Neil deGrasse Tyson is an astrophysicist, author, tv host to name a few of the things he does. He is the librarian of the internet that corrects fake science with facts. When he isn’t reading, Tyson is reading a book. Keep reading to find out Neil deGrasse Tyson’s favorite books list!
Reading can be used as an escape from reality for some people. For other people like Tyson, they can be used to dive into the minds of past intellectuals who changed the world. But that doesn’t mean he doesn’t enjoy classics from time to time.

Neil deGrasse Tyson’s Favorite Books
- The Art of War by Sun Tzu
- The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
- The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith
- How to Lie with Statistics by Darrell Huff
- The Origin of Species by Charles Darwin
- The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli
- An Appetite for Wonder by Richard Dawkins
- The Principia by Isaac Newton
- Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift
- Age of Reason by Thomas Paine
- Unstoppable by Bill Nye
- The Almagest by Claudius Ptolemy
Knowledge is Power
From this list, you can tell Tyson admires the geniuses that changed the world. From Charles Darwin to Sun Tzu, Tyson wants to read what they wrote. It may be for a purely intellectual reason or to better understand them. And who can blame him? These are household names that have had a big impact on the world.
That doesn’t mean Tyson doesn’t also like to read for fun. Classics like The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald and Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift also made the list. Those are iconic novels that have been relevant for a long time and show up on many lists.
I would like to have seen more modern novels on this list but that is my personal preference. Some people have a preference for classics and that seems to be the case for Tyson.
Conclusion
What do you make of Neil deGrasse Tyson’s favorite books list? What books were you surprised to see on the list? Let us know in the comments below!
The Voyage of the Beagle was far more engaging than Origin of the Species, despite the latter’s titanic impact on human perspective.