John Wood's six favorite books

John Wood worked for Microsoft for nine years, helping expand the company’s international profile. He resigned at thirty-five and founded Room to Read, which is widely regarded as one of the world’s top nonprofit organizations. He documented his decision and the creation of Room to Read in his memoir, Leaving Microsoft to Change the World. His new book is Creating Room to Read: A Story of Hope in the Battle for Global Literacy.

One of Wood's six favorite books, as told to The Week magazine:

Wind, Sand and Stars by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

Powerful meditations and remembrances of piloting airmail planes across vast, isolated, and dangerous stretches of Africa. In an era of instantaneous and never-ending communication, it's a pleasure to hark back to the days when a long-distance message required weeks of waiting and the risking of lives. I admire how Saint-Exupéry looked past the technology of aviation to embrace the simple love of flying. We could apply that same theory today: It's easy to get caught up in the technology of communicating rather than enjoy the actual experience.

Read about the other books on Wood's list.

--Marshal Zeringue