The best 13 Venture Capital books

Venture Deals offers insider insights into the mechanisms that govern venture capital deals as well as tricks that will help you get the most out of negotiations with investors. It lays out the nuts and bolts of venture capital deals in a way that is both easily understood and will give you an edge at the negotiations table.

The Entrepreneurial Bible to Venture Capital (2013) is a must-read for any entrepreneur or business leader looking to fund their next great idea. Venture capital firms seek start-ups that show potential and often commit to the tune of millions of dollars. If you want to make it in today’s competitive start-up world, you need to understand how venture capital works.

In Reset (2017), Ellen Pao recounts the story of her legal battle against venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers for discrimination. Her high-profile case caused waves in Silicon Valley, and the bravery and honesty she displayed inspired many women all over the world to share their own experiences, furthering the fight for equality.

Lost and Founder (2018) is a hands-on guide to getting your startup off the ground. Written by the founder of a company that’s already made it and packed with cheat codes and hacks, this is the ultimate insider’s playbook of strategies and tactics for struggling founders and would-be innovators.

Mastering the Market Cycle (2018) tackles a subject that’s often misunderstood, ignored or both: financial cycles. It not only explains what cycles are, how they tend to act and what influences them, but how best to position yourself within them to deal with risk and the current market environment. Along the way, it discusses multiple recent financial cycles, teasing out the lessons that can be learned from each.

Secrets of Sand Hill Road (2019) unveils the inner workings of one of Silicon Valley’s most iconic streets. Many of the area’s top venture capital firms are located here and have played a part in funding some of the biggest names in tech today. VC insider Scott Kupor has worked with many of them, and these blinks share their secrets – allowing the rest of us to decipher the mystery of venture capital, how to get it and why it can make or break a company.

Resilient (2018) is a practical guide on how to cultivate your inner strengths and develop qualities like compassion, confidence, and grit. Through simple techniques and concrete examples, it explains the ways you can harness your brain’s resources to cope with stress and anxiety – and find the motivation to follow your dreams.

The Unfair Advantage (2020) demonstrates how we all have something that can catapult us to success.  Drawing on their extensive experience in the start-up world, co-authors Ash Ali and Hasan Kubba break down various personal advantages and how they can be leveraged for the benefit of your business.   Wherever you are on your start-up journey, The Unfair Advantage will help you identify what gives you the upper hand and how you can immediately start making it work for you.

Startup Seed Funding for the Rest of Us (2015) provides insight into how to secure investors for your new business, even if you’re located outside a major start-up community. Its practical advice will explain how to make your business more attractive to investors and how to build the relationships you need to secure start-up capital.

The Cult of We (2021) tells the story of how the office-space company WeWork became the world’s most valued startup – only to come crashing down a few years later. Written by the reporters who broke the story of WeWork’s disastrous downfall in 2019, it explores WeWork's trajectory through a journalistic and financial lens, demonstrating how the most prominent investors in the world were blinded to the company’s risks for nearly a decade.

The Contrarian (2021) is a biography of controversial venture capitalist, tech investor, and PayPal founder Peter Thiel. It explains how Thiel’s politics have informed his career – and how he became one of the most powerful people in the US.

No Red Lights (2022) is part-autobiography, part-guidebook to assembling the core fundamentals of your career. Geared primarily toward aspiring venture capitalists but helpful for anyone interested in business, it’s packed with instructive lessons and useful advice. Simultaneously, it is a glimpse into the life of man who’s spent 50 years learning –⁠ and living –⁠ the tricks of the trade.

Birnam Wood (2023) is an engrossing thriller about what happens when a group of idealistic activists cross paths with the wrong venture capitalist. What looks like an amazing opportunity soon turns into a deadly nightmare, full of lies, cover-ups, and dangerous bedfellows.