Schultz has written four books, three of which incorporate business memoir-style narratives.

According to the Free Library of Philadelphia, his books are known to be a blend of "part memoir and part manifesto of corporate social responsibility."
At the start of 2019, Schultz released an online class that covered the business leadership topics discussed in his books on the MasterClass platform.
Organizational consultant Warren Bennis has influenced Schultz's writing.

His first book, Pour Your Heart Into It: How Starbucks Built a Company One Cup at a Time was written in 1997 with Dori Jones Yang.
It was listed on The New York Times Best Seller list
His second book Onward: How Starbucks Fought for Its Life Without Losing Its Soul, co-written with Joanne Gordon, was published in 2011.
Jeff Bailey, of the Los Angeles Times, called the book "self-flattering" and criticized its "mostly perfunctory account of Starbucks' actual problems".
Publishers Weekly called the book "a personal, suspenseful, and surprisingly open account" of the rise of Starbucks.
Kirkus Reviews praised the book's "immense detail" but critiqued Schultz's coverage of "outside criticisms of his performance".
The Seattle Times was critical, saying the book could only "appeal to business types but probably not to the average latte drinker".
Fast Company placed Onward within the top five books that "[predicted] the future of workplace leadership" in 2014.
All sale proceeds from the book were donated to the Starbucks Foundation, the firm's main charity.

His third book For Love of Country: What Our Veterans Can Teach Us About Citizenship, Heroism, and Sacrifice, co-written with Rajiv Chandrasekaran, was published in 2014.
The New York Times Book Review calling it "well-written" and "formidable."
It was later added to the Times' 2014 Winter Reading List.
In writing a review for The Wall Street Journal U.S. Army major general Robert H. Scales stated "after reading this moving book I’ll not likely pass a Starbucks again without stopping for a patriotic cup."
The Washington Post published a similarly positive review.

In 2019, he published his fourth book, From the Ground Up: A Journey to Reimagine the Promise of America.
The book was widely seen as a candidate memoir as it was published right before the 2020 United States presidential election.
His book received 1.9/5 stars on Amazon, after some Democratic voters gave negative reviews, due his possible candidacy splitting the Democratic vote.
Rolling Stone called the book "stunningly boring" and an "autobiography of a pretentious oligarch."
A book promotion stop at Harvard University led to a small student protest.
From the Ground Up was featured on The Wall Street Journal's bestseller list in February, and was listed as a New York Times bestseller for 2019.
Reuters rated the book highly, yet called it "caffeine free" for its inability to "harness his business success" in a potential White House run.
Schultz has written four books, three of which incorporate business memoir-style narratives.
According to the Free Library of Philadelphia, his books are known to be a blend of "part memoir and part manifesto of corporate social responsibility." At the start of 2019, Schultz released an online class that covered the business leadership topics discussed in his books on the MasterClass platform. Organizational consultant Warren Bennis has influenced Schultz's writing.
His first book, Pour Your Heart Into It: How Starbucks Built a Company One Cup at a Time was written in 1997 with Dori Jones Yang. It was listed on The New York Times Best Seller list
His second book Onward: How Starbucks Fought for Its Life Without Losing Its Soul, co-written with Joanne Gordon, was published in 2011. Jeff Bailey, of the Los Angeles Times, called the book "self-flattering" and criticized its "mostly perfunctory account of Starbucks' actual problems". Publishers Weekly called the book "a personal, suspenseful, and surprisingly open account" of the rise of Starbucks. Kirkus Reviews praised the book's "immense detail" but critiqued Schultz's coverage of "outside criticisms of his performance". The Seattle Times was critical, saying the book could only "appeal to business types but probably not to the average latte drinker". Fast Company placed Onward within the top five books that "[predicted] the future of workplace leadership" in 2014. All sale proceeds from the book were donated to the Starbucks Foundation, the firm's main charity.
His third book For Love of Country: What Our Veterans Can Teach Us About Citizenship, Heroism, and Sacrifice, co-written with Rajiv Chandrasekaran, was published in 2014. The New York Times Book Review calling it "well-written" and "formidable." It was later added to the Times' 2014 Winter Reading List. In writing a review for The Wall Street Journal U.S. Army major general Robert H. Scales stated "after reading this moving book I’ll not likely pass a Starbucks again without stopping for a patriotic cup." The Washington Post published a similarly positive review.
In 2019, he published his fourth book, From the Ground Up: A Journey to Reimagine the Promise of America. The book was widely seen as a candidate memoir as it was published right before the 2020 United States presidential election. His book received 1.9/5 stars on Amazon, after some Democratic voters gave negative reviews, due his possible candidacy splitting the Democratic vote. Rolling Stone called the book "stunningly boring" and an "autobiography of a pretentious oligarch." A book promotion stop at Harvard University led to a small student protest. From the Ground Up was featured on The Wall Street Journal's bestseller list in February, and was listed as a New York Times bestseller for 2019. Reuters rated the book highly, yet called it "caffeine free" for its inability to "harness his business success" in a potential White House run.
Howard Schultz