Need a Christmas Idea? Here are 18 From Warren Buffett

Looking for a last-minute Christmas gift? Over the last 10 years, Warren Buffett has been happy to recommend 18 of his favorite books.

Source: The Motley Fool.

The wealth of wisdom Every year since Buffett took the reins of Berkshire Hathaway in 1964 he has written a letter to shareholders providing perspective on how the year progressed for Berkshire and its various businesses.

But the Oracle of Omaha also has not been afraid to talk a wide range of other topics. He has given perspective on taxes and government policies, the general state of the economy, his own upbringing and his family, and countless other subjects.

Buffett is also a fan of providing book recommendations. Why should we pay close attention to what Buffett is reading? It's what has made him the thinker he is today. Consider that he once said:

The Omaha World-Herald even reported earlier this year that Buffett once recommended reading 500 pages per day to a student in an investing class at Columbia University who "asked what he could do now to prepare for an investing career."

Although we might not be able to read that much, thankfully Buffett hasn't been shy about providing book recommendations for anyone over the years.

The books worth buyingAny discussion of books and Buffett has to begin with the three books that make up his "all-time-best list for the serious investor," which he revealed in his 2012 letter to shareholders:

1. The Intelligent Investor -- Benjamin Graham

2. Security Analysis (1940 Edition)-- Benjamin Graham

3. Common Stocks and Uncommon Profits-- Philip Fisher

But those are by no means his only suggestions, so let's look at other recommendations from his letters to Berkshire shareholders over the past decade.

2004 In 2004, Buffett began highlighting books offered by The Bookworm,a local bookstore in Omaha that sold a selection of books approved by Buffett at the Berkshire Hathaway annual meetings. In that year's letter he said:

2005

2006

2007Buffett offered no new recommendations that year, but again highlighted the value of the book on his longtime lieutenant, Charlie Munger:

2008 Buffett did not give book recommendations in 2008, but considering he opened the annual letter by saying, "Our decrease in net worth during 2008 was $11.5 billion," he likely wasn't in the best of moods.

2009 But in 2009, when Berkshire's net worth climbed by $21.8 billion, Buffett was back to his recommending ways:

2010 The selection of books doubled that year, but Buffett highlighted one in particular:

2011 The wide selection didn't last long, as the book and DVD count dropped to 35 the next year. However, Buffett was back to providing his favorites:

2012

2013 In the most recent letter to shareholders, Buffett said:

So if your reading list or Christmas list wasn't long enough already, here are 18 recommendations from Buffett to get you through the year.

The article Need a Christmas Idea? Here are 18 From Warren Buffett originally appeared on Fool.com.

Patrick Morris owns shares of Berkshire Hathaway. The Motley Fool recommends Berkshire Hathaway. The Motley Fool owns shares of Berkshire Hathaway. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.