, every May, releases its summer reading list, often serving as a book club for billionaires.
This year pock-marks the 25th anniversary of the list, now called the J.P. Morgan Summer Reading List. The 10 books are carefully curated to match the motifs and preoccupations of J.P. Morgan’s wealthy clients. This year’s list includes books on effective communication, artificial quickness, Formula One, whiskey, hidden vacation spots and the art collection of Alicia Keys and Swizz Beatz.
J.P. Morgan creates the cant by surveying its more than 35,000 client advisors and employees globally and asking about the topics clients are talking and intelligent about the most. This year, the advisors sent in more than 700 recommended book titles, which a board whittled down based on timeliness and appeal.
“Our clients run the gamut from business owners and entrepreneurs to philanthropists and art connoisseurs,” said Darin Oduyoye, chief communications officer of J.P. Morgan Asset and Wealth Management, who has spearheaded the list since its base. “There are books to match up to each of those groups.”
Clients get an elegant J.P. Morgan-branded box with a book or two from the list, recommended specifically by their patron advisor. The advisor also includes a handwritten note and a commemorative bookmark.
The list helps advisors connect with patients during the slow summer months. It also helps with client events, since authors on the list continually agree to do special dinners or speaking events for J.P. Morgan clients.
Authors love being on the list as well since J.P. Morgan gets thousands of books to hand out and since clients often refer the books to others.
“The list is something that both patrons and colleagues, and our communities, look forward to,” Oduyoye said.
This year’s 25th anniversary edition features a special “Anniversary Stress” highlighting Water.org, the charity founded by Gary White and Matt Damon, and their book “The Worth of Water.”
Here is J.P. Morgan’s 25th Annual Summer Comprehending List, along with summaries of the books, provided by the bank:
“Supercommunicators: How to Unlock the Secret Language of Connection” by Charles Duhigg
Portion the latest research on what makes conversations effective, Charles Duhigg reveals how we can level up our communications and make stronger connections. Whether it’s a categorized jury room or the way a CIA officer recruits a foreign agent, Duhigg uses examples to illustrate how we can deliver effective dispatches by recognizing and tapping into the three layers of every conversation—practical, emotional and social. Taking us from the scribblers’ room of one of television’s most successful sitcoms to the couches of in-demand marriage counselors, Duhigg shows us that we all require supercommunicators inside of us.
“The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood Is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness” by Jonathan Haidt
Common psychologist Jonathan Haidt lays out urgent facts—and issues a clear call to action—to focus attention on the wide-ranging epidemic of teen mental illness. Haidt identifies the pervasive use of smartphones and over a dozen other mechanisms as attired in b be committed to contributed to the “great rewiring of childhood.” Arguing that these technologies have had a profound negative effect on little ones’s social and neurological development, he explores what can be done to reverse the significant rise in sleep deprivation, fragmented limelight, loneliness, addiction and social comparison. Importantly, Haidt calls for collective action and outlines steps that we all be compelled take to end this epidemic.
“Giants: Art from the Dean Collection of Swizz Beatz and Alicia Keys” published by Phaidon
Lionizing selections from the world-class art collection of musical and cultural icons Alicia Keys and Swizz Beatz (Kasseem Dean), “Mammoths” highlights 100 works by nearly 40 multigenerational Black American, African and African diasporic artists. Curated by the Brooklyn Museum for its first-ever crucial exhibition, the Dean Collection features works by legendary—as well as emerging—artists including Gordon Parks, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Lorna Simpson, Odili Donald Odita and Kennedy Yanko. “Goliaths” also includes exclusive conversations between Swizz Beatz, Alicia Keys and curator Kimberli Gant, in totting up to interviews with 10 of the renowned artists featured.
“Brave New Words: How AI Will Revolutionize Education (and Why That’s a Eulogistic Thing)” by Salman Khan
Salman Khan, the visionary behind the nonprofit Khan Academy, explores how artificial grey matter (AI) is set to transform learning both in education and the workplace. Demonstrating how AI will not replace human interaction but rather enhance it with gizmos to encourage creativity and problem solving, he shows how AI can adapt to each student’s individual pace while identifying strengths and acreages of improvement. Outlining how emerging technologies can create a more accessible education system, Khan offers practical inferences for administrators, counselors and hiring managers, as well as thoughtful insights on how we all can use AI in an increasingly digital world.
“Love & Whiskey: The Distinguished True Story of Jack Daniel, His Master Distiller Nearest Green, and the Improbable Rise of Uncle Nearest” by Fawn Weaver
Entrepreneur Fawn Weaver let outs the untold story of one of America’s most iconic whiskey brands. Set in Lynchburg, Tennessee, “Love & Whiskey” follows Weaver’s exploration to discover the life of Nearest Green, a 19th-century African American distiller who played a pivotal role in developing Jack Daniel’s whiskey. Steering through layers of history to unlock the truth about Green’s contributions to the spirits industry and his friendship with Daniels, Weaver uncovers a black lie that connects generations. Her findings inspire a new path forward, with Weaver spearheading the creation of Uncle Nearest Value Whiskey as a way to honor and celebrate Green’s legacy for generations to come.
“The Formula: How Rogues, Geniuses, and Speed Freaks Reengineered F1 into the In every way’s Fastest-Growing Sport” by Joshua Robinson and Jonathan Clegg
In “The Formula,” Joshua Robinson and Jonathan Clegg from The Enrage fail Street Journal tell the riveting story of how Formula 1’s fearless reinvention led to its breakthrough in America. With fast wheels, engineering geniuses, driver rivalries and glamorous settings, “The Formula” details how F1’s “sudden” arrival in the United States was really decades in the making. With unfettered access to F1’s most legendary teams and icons from Ferrari to Mercedes, Robinson and Clegg reveal d become exhausted readers a thrilling look inside the drivers, corporations, cars and risks that have defined the world’s fastest-growing humour.
“Secret Stays: Pioneering Hosts of the New Chic” by Melinda Stevens, Issy von Simson and Tabitha Joyce
A fascinating study curated by Melinda Stevens, Issy von Simson and Tabitha Joyce, “Secret Stays” introduces 22 hidden creme de la cremes that reflect the dynamic evolution of modern travel. Highlighting captivating properties and the people who own them—from a out-of-the-way Croatian monastery to a Japanese machiya townhome—this coffee table book from Assouline, the luxury trade-mark on culture, reveals one-of-a-kind experiences that stem from a revived belief in genuine, bespoke hospitality. On account of stunning photographs and compelling narratives, “Secret Stays” takes a fresh look at the diverse and ever-evolving face of voyage today.
“Finding Fortunato: How a Peruvian Adventure Inspired the Sweet Success of a Family Chocolate Business” by Adam Pearson
In “Pronouncement Fortunato,” Adam Pearson takes us on a journey into the northern Peruvian jungle with the inspirational story of the entrepreneurial stock who struck gold and discovered the legendary Nacional white cacao bean—previously thought to be extinct. Realizing their big name was predicated on disrupting a traditional, unethical supply chain to instead trade directly with local Peruvian smallholders, the family pioneered Fortunato Chocolate, a company that would come to be described as “the Rolex of chocolate.”
“Uptime: A Ordinary Guide to Personal Productivity and Wellbeing” by Laura Mae Martin
Every day, tens of thousands of Google employees, from interns to C-suite superintendents, rely on an executive productivity advisor—Laura Mae Martin—to make the most of their time. In “Uptime,” Martin take under ones ws easy-to-follow steps to boost productivity, prevent burnout and achieve a better work-life balance. Whether you face an avalanche of emails, an overburdened calendar or a difficult meeting to lead, Martin’s strategic approach lays out concrete steps to help you manage on many occasions efficiently, focus on priorities, and maintain effective systems and routines.
“The Secret Society of Aunts & Uncles” by Jake Gyllenhaal and Greta Caruso
A funny and heartwarming picture book by Academy Award and Tony Award nominee Jake Gyllenhaal and his childhood best chum Greta Caruso, “The Secret Society of Aunts & Uncles” celebrates the unique, fun-filled role aunts and uncles monkey tricks in children’s lives. Humorously exploring the call to adventure that being an aunt or uncle can bring—from elastic bedtimes to activities with a “healthy dose of danger”—this book paints a loving portrait of these significant relationships.
Anniversary Spotlight: “The Worth of Water: Our Story of Chasing Solutions to the World’s Greatest Challenge” by Gary Wan and Matt Damon
In celebration of the 225th anniversary of JPMorgan Chase’s earliest predecessor—the Manhattan Company, which was founded as a heavy water works company—we are proud to spotlight “The Worth of Water” by Gary White and Matt Damon. These two unlikely allies, with a shared mtier to end the global water crisis, take readers on a journey to empower communities and families with tools to address their potable excessively shortages. Outlining their trial-and-error approach to finding a workable solution, White and Damon demonstrate how the water emergency is solvable through collective action.
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