strategy + business‘s “best of” list is always a special treat—in large part because it’s never just a list, but a series of essays. The magazine gathers together a different team of experts each year, and each takes the task of writing on their chosen category and the books in it. I’ve listed their picks below, linking to the essays at the head of each category.

On the Economy, The Fog of Panic by David Warsh

• Slapped by the Invisible Hand: The Panic of 2007 by Gary B. Gorton, Oxford University Press
• On the Brink: Inside the Race to Stop the Collapse of the Global Financial System by Henry M. Paulson Jr., Business Plus
• The Greatest Trade Ever: The Behind-the-Scenes Story of How John Paulson Defied Wall Street and Made Financial History by Gregory Zuckerman, Broadway Books
• More Money than God: Hedge Funds and the Making of a New Elite by Sebastian Mallaby, The Penguin Press
• Fault Lines: How Hidden Fractures Still Threaten the World Economy by Raghuram G. Rajan, Princeton University Press
• 13 Bankers: The Wall Street Takeover and the Next Financial Meltdown by Simon Johnson & James Kwak, Pantheon Books

On Leadership, Highlights in a Low Year by Walter Kiechel III

• Reflections on Leadership and Career Development: On the Couch with Manfred Kets de Vries by Manfred F.R. Kets de Vries, Jossey-Bass
• Open Leadership: How Social Technology Can Transform the Way You Lead by Charlene Li, Jossey-Bass
• Learning from Catastrophes: Strategies for Reaction and Response by Howard Kunreuther & Michael Useem, eds., Wharton School Publishing
• Good Boss, Bad Boss: How to Be the Best… and Learn from the Worst by Robert I. Sutton, Business Plus

On Innovation, Innovation as a Social Act by Krisztina “Z” Holly

• Where Good Ideas Come From: The Natural History of Innovation by Steven Johnson, Riverhead
• The Power of Pull: How Small Moves, Smartly Made, Can Set Big Things in Motion by John Hagel III, John Seely Brown, & Lang Davison, Basic Books
• Cognitive Surplus: Creativity and Generosity in a Connected Age by Clay Shirky, The Penguin Press

On China, Probing China’s Infrastructure by Sheridan Prasso

• China 2.0: The Transformation of an Emerging Superpower… and the New Opportunities by Marina Yue Zhang with Bruce W. Stening, John Wiley & Sons
• Country Driving: A Journey through China from Farm to Factory by Peter Hessler, Harper
• The River Runs Black: The Environmental Challenge to China’s Future by Elizabeth C. Economy, Cornell University Press (2nd edition)
• The China Strategy: Harnessing the Power of the World’s Fastest-Growing Economy by Edward Tse, Basic Books

On Human Capital, Talent Redefined by Sally Helgesen

• Clever: Leading Your Smartest, Most Creative People by Rob Goffee & Gareth Jones, Harvard Business Press
• Chasing Stars: The Myth of Talent and the Portability of Performance by Boris Groysberg, Princeton University Press
• Profit at the Bottom of the Ladder: Creating Value by Investing in Your Workforce by Jody Heymann with Magda Barrera, Harvard Business Press

On the Human Mind, You Are What You Think by Judith E. Glaser

• Denial: Why Business Leaders Fail to Look Facts in the Face — and What to Do about It by Richard S. Tedlow, Portfolio
• Think Twice: Harnessing the Power of Counterintuition by Michael J. Mauboussin, Harvard Business Press
• Switch: How to Change Things When Change Is Hard by Chip Heath and Dan Heath, Broadway
• Clutch: Why Some People Excel Under Pressure and Others Don’t by Paul Sullivan, Portfolio
• Drive: The Surprising Truth about What Motivates Us by Daniel H. Pink, Riverhead

On Management, The Chorus Takes a Bow by David K. Hurst

• Reinventing Management: Smarter Choices for Getting Work Done by Julian Birkinshaw, Jossey-Bass
• Leading Outside the Lines: How to Mobilize the (In)Formal Organization, Energize Your Team, and Get Better Results by Jon R. Katzenbach and Zia Khan, Jossey-Bass
• The Power of Positive Deviance: How Unlikely Innovators Solve the World’s Toughest Problems by Richard T. Pascale, Jerry Sternin, & Monique Sternin, Harvard Business Press
• Rethinking the MBA: Business Education at a Crossroads by Srikant M. Datar, David A. Garvin, & Patrick G. Cullen, Harvard Business Press

On Biography & History, True Tales of Fortune by James O’Toole

• The Publisher: Henry Luce and His American Century by Alan Brinkley, Knopf
• Still Surprised: A Memoir of a Life in Leadership by Warren Bennis, Jossey-Bass
• Last Call: The Rise and Fall of Prohibition by Daniel Okrent, Scribner
• For All the Tea in China: How England Stole the World’s Favorite Drink and Changed History by Sarah Rose, Viking

The covers below represent s + b‘s Top Shelf—the best books of each category.

As Theodore Kinni writes in his introduction to the essays:

Two years after the financial collapse, the idea of hunkering down and waiting for a return to business as usual—as people did in previous recessions—seems a less and less viable strategy. But what should you do instead?

In this edition of our annual review of the year’s best business books, you will find a reading list that offers intriguing and compelling answers to this question.

We’ve been following this list since 2003, and you can peruse past year’s lists with the links below.