For Brandon in Albany, the books I would recommend to an MBA student if he could read only five:

1. The Definitive Drucker. The founding father of modern business management.

2. The Essays of Warren Buffett. To learn how to think independently about business and Wall Street.

3. Competitive Strategy. The book that launched a thousand consultancies. I actually prefer Competition Demystified, but to be fluent in strategy you’ve gotta know Porter’s classic.

4. The E-Myth Revisited. How to optimize the collection of processes that is a business.

5. The Marketing Gurus. Most business schools don’t teach sales, and marketing courses often assume a Fortune 500 sized budget. You may have to teach yourself about both. This book summarizes the classics from Jack Trout to Seth Godin and is a great place to start.

Any other suggestions?