Reading list generator: the right books in the right order
"Best books" lists are long, random and rarely in an order that builds understanding. Tell your todo.is agent what you want to learn or enjoy, what you have already read, and how much time you have. This prompt gets you a short, ordered reading list with the reason for each pick, its length and difficulty, and a schedule you can keep.
The prompt
- Make me a reading list about [SUBJECT OR GENRE]. My goal is [GOAL]. I have already read and liked [BOOKS I LIKED], and I did not like [BOOKS I DISLIKED]. Pick [NUMBER OF BOOKS] books for [READER] and put them in an order that builds from accessible to deeper. For each: title, author, year, page count, difficulty (easy, medium, hard), 2 sentences on why it is on the list, and what to read it alongside. Mix older classics and recent books, and include at least 2 by authors from outside [MY COUNTRY OR REGION]. Check that each book exists and give a link to its publisher or library page. Add a schedule at [PAGES PER WEEK] pages a week. Send it as a PDF by email.
What to change
- [SUBJECT OR GENRE]: E.g. "behavioural economics", "literary science fiction", "the history of the Roman Empire".
- [GOAL]: E.g. "understand investing", "prepare for a philosophy course", "get back into reading".
- [BOOKS I LIKED]: 2 to 4 titles. They tell your agent your taste better than any description.
- [BOOKS I DISLIKED]: Optional but useful. Or write "nothing".
- [NUMBER OF BOOKS]: E.g. "8".
- [READER]: E.g. "me, an adult", "my 12-year-old who loves fantasy", "a class of Year 10 students".
- [MY COUNTRY OR REGION]: E.g. "the US" or "Europe".
- [PAGES PER WEEK]: E.g. "100".
Example result
- Reading list: understanding how money and markets work
- Goal: understand investing and the economy · liked: a popular-psychology book and a narrative history · 100 pages a week
- How this list works
- • Starts with stories and big ideas, moves to how markets behave, ends with practical investing
- • Each book: difficulty, length, why it is here, and what to pair it with
- 1. The Ascent of Money, Niall Ferguson, 2008 (easy, about 450 pages)
- • Why: shows where money, banks and bonds came from through stories, so later books make sense.
- • Pair with: a short online explainer on how central banks set interest rates.
- 2. Naked Economics, Charles Wheelan, 2002 (easy, about 350 pages)
- • Why: teaches supply, demand and trade-offs in plain language.
- 3. Thinking, Fast and Slow, Daniel Kahneman, 2011 (medium, about 500 pages)
- • Why: builds on the psychology book you liked; explains why investors act irrationally.
- 4. A Short History of Financial Euphoria, John Kenneth Galbraith, 1990 (medium, about 110 pages)
- • Why: short and sharp; shows the same patterns repeating in every bubble.
- 5. The Little Book of Common Sense Investing, John C. Bogle, 2007 (easy, about 300 pages)
- • Why: the practical core of the list. Read it slowly and take notes.
- 6. Capital, John Lanchester, 2012, a novel (easy, about 580 pages)
- • Why: a break from non-fiction, set on one London street in the run-up to the 2008 crash.
- 7. Poor Economics, Abhijit V. Banerjee and Esther Duflo, 2011 (medium, about 300 pages)
- • Why: by a Nobel-winning pair, one born in India; shows how money decisions look for the world's poorest.
- 8. The Intelligent Investor, Benjamin Graham, 1949, revised editions (hard, about 600 pages)
- • Why: the deepest book here; much easier after books 1 to 5. A modern edition with commentary helps.
- In your PDF
- • A publisher or library link for every book; page counts vary by edition
- Schedule (100 pages a week)
- • Weeks 1 to 5: book 1 · weeks 6 to 9: book 2 · weeks 10 to 14: book 3
- • Weeks 15 to 18: books 4 and 5 · weeks 19 to 24: books 6 and 7 · weeks 25 to 30: book 8
How to do it with todo.is
- Fill in the subject or genre, your goal, and a few books you liked and did not like.
- Send the to-do to your agent from the todo.is app or on WhatsApp.
- You get a PDF with the ordered list, reasons, lengths and a reading schedule.
- When you finish a book, tell your agent what you thought. It updates the rest of the list to match.
Tips for a better result
- Name books you liked and disliked. It says more about your taste than "something interesting".
- Put an easy book after a hard one. Alternating keeps you reading.
- Ask for library links. Many books are on free library apps where your card works.
- Make it recurring: "every month, suggest 2 new books based on what I finished".
reading list generator: FAQ
- Are the books real? Your agent checks each title and author online and gives a link to the publisher or library page. Still glance at the link before you buy or borrow.
- Can it make a reading list for a child or a class? Yes. Give the age or grade, reading level and interests, and ask for age-appropriate books. Parents and teachers should still preview them.
- How many books should a reading list have? For a goal like learning a subject, 6 to 10 well-ordered books is plenty. Longer lists tend to stay unread.
- Can it include audiobooks? Yes. Ask it to mark which books have an audiobook edition, if you listen on the commute.
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