Billionaire hedge fund magnate Ray Dalio has been fascinated with finance since he was 12, when he bought his first stock.

He graduated from Harvard Business School and launched Bridgewater Associates from his two-bedroom New York apartment, a hedge fund that grew to be the world's largest, managing about $160 billion.

But in a recent "Ask Me Anything" session on Reddit, when asked, "What book or books have had the biggest impact on your life and world view and why?" none of his suggestions had anything to do with business.

Instead, Dalio responded with three books which emphasize broad thinking, history and evolution. They're books Dalio recommends over and over again.