Books recommended by Jocko Willink

Jocko Willink is a former United States Navy Captain and SEAL Commander, made famous by his leadership and writing on topics like leadership, mindfulness, and self-discipline. He has gained recognition for his book Platoon Leader, which became a New York Times bestseller.

The recommended books share a focus on military leadership, warfare, and self-improvement, often incorporating historical anecdotes and philosophies from various cultures, such as Japanese Bushido philosophy in “Musashi”. The works are characterized by their emphasis on discipline, resilience, and strategic thinking, offering insights into the mental and physical toughness required for high-stakes environments.

1. Musashi: An Epic Novel of the Samurai Era (by Eiji Yoshikawa). Recommended by Jimmy Chin , Jocko Willink , Tim Ferriss
2. The Nightingale's Song: (by Robert Timberg). Recommended by Jocko Willink , Tommy Vietor
3. Platoon Leader: A Memoir of Command in Combat (by James R. McDonough). Recommended by Jocko Willink
4. The Glory of the Trenches: An Interpretation (by Coningsby Dawson). Recommended by Jocko Willink
5. The Killing Zone: My Life in the Vietnam War (by Frederick Downs Jr.). Recommended by Jocko Willink
6. Maps of Meaning: The Architecture of Belief (by Jordan Peterson). Recommended by Jocko Willink
7. The Woman Who Could Not Forget: Iris Chang Before and Beyond The Rape of Nanking (by Ying-Ying Chang). Recommended by Jocko Willink
8. 18 Platoon: (by Jary). Recommended by Jocko Willink
9. Conversations with Major Dick Winters: Life Lessons from the Commander of the Band of Brothers (by Cole C. Kingseed). Recommended by Jocko Willink
10. Across The Fence: (by John Stryker Meyer). Recommended by Jocko Willink
11. Everyday Heroes: Inspirational Stories from Men and Women in the Canadian Armed Forces (by Jody Mitic). Recommended by Jocko Willink
12. Reveries on the Art of War: (by Maurice de Saxe). Recommended by Jocko Willink
13. I'm No Hero: A POW Story as Told to Glen DeWerff (by Charlie Plumb). Recommended by Jocko Willink
14. Instructions for His Generals: (by Frederick the Great). Recommended by Jocko Willink
15. Stalingrad: Memories of Hell (by Joachim Wieder). Recommended by Jocko Willink
16. Omaha Beach and Beyond: The Long March of Sergeant Bob Slaughter (by John Slaughter). Recommended by Jocko Willink
17. Helmet for My Pillow: From Parris Island to the Pacific (by Robert Leckie). Recommended by Jocko Willink
18. Wooden Leg: A Warrior Who Fought Custer (by Thomas B. Marquis). Recommended by Jocko Willink
19. Men at Arnhem: (by Geoffrey Powell). Recommended by Jocko Willink
20. Unit 731 - Laboratory of the Devil: Auschwitz of the East (by Yan-jun Yang). Recommended by Jocko Willink
21. Team Dog: How to Train Your Dog–the Navy SEAL Way (by Mike Ritland). Recommended by Jocko Willink
22. Maurice's Strategikon: Handbook of Byzantine Military Strategy (by George T. Dennis). Recommended by Jocko Willink
23. I Remember The Last War: (by Bob Hoffman). Recommended by Jocko Willink
24. Fields of Fire: A Novel (by James Webb). Recommended by Jocko Willink
25. Battle Studies: Ancient and Modern Battle (by Ardant du Picq). Recommended by Jocko Willink
26. About Face: The Odyssey of an American Warrior (by Colonel David H. Hackworth). Recommended by Jocko Willink
27. How to be Strong, Healthy and Happy: (by Bob Hoffman). Recommended by Jocko Willink
28. The Hundred Rules of War: (by Tsukahara Bokuden). Recommended by Jocko Willink
29. Heart for the Fight: A Marine Hero's Journey from the Battlefields of Iraq to Mixed Martial Arts Champion (by Brian Stann). Recommended by Jocko Willink
30. The Trident: The Forging and Reforging of a Navy SEAL Leader (by Jason Redman). Recommended by Jocko Willink
31. Serve to Lead: The British Army's Anthology on Leadership (by Winston Churchill). Recommended by Jocko Willink
32. Hard-Core: Life of My Own (by Harley Flanagan). Recommended by Jocko Willink
33. Four Hours in My Lai: (by Michael Bilton). Recommended by Jocko Willink
34. Henry V: (by William Shakespeare). Recommended by Jocko Willink
35. Outlaw Platoon: (by Sean Parnell). Recommended by Jocko Willink
36. Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea (by Barbara Demick). Recommended by Jocko Willink
37. Brave Men: (by Ernie Pyle). Recommended by Jocko Willink
38. The Recollections of Rifleman Harris: (by Benjamin Harris). Recommended by Jocko Willink
39. The Knock at the Door: Three Gold Star Families Bonded by Grief and Purpose (by Ryan Manion). Recommended by Jocko Willink
40. Mind Over Muscle: Writings from the Founder of Judo (by Jigoro Kano). Recommended by Jocko Willink
41. De Re Militari: The Classic Treatise on Warfare at the Pinnacle of the Roman Empire's Power (by Flavius Vegetius Renatus). Recommended by Jocko Willink
42. Excursion to Hell: Mount Longdon : A Universal Story of Battle (by Vincent Bramley). Recommended by Jocko Willink
43. The Eleventh Day: The Full Story of 9/11 (by Anthony Summers). Recommended by Jocko Willink
44. Forgotten Highlander: An Incredible WWII Story of Survival in the Pacific (by Alistair Urquhart). Recommended by Jocko Willink
45. He Was No Coward: The Harry Farr Story (by Janet Booth). Recommended by Jocko Willink
46. By Honor Bound: Two Navy SEALs, the Medal of Honor, and a Story of Extraordinary Courage (by Tom Norris). Recommended by Jocko Willink
47. Fortunate Son: The Healing of a Vietnam Vet (by Lewis B. Puller Jr.). Recommended by Jocko Willink
48. Tough As They Come: (by Travis Mills). Recommended by Jocko Willink
49. Hell Yes, I'd Do It Again: (by T. Fred Harvey). Recommended by Jocko Willink
50. I Heard My Country Calling: A Memoir (by James Webb). Recommended by Jocko Willink
51. All Out War: A Novel (by Sean Parnell). Recommended by Jocko Willink
52. Marine!: The Life of Chesty Puller (by Burke Davis). Recommended by Jocko Willink
53. A Soldier's Journal: (by James Bollich). Recommended by Jocko Willink
54. The Coldest War: (by James Brady). Recommended by Jocko Willink
55. The Glass Factory: (by Braxton McCoy). Recommended by Jocko Willink
56. The Clay Pigeons of St. Lo: (by Joseph Balkoski). Recommended by Jocko Willink
57. Beyond Band of Brothers: The War Memoirs of Major Dick Winters (by Dick Winters). Recommended by Jocko Willink
58. Men Against Fire: The Problem of Battle Command (by S.L. A. Marshall). Recommended by Jocko Willink
59. The Armed Forces Officer: Edition of 1950 (by U.S. Department of Defense). Recommended by Jocko Willink
60. Company Commander: The Classic Infantry Memoir of World War II (by Charles B. Macdonald). Recommended by Jocko Willink
61. Red Blood, Black Sand: Fighting Alongside John Basilone from Boot Camp to Iwo Jima (by Chuck Tatum). Recommended by Jocko Willink
62. I Said No!: A Kid-to-kid Guide to Keeping Private Parts Private (by Kimberly King). Recommended by Jocko Willink
63. Steel My Soldiers' Hearts: The Hopeless to Hardcore Transformation of U.S. Army, 4th Battalion, 39th Infantry, Vietnam (by Col. David H. Hackworth). Recommended by Jocko Willink
64. Unflinching: The Making of a Canadian Sniper (by Jody Mitic). Recommended by Jocko Willink
65. Valleys of Death: A Memoir of the Korean War (by Bill Richardson). Recommended by Jocko Willink
66. Brothers Forever: The Enduring Bond between a Marine and a Navy SEAL that Transcended Their Ultimate Sacrifice (by Tom Sileo). Recommended by Jocko Willink
67. We Were Soldiers Once . . . and Young: Ia Drang—The Battle That Changed the War in Vietnam (by Harold G. Moore). Recommended by Jocko Willink
68. Hal Moore on Leadership: Winning when Outgunned and Outmanned (by Harold G. Moore). Recommended by Jocko Willink
69. Colder Than Hell: A Marine Rifle Company at Chosin Reservoir (by Joseph R. Owen). Recommended by Jocko Willink
70. On The Ground: The Secret War in Vietnam (by John Stryker Meyer). Recommended by Jocko Willink
71. SOG Chronicles: Volume One (by John Stryker Meyer). Recommended by Jocko Willink
72. I Fought With Custer: The Story of Sergeant Windolph, Last Survivor of the Battle of the Little Big Horn (by Charles Windolph). Recommended by Jocko Willink
73. Unit 731 Testimony: Japan's Wartime Human Experimentation Program (by Hal Gold). Recommended by Jocko Willink
74. Through the Valley: My Captivity in Vietnam (by William Reeder Jr.). Recommended by Jocko Willink
75. Man of War: An Eric Steele Novel (by Sean Parnell). Recommended by Jocko Willink
76. Navy SEAL Dogs: My Tale of Training Canines for Combat (by Mike Ritland). Recommended by Jocko Willink
77. On Guerrilla Warfare: (by Mao Tse-Tung). Recommended by Jocko Willink
78. Into the Fire: A Firsthand Account of the Most Extraordinary Battle in the Afghan War (by Dakota Meyer). Recommended by Jocko Willink
79. Psychology For The Fighting Man: What You Should Know About Yourself And Others (by Committee Of The National Research Counc). Recommended by Jocko Willink
80. Trident K9 Warriors: My Tale from the Training Ground to the Battlefield with Elite Navy SEAL Canines (by Mike Ritland). Recommended by Jocko Willink
81. One Soldier's War: (by Arkady Babchenko). Recommended by Jocko Willink
82. Tribe of Mentors: Short Life Advice from the Best in the World (by Tim Ferriss). Recommended by Jocko Willink , Ray Dalio , Tony Robbins , Jodie Cook
83. 12 Rules for Life: An Antidote to Chaos (by Jordan Peterson). Recommended by Dominic D’Agostino , George Raveling , Jocko Willink , Marc Andreessen , Naval Ravikant , PewDiePie
84. Blood Meridian: Or the Evening Redness in the West (by Cormac McCarthy). Recommended by Jocko Willink , Bryan Callen
85. The Terminal List: A Thriller (by Jack Carr). Recommended by Jocko Willink , Joe Rogan
86. Scars and Stripes: An Unapologetically American Story of Fighting the Taliban, UFC Warriors, and Myself (by Tim Kennedy). Recommended by Jocko Willink , Joe Rogan
87. With the Old Breed: At Peleliu and Okinawa (by E. B. Sledge). Recommended by Jocko Willink , Paul Graham , Howard Stern
88. True Believer: James Reece, Book 2 (by Jack Carr). Recommended by Jocko Willink , Joe Rogan
89. The Book of Five Rings: (by Miyamoto Musashi). Recommended by Jocko Willink , Joe Rogan , Lex Fridman , Naval Ravikant , Ryan Holiday , PewDiePie
90. Machete Season: The Killers in Rwanda Speak (by Jean Hatzfeld). Recommended by Jocko Willink , Sam Harris
91. The Rape of Nanking: The Forgotten Holocaust of World War II (by Iris Chang). Recommended by Jocko Willink , Jordan Peterson
92. Ordinary Men: Reserve Police Battalion 101 and the Final Solution in Poland (by Christopher R. Browning). Recommended by Jocko Willink , Jordan Peterson
93. Panzram: A Journal of Murder (by Harold Schechter). Recommended by Jocko Willink , Jordan Peterson
94. Storm of Steel: (by Ernst Jünger). Recommended by Elon Musk , Jocko Willink
95. The Road: (by Cormac McCarthy). Recommended by Aubrey Marcus , Charlize Theron , Jocko Willink , Joel McHale , Lex Fridman , Oprah Winfrey , Ryan Holiday , Sam Hinkie
96. Man's Search for Meaning: (by Viktor E. Frankl). Recommended by Aniela Gregorek , Bryan Johnson , Chelsea Handler , Chip Conley , Daniel Pink , Dave Elitch , David Blaine , Dustin Moskovitz , Emma Watson , Esther Perel , Ev Williams , Fedor Holz , Jim Kwik , Jimmy Fallon , Jocko Willink , Jordan Peterson , Lex Fridman , Maria Popova , Michael Gervais , Naval Ravikant , Ryan Holiday , Sam Altman , Simon Sinek , Terry Crews , Tony Robbins , Turia Pitt , PewDiePie , Shane Parrish , Mark Manson , Phil Jackson , Tom Bilyeu , Michael Hyatt , Alastair Humphreys , Steve Kerr , Robin Black
97. Tools of Titans: The Tactics, Routines, and Habits of Billionaires, Icons, and World-Class Performers (by Tim Ferriss). Recommended by Daniel Pink , George Raveling , Greg McKeown , Greg Norman , Jocko Willink , Kevin Rose , Mr. Money Mustache , Tim Urban , Jodie Cook
98. The Art Of War: (by Sun Tzu). Recommended by Dave Camarillo , Elon Musk , Evan Spiegel , Jocko Willink , Lex Fridman , Marc Benioff , Neil deGrasse Tyson , Ryan Petersen , Travis Kalanick , Vlad Tenev , Fred Wilson