Gazettabyte is asking industry figures to pick their reads and listens of 2025. In Part 1, Neil McRae, Rebecca K. Schaevitz, Chris Cole, and Scott Wilkinson share their choices.
Neil McRae, Chief Network Strategist at Juniper Networks.
The Last Man on the Moon: Astronaut Eugene Cernan and America’s Race in Space tells the extraordinary story of Gene Cernan—Commander of Apollo XVII and the last human to walk on the Moon. I’ve read this book more times than I can remember, and each time it delivers such a surge of inspirational energy that you could charge your iPhone with it.
Having been fortunate enough to meet Gene many times, I can say without hesitation that he was one of the most charismatic, brilliant, and genuinely inspiring people I’ve ever known. He was a role model in every regard—not only as a leader, but as someone who constantly pushed boundaries and challenged assumptions. His guiding philosophy echoes throughout the book: “How do you know how good you are unless you try?”
The memoir traces Cernan’s journey from his early life to his unexpected place among the Gemini and Apollo astronauts, joining the program surprisingly late yet quickly becoming indispensable. What stands out is his unwavering commitment to experimentation, to stretching human potential, and to paying attention to the details that matter—not just as an astronaut, but as a husband, father, leader, and, importantly, follower. (Not nearly enough is written about followership, in my view.)
Though the book isn’t meant to be a technical manual of the space program, it manages to weave in just the right amount of engineering, mission training, and operational insight to satisfy both casual readers and space enthusiasts.
Reader beware: this book may make you cry with joy. That’s why I keep returning to it. Ultimately, *The Last Man on the Moon* is far more than an astronaut’s memoir—it’s a testament to human ambition, teamwork, and the extraordinary risks behind the Apollo program. I’ve read many biographies and accounts of the era, but Cernan’s stands among the most compelling personal narratives of the space age.
Whether you’re fascinated by space exploration or drawn to stories of perseverance, adventure, and history in motion, this memoir offers a powerful and unforgettable journey—and maybe even a new set of coordinates if we ever build that time machine.
Rebecca K. Schaevitz, Co-Founder & Chief Product Officer, Mixx Technologies
I read quite a bit and could share a stack of books. But instead, I want to highlight something different: the podcast Acquired, hosted by Ben Gilbert and David Rosenthal. They dive deep into the stories behind the world’s most influential companies—Nvidia, TSMC, Trader Joe’s, Costco, the Indian Premier League, Nintendo, and their latest, a three-part saga on Google.
What makes the show special is the way Ben and David bring these stories to life. They make you fall even deeper in love with companies you already admire (looking at you, Trader Joe’s and Costco) while revealing the unexpected decisions and creative pivots that shaped their success.
And even though the episodes run long (4+ hours!), I listen in 20-minute segments on my commute—tiny windows of inspiration between all the roles I juggle as a co-founder and parent.
Reflecting on how others built enduring businesses is meaningful as we grow Mixx from the ground up. And who knows—maybe one day we’ll get the Acquired treatment ourselves. A co-founder can dream.
Chris Cole, Optical Communications Advisor
Earlier this year, I read Supreme Commander: The War Years of Dwight D. Eisenhower by Stephen E. Ambrose, who wrote the definitive biography of Eisenhower (Soldier and President), which I had read previously.
This is the ultimate management challenge of all times in terms of scope, difficulty, and unpredictability. Eisenhower had to manage disparate teams over large geographic locations, with multiple bosses and subordinates holding a full spectrum of views, in the face of a formidable opponent.
We tend to see how history happened as inevitable, but individuals alter the course in dramatic ways. A lesser commander would have prolonged the conflict for many more years. War brings good and bad management into stark relief because the consequences are so severe. The stakes we deal with are much less; however, the lessons of leadership are universal.
Scott Wilkinson, Lead Analyst, Networking Components, CignalAI
By the end of 2025, my reading has been consumed by Walter Isaacson’s masterful – and very long – biography of Leonardo Da Vinci. But since I haven’t finished that one yet, it’s not a valid choice. Maybe I’ll have it completed in time for the 2026 list.
Other books that were interesting enough to talk about this year included “Killers of the Flower Moon by David Grann, which is required reading for anyone who saw the movie, Wasteland: The Secret World of Waste and the Urgent Search for a Cleaner Future by Oliver Franklin-Wallis which will make you think more carefully about everything you throw away, and Seveneves by Neal Stephenson that Andrew Schmitt convinced me to read and I thoroughly enjoyed.
But the one book that I bothered people with the most at parties was “Then Everything Changed: Stunning Alternate Histories of American Politics: JFK, RFK, Carter, Ford, Reagan” by Jeff Greenfield.
Greenfield’s fascinating book offers three alternative US histories based on events starting in the 1960s, and it differs from other, lesser alternative histories in the expertise of its author. Jeff Greenfield has been a political reporter and author for ages and knows the personalities and temperaments of all of the affected parties. What results are detailed, well-considered, and very thorough alternatives.
The scenarios covered include what if J F Kennedy had been assassinated between his electoral win and his inauguration – something that came very close to happening. If his wife hadn’t come to the door to wish him goodbye on that morning in December 1960, Lyndon B Johnson would have been the president during the early days of the civil rights movement and, critically, the Cuban Missile Crisis. JFK and Lyndon B Johnson were very different men, with distinct personalities and backgrounds. Sometimes history chooses wisely, and sometimes not so much.
Other scenarios include what if Robert F Kennedy had turned in a different direction and avoided his assassin in 1968, and what if Gerald Ford hadn’t flubbed his debate appearance against Jimmy Carter in 1976. Each is investigated in historical narrative form to demonstrate how what we assume was inevitable in our history is often just the luck of the draw.
Every page of the book offers historical insights into names that most Americans know, in ways they may never have considered. Appearances from John McCain, Gary Hart, and others make the stories seem very real. And the threads the author follows from event to event are logical, with some going quite well and others not at all. History is a series of small events with enormous consequences.
Apologies to those whom I bothered with alternative history stories this year. I promise that, for the next few months, I will limit myself to telling interesting stories about Leonardo Da Vinci.