Why A Book On Sleep Has Caught Shikha Sharma’s Attention

Lessons for every business from this silicon valley startup that went belly-up. A look at science and research behind sleep. A “charming” story on Japanese traditions. These are some of the themes that have stayed with Shikha Sharma.

“Amish Tripathi is my favourite Indian author,” the former Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Axis Bank Ltd. told BloombergQuint, while sharing a list of books that she has enjoyed reading the most over the years.

Here are some of Sharma’s favourite books...

Bad Blood: Secrets And Lies In A Silicon Valley Startup, By John Carreyrou

“Theranos is a fascinating read. I heard the owner speak at a conference. The business sounded very promising,” Sharma said. “It was fascinating to see everything that went wrong.”

This just underlines that in any business first you must sort out the back-end, and then sort out the front-end, she said.

Convenience Store Woman, By Sayaka Murata

This is a very uplifting story about Japanese traditions and culture. It talks of the slow pace of change. It’s a short “charming” story.

Rise And Kill First, By Ronen Bergman

This talks of the history of targeted assassinations by Israel’s intelligence services. “Somebody recommended this book to me. A fascinating read,” Sharma said.

Why We Sleep, By Matthew Walker

“I loved this book. It talks about the science and research behind sleep patterns,” Sharma said. “It’s a very good read that explains the sleeping patterns and the brain while we are sleeping.”

The Shiva Trilogy; Scion of Ikshvaku, & Sita – Warrior of Mithila, By Amish Tripathi

“Amish Tripathi is my favourite Indian author,” Sharma said. “I love his research-based approach and engaging style of story-telling.”