SmartPros asked readers to share their favorite business books. We also asked experts in the field, many of whom are writers themselves, to share their favorites. The only criteria was that the book be read this year (not necessarily published in 2005).

There are literally tons of new business books published each year, and 2005 was no exception. At the time of this writing, The New York Times top 10 nonfiction bestseller list includes The World Is Flat (Farrar, Straus & Giroux) and Freakonomics (Morrow). Meanwhile, Amazon.com reports the same two books at the top of its Business & Investing bestseller list, and also includes Blink (Little, Brown),  Empire of Debt (Wiley), Winning (Collins), and The FairTax Book (Regan Books).

Ron Baker, author of The Firm of the Future (Wiley, 2003) and the forthcoming Pricing on Purpose: Creating and Capturing Value (Wiley, Feb. 2006), recommends this year's After Enron: Lessons for Public Policy (Rowman & Littlefield Publishers), edited by William A. Niskanen. "This book is the only one I've read that offers meaningful ideas on accounting and auditing reforms, such as the innovative idea of having the stock exchanges select which accounting standards its companies should be required to follow," says Baker. "The book argues not only for PCAOB's elimination, but also repealing the incredibly wasteful Sarbanes-Oxley Act. This book is very deep, grounded in solid economic theory, and unfortunately -- but not surprising -- I've never seen anyone in the mainstream accounting press mention any of the ideas it contains."

Jim Rogers, a planning analyst at Questar Gas Company, recommends Winning by Jack Welch. "It gives CEO and Board perspectives while offering advice to trench workers and teaches how to empower yourself and change your situation or have the guts to find a suitable employer/profession."

And Bill Silverberg, CFO, The Duha Group, enjoys "everything" about the hugely popular book, The World Is Flat by Thomas L. Friedman, which traverses politics and economics.

Whether the hot-off-the-press books are worth your valuable time, of course, is subjective. As Bruce Marcus, author of Client at the Core: Marketing and Managing Today's Professional Services Firm (Preservation Press, 2004) and Competing for Capital (Wiley, 2005), points out, "There are some business books I cherish, but not that many. Too few books are original and make substantial contributions to the literature." Marcus endorses The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference (Back Bay Books, 2002) -- just released in paperback and currently on Amazon's bestseller list -- and the marketing guide Positioning (2000).

In fact, several of you cited pre-2005 books as your favorites for the year.

Jack Ciesielski, author of the popular blog The Analyst's Accounting Observer, enjoyed The Business of America (Walker & Company, 2001) by John Steele Gordon for its "quick, short histories of dramatic moments in American businesses" and the author's "engaging story-telling style."

August J. Aquila, PhD,  director of consulting firm The Growth Partnership Inc. and co-author of Client at the Core,  recommends The FIVE Dysfunctions of a TEAM by Patrick Lencioni (Jossey-Bass, 2002). "Lencioni takes the reader through the five dysfunctions -- lack of trust, fear of conflict, lack of commitment, avoidance of accountability and inattention to results --  in an easy-to-read, yet insightful manner," says Aquila. "Unlike many business books, this one provides a model and process of how to actually change the dynamics of a team."

Gary Cokins, an expert in advanced cost management and performance management systems at The SAS Institute Inc., also selects The FIVE Dysfunctions of a TEAM as his favorite book read this year. Cokins says, "I sense the slow adoption rate of apparently good business improvement initiatives, such as the balanced scorecard, is caused by the executive team's lack of vision and inspiration to employees. Most organizations are over-managed but under-led, and I believe these factors contribute to this problem."

Another popular choice among SmartPros readers is Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap ... and Others Don't (Collins, 2001), which can be paired with the accompanying monograph just published in November, Good to Great and the Social Sectors. Says one reader: "It was developed from statistical data and it ties in nicely with [Stephen] Covey's Character Ethic philosophy. In a time of get-rich-quick companies in the spotlight, it reinforces that slow and steady wins the race."

Krista Black, CFO, Time Wealthy Building Systems, enjoyed The Millionaire Women Next Door (Andrews McMeel Publishing, 2004) for its extensive research on what the rich are really doing and how they make their money."

The Brand You 50: Or Fifty Ways to Transform Yourself from an 'Employee' into a Brand That Shouts Distinction, Commitment, and Passion! (Knopf, 1999) is a favorite of Charles Esene, an accountant for Procter & Gamble. It links "different work areas/types and trend analysis to predict the future of work," said Esene. "Typical Peters-speak ... Weird and blunt."

Finally, sometimes we find a good business lesson in surprising places. Stephen Parezo, small business writer and editor at Fiducial.com, cites John Wayne, American (Bison Books, 1998) as his favorite book this year. "Over the years I’ve found that some of the best business lessons aren't always found in a book written by a business expert," explains Parezo, who gleaned from this book "how the motion picture industry evolved from neighborhood movie houses to become a powerful and influential segment in American society."

You can get a full list of all the articles mentioned in this article below. Here's to good reading in 2006!

Notes from the editor: SmartPros partners with two outstanding organizations to deliver you cutting-edge content:

• SmartPros Book Digests, in partnership with Business Book Review LLC, are summaries of the most popular business books. Having read many of the 4500-word digests myself, I have become a big fan of this product. A digest is not meant to replace the book altogether; rather, it serves as a guide to help you decide what parts of the book are most important to you. It includes a summary and reading suggestions. I personally found useful the digest for The World Is Flat (which is the best book that I read this year). Take a peek at how the digests feel via our free 300-word abstracts on the Book Digests column page.
  
  
• SmartPros Book Corner, in collaboration with John Wiley & Sons, gives SmartPros readers an exclusive, inside look at upcoming and current accounting, finance and business titles. We interview authors and provide excerpts of great books. In addition, you are eligible to receive 20% off most titles. Check out the Top 10 Bestselling Wiley Titles sold by SmartPros.

-- Niquette M. Kelcher, Editor, SmartPros

The List (printable version) The World Is Flat by Thomas L. Friedman (Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 2005) Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything by Steven D. Levitt, Stephen J. Dubner (Morrow, 2005) Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking by Malcolm Gladwell (Little, Brown, 2005) Empire of Debt by William Bonner, Addison Wiggin (Wiley, 2005) Winning by Jack Welch (Collins, 2005) The FairTax Book by Neal Boortz, John Linder (Regan Books, 2005) The Firm of the Future: A Guide for Accountants, Lawyers, and Other Professional Services by Paul Dunn, Ronald J. Baker (Wiley, 2003) Pricing on Purpose: Creating and Capturing Value by Ronald J. Baker (Wiley, 2006) After Enron: Lessons For Public Policy by William A. Niskanen  (Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2005) Client at the Core: Marketing and Managing Today's Professional Services Firm by Bruce Marcus and August Aquila (Preservation Press, 2004) Competing for Capital by Bruce Marcus (Wiley, 2005) The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference by Malcolm Gladwell (Back Bay Books, 2002) Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap ... and Others Don't by Jim Collins (Collins, 2001) The Business of America: Tales from the Marketplace American Enterprise from the Settling of New England to the Break up of AT&T by John Steele Gordon (Walker & Company, 2001) Millionaire Women Next Door: The Many Journeys of Successful American Businesswomen by Thomas J. Stanley (Andrews McMeel Publishing, 2004) The FIVE Dysfunctions of a TEAM by Patrick Lencioni (Jossey-Bass, 2002) John Wayne, American by Randy Roberts, James S. Olson (Bison Books, 1998) This list is comprised of (1) bestselling titles of 2005 as reported by The New York Times and Amazon.com (2) books recommended by SmartPros readers, and (3) books written by those who particpated in the Best Business Books survey conducted Dec. 12-17.