14 books to gift this Sant Jordi

In this book - chosen as the best book of the year by the Financial Times and The Economist, in addition to numerous awards - the British neurosurgeon Henry Marsh exposes to the eyes of the world the essence of one of the most difficult, delicate and fascinating medical specialties that exist. “A book that fascinated me and that I have given as a gift on several occasions. It explains in the first person (with a captivating mix of honesty, rawness, sensitivity, humanity, passion and disappointment) the difficulties that come with being a doctor and saving lives, but also having to face the weight of doubts, decisions and mistakes.” highlights the lawyer Francesc Arànega.

Un caballero en Moscú has won numerous awards, including Book of the Year according to The Times and The Sunday Times, in addition to being on the main bestseller lists in the United States for nearly fifty weeks and selling over a million copies. Written with elegance and a sense of humor, this novel tells us about our inexhaustible capacity to cope with the misfortunes of existence. “A novel to have a good time, written with a sense of humor that explains how to live to the fullest regardless of the circumstances. A song to life, optimism and friendship with the background of the history of 20th-century Russia” explains oncologist Enriqueta Felip.

And if you like the book, from Biocat we also recommend that you take a look at the transfer to the screens of the book, available on Amazon Prime with the same title, which is also highly recommended.

Acantilado presents us with a careful edition in two volumes of a selection of interviews published in The Paris Review, the legendary literary magazine. “An exquisite conversation with those authors who have marked the history of literature of our time: EM Forster, Hemingway, Kerouac, Nabokov, Joyce Carol Oates, Sontag, Wolfe, Dorothy Parker... I like that the interview is claimed as its own literary genre. Through these dialogues, the self-portrait of the artist emerges and not only of his workshop, but also of the master with his hands in the dough, his stained clothes, and allows us to peek at his library, his drafts, his ashtrays,... And it is also an instruction manual for the craft of writing and the great mystery of the origin of inspiration. To savor each conversation individually.” highlights investor Emma Gasol.

An album of memories, ideas and thoughts, in which the author expresses his vision of the world, through texts of very different formats. “In this novel, Antoni Puigverd achieves a fantastic combination of styles that intertwine naturally on the pages. It is an intimate and calm story, in which the author transmits his vision of the world. In the turbulent and accelerated times we live in, the serene and profound look at life that it offers is more necessary than ever. Novels like this invite you to reflect, or perhaps remind you, of the importance of values ​​and the foundations of human relationships” highlights President Illa.

Entre el paradís i l'apocalipsi (2025) allows us to discover everything there is to know about artificial intelligence: from the creation of the first computers to the economic and social consequences that this entails. Professor Mas-Colell tells us “I just read it in one long run. It is almost a thousand pages but it is very enjoyable and entertaining. What the Anglo-Saxons call “a good read”, which you can also do in the original in Catalan. The history of supercomputing and artificial intelligence to this day, explained with natural intelligence, good prose, grace and, as the title indicates, with an optimistic view of the possibilities but realistic with respect to the challenges and dangers that accompany it.”

Sheryl Sandberg examines the reasons why women’s advancement into leadership positions is stalled, explains the root causes, and offers practical, actionable solutions to help women reach their full potential. Marta Parente highlights, “Lean In offers practical insights into confidence, career growth, and finding balance. Her advice transcends gender—it’s useful for anyone looking to advance their career. Personally, I often recall her main call to action, which is to “step up” in everything you do: take initiative, embrace challenges, and fully engage in both your professional and personal lives.”

This classic of modern sociology invites us to look at everyday reality with different eyes, revealing the paradox of a society that simultaneously defines us and is defined by us. Jordi Piera confesses that "what strikes me most about this book is its humanistic dimension and the final metaphor that Berger uses: Unlike puppets, we have the possibility of stopping dancing, of stopping, of looking up and of becoming aware of the mechanisms that make us move. The more we consider things, the more critical thinking we have, the looser the threads that tie us to the puppeteer will be and the freer we will be. I find it especially relevant, and more so in current times, since it helps us understand how social factors condition our lives and offers us a more democratic perspective and free from prejudices to understand the world that surrounds us with a much deeper look."

Awarded the Royal Society Prize for the best science book of the year, The Invisible Woman is a unique and rigorous essay that exposes, through statistics and personal stories collected from around the world, how the data that make up society are marked by a male bias. “Everyday objects are not designed for the dimensions of the female body, general policies are decided based on the needs assumed unilaterally by men and medicines can have different efficacy in men and women. It is a work that identifies niches of opportunity for those who want to innovate by contributing to equity for the other 50% of the world's population, which is female”, underlines Yolanda Puiggrós.

Based on his extensive experience with young people and their families, psychiatrist Enric Armengou explores the causes of adolescent suicide and offers advice on how to identify warning signs and support young people in crisis.

Dr. Raventós confesses: “Enric is a good friend, with whom we share a Board of Trustees at the Ajut i Esperança Foundation, and with whom I have shared for years a professional career and concern for suicide, a topic that, unfortunately, we have had too many close encounters with. With a rigorous and at the same time approachable style, Enric reflects on suicide in adolescence and youth, offering practical tools to understand it, detect it, prevent it and support those who may be thinking about it. With the help of testimonies and real stories, he shares his perspective and learning around a delicate but essential topic”.

10th edition of The New York Times bestseller that invites you to discover what is truly essential and how to get the best results. According to McKeown, the disciplined search for what is essential is not about doing more in less time. It is about investing your time and energy as intelligently as possible to perform at your best by doing only what is essential. In other words, Essentialism is an entrepreneurial, bold and successful attitude. “This book was recommended to me by the Google Startups senior leadership team and it has definitely helped me improve by focusing on what is right, how and better measuring the times for each action” explains entrepreneur Carmen Rios.

This story, which has become a classic of modern European literature, is the story of the summer in which mother and son finally lay down their arms, spurred on by the arrival of the inevitable and the need to reconcile. It is the recommended reading by entrepreneur Marina Rigau, who describes it as follows: “A cruel but beautiful story. A story about the transformation of the mother-son relationship that took place in the summer. A roller coaster of emotions that navigates through mental illness, motherhood, reconciliation, love, cancer and death”.

In this masterpiece of Stoic thought, Epictetus invites us to focus on trying to control only what depends on us and to accept everything that comes from outside. “This manual reminds us that, in uncertain times, the key is to cultivate self-discipline, resilience and commitment to day-to-day actions. And above all, it inspires us to do small great things that, added up, can become truly extraordinary actions”, emphasizes Dr. Santacreu.

In Més i més forts, Harvard professor Arthur C. Brooks and Oprah Winfrey invite you to embark on a journey toward greater happiness, no matter how difficult your circumstances.

In the words of Raquel Tapia: "There are times when you read a book and you immediately would love to meet the author. I, in my case, have had the immense fortune of first meeting the author and then running to buy the book. It was in the fall of 2024 when I was fortunate enough to be invited to a lunch at IE with Professor Arthur Brooks, an expert in leadership and happiness. According to Brooks, complete happiness does not exist, we can all work to be happier every day, regardless of our circumstances. The four factors that most influence our happiness are: family, in the broadest sense; true friendship, not just through networks; work with a sense of service, achieving something every day, regardless of what you do and, finally, faith or deep belief in something higher. Each of us decides every day how we respond to our emotions. Choosing the attitude of each day or in the face of any circumstance is our choice. For my part, after reading this book, I have decided to work on my happiness every day and in a more conscious way".

What defines who we are? Until now, the biological answer has been our genes. Biologist Alfonso Martinez Arias departs from popular tradition to make a bold argument: what defines us is our cells. A sweeping review of both the present and the history of life, The Master Builder proposes a new paradigm for understanding biology, transforming our focus on where we come from, what shapes us, and where we are going - as individuals, as a species, and as the community of life itself.

“An interestingly provocative book in which the author reviews the history of biology to place the cell as the center of the development of life and the genome as the instrument, reversing and - in a sense contradicting - the current trend in which genes and the genome seem to be the main actors”, explains scientist Alfonso Valencia.