The books Hacker News keeps recommending.
443 “what should I read” threads, 48,845 comments, 43,668 recommendations, counted. Every book below is ranked by how many different people vouched for it, and each page shows you their exact words.
Hot this year see the last 30, 90 and 365 days
- XteinkXteink15 this year
- Roget's ThesaurusRoget's Thesaurus11 this year
- KoboKobo10 this year
- The DecameronThe Decameron9 this year
- Half a SecondHalf a Second7 this year
- Becoming Steve JobsBecoming Steve Jobs6 this year
- King James VersionKing James Version5 this year
The Road4 this year- Dungeon Crawler CarlDungeon Crawler Carl4 this year
- Star WarsStar Wars4 this year
- Diary of a Wimpy KidDiary of a Wimpy Kid4 this year
- The Little Book of Deep LearningThe Little Book of Deep Learning4 this year
The all-time top 100
- 1
Gödel, Escher, Bach
Douglas Hofstadter
347 people recommended it in 106 threads, 2007–2026
“I devoured it at the time, and it fired my imagination for many years later.” mwfunk
- 2
Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programs
Harold Abelson
316 people recommended it in 122 threads, 2007–2026
“Even though I had worked through SICP I still watched all the lectures again and implemented all the examples with benchmarks and unit tests.” nikcub
- 3
Dune
Frank Herbert
250 people recommended it in 66 threads, 2007–2025
“Dune (the notion of mental discipline, at least as idealized by Frank Herbert, made an impression on me)” rcarmo
- 4
Sapiens
Yuval Noah Harari
197 people recommended it in 58 threads, 2015–2026
“Sapiens - It finally connected a lot of dots on how things work in the world (money, governments, religions, companies etc) and how humans communicate at scale.” fillskills
- 5
Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance
Robert Pirsig
193 people recommended it in 68 threads, 2007–2024
“It's not a travel book. It's a personal journey of discovery that just happens to be on a motorcycle. Essentially, Pirsig's bike trip is a metaphor to revisit his fragmented past a…” randcraw
- 6
Thinking, Fast and Slow
Daniel Kahneman
178 people recommended it in 66 threads, 2011–2026
“The notion that we have limited access to the workings of our minds is difficult to accept because, naturally, it is alien to our experience, but it is true: you know far less abou…” mitchelldeacon9
- 7
The Selfish Gene
Richard Dawkins
178 people recommended it in 52 threads, 2007–2025
““The Selfish Gene” and “The Extended Phenotype” were world altering for me. Like integral calculus, I rarely have cause to apply the concept in the domain in which it was described…” obelos
- 8
How to Win Friends and Influence People
Dale Carnegie
175 people recommended it in 69 threads, 2007–2026
“As such, the first book I would recommend would be the classic "How to Win Friends and Influence People" by Dale Carnegie.” jason_tko
- 9
Atlas Shrugged
Ayn Rand
173 people recommended it in 59 threads, 2007–2026
“It has its issues, but it's absolutely a book everyone should read, whether you agree with Rand's ideology or not. And if you aren't familiar enough to Rand's ideology to know if y…” mindcrime
- 10
Meditations
Marcus Aurelius
165 people recommended it in 54 threads, 2009–2025
“It's my all time favorite book for keeping life in perspective.” k4ch0w
- 11
The Three-Body Problem
Cixin Liu
152 people recommended it in 44 threads, 2015–2026
“The moment you find out what the title is referring to gave me goosebumps.” careersuicide
- 12
Code
Charles Petzold
147 people recommended it in 57 threads, 2011–2026
“After reading Code my hacking skills increased considerably. I am never comfortable relying on abstractions so understanding more of the programming stacks I use increased my willi…” michaeldhopkins
- 13
The Mythical Man-Month
Frederick Brooks Jr.
137 people recommended it in 42 threads, 2007–2025
“That put into words so many things that I felt about computer programming, if nothing else the humanness of programming as a pursuit.” not_clear
- 14
The Art of Computer Programming
Donald Knuth
127 people recommended it in 43 threads, 2009–2026
“Anyone who doesn't want to learn MIX can just ignore those few parts of TAOCP; there's enough value in those books without them.” svat
- 15
The C Programming Language
Brian Kernighan, Dennis Ritchie
124 people recommended it in 48 threads, 2008–2026
“It showed me that a technical book can be concise, well written and enjoyable to read.” porpoisely
- 16
Snow Crash
Neal Stephenson
119 people recommended it in 51 threads, 2007–2024
“Of course, I'll also second Snowcrash as a must-read. Same with Cryptonomicon.” lee
- 17
Neuromancer
William Gibson
117 people recommended it in 52 threads, 2007–2026
“Seeing all the influences Neuromancer had on books, movies, anime/manga, and even half life mods was a real treat.” tb_technical
- 18
The Lord of the Rings
J.R.R. Tolkien
114 people recommended it in 52 threads, 2007–2025
“When I re-read it (to be able to discuss with my 11 year old son), I was pleasantly surprised at how good it was.” chernevik
- 19
Black Swan
Nassim Nicholas Taleb
110 people recommended it in 46 threads, 2007–2026
“One of the central arguments of the book is that people have been using tools from Mediocristan in Extremistan and that's what leads to these Black Swan phenomen, which in turn mig…” Pandabob
- 20
Foundation
Isaac Asimov
110 people recommended it in 40 threads, 2008–2025
“The early Foundation is sort of a future history version of "The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire" (I seem to recall that was intentional, actually).” SwellJoe
- 21
Ender's Game
Orson Scott Card
109 people recommended it in 36 threads, 2007–2026
“For me, it introduced the idea that it was okay being smarter than the adults around me as well as the beauty of having to rely on yourself.” sebg
- 22
Code Complete
Steve McConnell
108 people recommended it in 49 threads, 2007–2025
“I can't say enough good things about this. I have kept referring to it in the months since I read it for the first time.” engi_nerd
- 23
Cryptonomicon
Neal Stephenson
106 people recommended it in 41 threads, 2007–2024
“Inspired most of the work on endergen(See Ender's Game Above). Introduced me to the concepts of privacy/security implemented in technical form and the conflict between the two.” endergen
- 24
Designing Data-Intensive Applications
Martin Kleppmann
104 people recommended it in 33 threads, 2017–2026
“This book profoundly changed how I think about application performance and data. It describes so much about different kinds databases and query languages, that now I feel like I've…” JackMorgan
- 25
The Martian
Andy Weir
103 people recommended it in 38 threads, 2014–2025
“This book is what I've been giving the last couple years to people who don't think they like sci-fi. Everyone I've given it to has loved it.” peckrob
- 26
The Pragmatic Programmer
Andrew Hunt and David Thomas
102 people recommended it in 52 threads, 2007–2025
“I stumbled across the pragmatic programmer in my 4th year, and immediately started applying it on my project. This carried through to work and helped me a lot early in my career.” cynik_
- 27Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality
Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality
Eliezer Yudkowsky
101 people recommended it in 54 threads, 2008–2026
“This book really taught me to think rationally and logically. I think I really did not understand the scientific method until this book.” JackMorgan
- 28
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
Douglas Adams
101 people recommended it in 48 threads, 2007–2026
“Best book I ever read (for myriad other reasons) probably remains Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy -- never has a book amused me like that. I don't think much about my sensibility,…” Triphibian
- 29
Antifragile
Nassim Nicholas Taleb
100 people recommended it in 45 threads, 2012–2024
“It has motivated me to start a business and to connect more with my loved ones, changed my perspective on research, what's important and the power of the passing of time. It defini…” superpermutat0r
- 30
Calculus
Spivak
99 people recommended it in 33 threads, 2009–2026
“The canonical text for this topic is Calculus by Michael Spivak. It's what I used in my first year, and most importantly, comes with a solution manual :)” jwgarber
- 31
Siddhartha
Hermann Hesse
97 people recommended it in 43 threads, 2007–2025
“You start reading it and you don't want to stop reading it because you're now part of Siddharta's journey. You’re no expecting the punch line that has the lesson, you simply live t…” whoisjuan
- 32
Man's Search for Meaning
Viktor Frankl
95 people recommended it in 44 threads, 2010–2026
“For some, this will be life changing. ~3 hour read is all” adt2bt
- 33
The Design of Everyday Things
Don Norman
95 people recommended it in 40 threads, 2007–2024
“The Design of Everyday Things makes me rethink every user interaction or problem I face, and not just at work. Every time I open a door, I begin to think about that experience.” Saturdays
- 34
1984
George Orwell
94 people recommended it in 46 threads, 2008–2025
“Finally, I believe without a doubt, 1984 should certainly be required reading for all programmers - a single read is worth a great many 'ethics for technologists' courses.” feral
- 35
Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman!
Richard Feynman
90 people recommended it in 42 threads, 2007–2024
“As well as the book being well-written in the sense that it reads as if you're sitting on the couch with him as he's telling you stories about his life, all with a child-like sense…” stevenj
- 36
The Fountainhead
Ayn Rand
90 people recommended it in 39 threads, 2008–2025
“And though I don't care for it now, Ayn Rand's works, Atlas Shrugged and The Fountainhead, had great impact on me at the time I read them.” otakucode
- 37
Zero to One
Peter Thiel, Blake Masters
89 people recommended it in 36 threads, 2014–2024
“I think it's one of the best business books I've ever read. I'd rank it about second, right below The Four Steps To The Epiphany. I picked it up off a shelf at Barnes & Noble the…” mindcrime
- 38
Project Hail Mary
Andy Weir
88 people recommended it in 20 threads, 2021–2026
“Read if you like stories driven by applied science, not comparative moral decision-making.” sandy_coyote
- 39
Guns, Germs, and Steel
Jared Diamond
83 people recommended it in 44 threads, 2007–2024
“The idea that external factors like geographical starting conditions can have a huge impact and shape things as complex as human culture is a powerful one, regardless of the conclu…” LyndsySimon
- 40
Anathem
Neal Stephenson
83 people recommended it in 32 threads, 2009–2025
“Anathem by Neal Stephenson - starts out slow but after the first 200 pages it became a really great story that I couldn't put down.” brown9-2
- 41
Fooled by Randomness
Nassim Nicholas Taleb
81 people recommended it in 39 threads, 2007–2026
“Taleb's Incerto series changed how I thought about investing, risk, and life in general.” chrischattin
- 42
Design Patterns
Erich Gamma, Richard Helm, Ralph Johnson, John Vlissides
80 people recommended it in 23 threads, 2010–2025
“This is entirely the point behind the book – so we can identify these common patterns and talk about them at a higher level.” JimDabell
- 43
The Soul of a New Machine
Tracy Kidder
76 people recommended it in 29 threads, 2008–2025
“This is a book that every engineer should absolutely read, though not without an uncritical eye for Tom West and Data General.” bcantrill
- 44
Infinite Jest
David Foster Wallace
75 people recommended it in 42 threads, 2007–2025
“Reading the book is like entering an intimate communion with DFW's mind and it reinforced in me the importance of inter-human connection in that way.” jdpigeon
- 45Permutation City
Permutation City
Greg Egan
73 people recommended it in 28 threads, 2008–2025
“If you're interested in scifi about AI and brain simulation, this is it.” squeaky-clean
- 46
Deep Work
Cal Newport
72 people recommended it in 31 threads, 2016–2025
“Deep Work" by Cal Newport has really helped me with my productivity and happiness, and made me give up social media.” rg111
- 47
Introduction to Algorithms
Thomas H. Cormen, Charles E. Leiserson, Ronald L. Rivest, Clifford Stein
71 people recommended it in 24 threads, 2011–2023
“Or books on fundamentals, like Hennessy and Patterson, like Tannenbaum's Network or Operating systems, Knuth, or Cormen&al on Algorithms.” dorinlazar
- 48
Blindsight
Peter Watts
70 people recommended it in 34 threads, 2011–2025
“Amazing first alien encounter book that should be read by everyone that is a fan of the genre. Memorable cast of characters...the Vampires are really interesting. All kinds of intr…” Hortinstein
- 49The Goal
The Goal
Eliyahu M. Goldratt
70 people recommended it in 29 threads, 2008–2024
“Adopting a systems thinking mindset. When analysing problems looking for the bottleneck, then figuring out how to elevate that constraint.” he11ow
- 50
The Count of Monte Cristo
Alexandre Dumas
70 people recommended it in 25 threads, 2009–2024
“This is an epic in its true sense, and you will feel a sense of amazement as you progress through the novel. I'm quite a reader, and I have not experienced such amazement when read…” palerdot
- 51The Brothers Karamazov
The Brothers Karamazov
Fyodor Dostoevsky
69 people recommended it in 34 threads, 2009–2024
“And of course, the book finally convinced me that I should not give into nihilism and pessimism even when everyone around me does.” mikhmha
- 52
Ready Player One
Ernest Cline
69 people recommended it in 32 threads, 2012–2025
“At once wildly original and stuffed with irresistible nostalgia, READY PLAYER ONE is a spectacularly genre-busting, ambitious, and charming debut—part quest novel, part love story,…” Urgo
- 53
Masters of Doom
David Kushner
69 people recommended it in 29 threads, 2009–2025
“Masters Of Doom - The value of an unbalanced life and focused hard work. Also, how to start a startup. A really fun read, to boot.” lackbeard
- 54
Why We Sleep
Matthew Walker
68 people recommended it in 23 threads, 2018–2024
“As I read this book I kept thinking about all the people I knew who would benefit from it: family and friends whom I want to have healthy happy lives, managers who believe that the…” ivanmaeder
- 55
Brave New World
Aldous Huxley
67 people recommended it in 35 threads, 2007–2025
“A painful re-reading but hard not to conclude that Huxley had it way more directionally right than Orwell or any other future fiction authors.” drivativ
- 56
The Phoenix Project
Gene Kim, Kevin Behr, George Spafford
67 people recommended it in 29 threads, 2013–2024
“Great CI/CD book disguised as a novel, inspired me to push heavily for an improved build/release pipeline at work.” tashoecraft
- 57
The Master and Margarita
Mikhail Bulgakov
67 people recommended it in 24 threads, 2009–2025
“It was the first book I started reading I could not put down until the end.” nikivi
- 58
The Diamond Age
Neal Stephenson
64 people recommended it in 34 threads, 2007–2026
“The Diamond Age" by Neal Stephenson. Very good story, world buulding, nice technology. Great thinking by the author.” __rito__
- 59
Peopleware
Tom DeMarco
62 people recommended it in 32 threads, 2007–2024
“Finally I'd like to recommend Peopleware - surely one of - if not the definitively - best book I've read for professional purposes.” occz
- 60
Never Split the Difference
Chris Voss
62 people recommended it in 31 threads, 2016–2026
“Never Split the Difference: Negotiating as if Your Life Depended on It - Chris Voss was great as it gave me new insights how to structure my speech and thoughts behind it.” franze
- 61
Getting Things Done
David Allen
62 people recommended it in 27 threads, 2007–2024
“Enough has been said about this elsewhere, but the whole concept of "what's the next action" has really worked for me.” zzzmarcus
- 62
Linear Algebra
Strang
60 people recommended it in 23 threads, 2009–2024
“Strang approaches LA from a practical less-theoretical angle, which makes it very sensible if you're an engineer but may not be as suitable if you're a mathematician.” randcraw
- 63
The Feynman Lectures on Physics
Richard Feynman
59 people recommended it in 22 threads, 2008–2026
“The way that the problems build on each other is spellbinding. For example, there’s an early problem where you calculate the mean free path of air, but you’re not given a formula f…” klodolph
- 64
Seveneves
Neal Stephenson
58 people recommended it in 27 threads, 2015–2024
“Seveneves - really good hard sci-fi imho, although felt very, very long.” sershe
- 65The Elements of Computing Systems
The Elements of Computing Systems
Nisan and Schocken
58 people recommended it in 24 threads, 2011–2023
“Even though I studied Computer Science in University and most of the concepts weren't new to me, it was such a fun experience mentally "building" a computer from relays/transistors…” Delfino
- 66
The Righteous Mind
Jonathan Haidt
57 people recommended it in 27 threads, 2012–2024
“Similarly, "The Righteous Mind: Why Good People Are Divided by Politics and Religion" by Jonathan Haidt was very interesting as it suggests why people understand the world so diffe…” armagon
- 67
The Hard Thing About Hard Things
Ben Horowitz
56 people recommended it in 34 threads, 2014–2025
“The most 'make an adult of you'-feeling book I read this year. After attending an 'MBA bootcamp' style course, this book was the gritty, personal account that helped me tie all tho…” jdpigeon
- 68
The Lean Startup
Eric Ries
56 people recommended it in 28 threads, 2011–2024
“The Lean Startup - Excellent. Changed the way I do business.” ifoundthetao
- 69
Hyperion
Dan Simmons
56 people recommended it in 27 threads, 2007–2024
“Hyperion by Dan Simmons, excellent SF with a feel of the Canterbury Tales about it” kcartlidge
- 70
Stranger in a Strange Land
Robert A. Heinlein
55 people recommended it in 29 threads, 2007–2023
“Stranger in a Strange Land is very much in this category. It's almost only sci-fi by association. It does have the hallmarks of its age, most notably mental powers (a common zeitge…” cletus
- 71
Ulysses
James Joyce
55 people recommended it in 27 threads, 2008–2025
“The reason that it had, and still has, such a positive influence on my life is the plethora of literary tools which it possesses. It allows for infinite play and imagination, while…” Cro_on
- 72
Thinking in Systems
Donella H. Meadows
55 people recommended it in 24 threads, 2014–2024
“useful for understanding that in modern life we have complex systems at work with emergent behavior that we didn't expect. Trying to isolate / model a single component of one of th…” amuresan
- 73
The Stormlight Archive
Brandon Sanderson
55 people recommended it in 21 threads, 2015–2025
“Honestly, I think Stormlight Archive has blow away pretty much everything else I've read.” TheAceOfHearts
- 74
A Guide to the Good Life
William B. Irvine
53 people recommended it in 33 threads, 2010–2022
“This is an approachable intro to stoicism and helped me become more conscious of which things are within my control and which things are outside of my control. I now spend a lot mo…” lpolovets
- 75
The Hobbit
J.R.R. Tolkien
53 people recommended it in 28 threads, 2007–2024
“It reads aloud very well and that inspired me to start rereading LoTR (for the O(n * umpteen)th time and it's the literary equivalent of a 200 slide slide deck...but I digress.” brudgers
- 76
Tao Te Ching
Lao Tzu
53 people recommended it in 27 threads, 2008–2026
“The first philosophy and spiritual books I read, as a teen, were the Chinese classics - Confucius, Mencius, Chuangtzu, Lao Tzu (Tao Te Ching). All fascinating, a joy to read, deep.…” yesenadam
- 77
The Alchemist
Paulo Coelho
52 people recommended it in 27 threads, 2007–2024
“The Alchemist -- rereading of one of my favorite books of all time” laxatives
- 78
Daemon
Daniel Suarez
52 people recommended it in 24 threads, 2010–2026
“These books are very well written and billed as a 'techno-thriller'. I think they are also near-term science fiction, and have a lot of very interesting ideas.” ColinDabritz
- 79
Shoe Dog
Phil Knight
52 people recommended it in 23 threads, 2016–2025
“It's about a guy trying to keep a business alive: almost from day one there no let-up, the company is continually under threat.” ivanmaeder
- 80
Founders at Work
Jessica Livingston
51 people recommended it in 30 threads, 2007–2025
“Great interviews by incredibly successful start up founders. Lesson 1: determination was the number one predictor of start up success. Lesson 2: most of the founders had no idea on…” photon_lines
- 81
The Little Schemer
Daniel P. Friedman, Matthias Felleisen
51 people recommended it in 30 threads, 2007–2026
“The Little Schemer was great, too. This little book is worth much more than one who hadn't read it might think.” rg111
- 82
Moby Dick
Herman Melville
51 people recommended it in 28 threads, 2009–2026
“Apart from the obvious "literary merit", reading this book feels like being at sea, isolated from the world, where life is subject to the rhythms of much more powerful forces, and …” pierremenard
- 83
Anna Karenina
Leo Tolstoy
51 people recommended it in 26 threads, 2008–2025
“Made me face deeper parts of my mind. Attempted to answer some questions I had. Great story. Huge book. Historical fiction is something I like across languages.” __rito__
- 84
Influence
Robert Cialdini
50 people recommended it in 30 threads, 2009–2024
“How to get a 700% improvement in volunteers. How to sell more by doubling your prices. How to make people feel they made a choice, when really you made it for them.” sivers
- 85
Crime and Punishment
Fyodor Dostoevsky
50 people recommended it in 29 threads, 2007–2024
“Crime and Punishment — a cautionary tale about exactly the kind of solipsism and misanthropy that can take us over in our 30s. Fast paced and beautifully written, it reads like a m…” weeksie
- 86
The Power Broker
Robert Caro
50 people recommended it in 25 threads, 2009–2025
“The Power Broker, by Robert Caro - unbeatably rich and compelling look at how power and politics actually work, for better (power gets things done) and for worse (power blinds and …” schlagetown
- 87
Discworld
Terry Pratchett
50 people recommended it in 23 threads, 2007–2024
“I grew up reading them from the late 80's on-wards and I actually can't separate my worldview from them anymore, his outlook on life became my outlook on life.” noir_lord
- 88
Principles
Ray Dalio
49 people recommended it in 29 threads, 2013–2022
“"Principles are ways of successfully dealing with reality to get what you want out of life."” thushan
- 89
Algorithms
Robert Sedgewick
49 people recommended it in 26 threads, 2009–2023
“Segdewick for example, such a wonderful book, the prose is excellent, the content really is outstanding (probably one of the most comprehensive I own), the editions I have even has…” vidoc
- 90
Animal Farm
George Orwell
48 people recommended it in 22 threads, 2007–2026
“It was the first time I realized books could be dangerous, subversive, and truly educational as well as simply informative or entertaining.” scrumper
- 91
Clean Code
Robert C. Martin
47 people recommended it in 32 threads, 2011–2025
“I'd still recommend it to junior colleagues paired with some caveats about avoiding seeing the world in black & white.” Jtsummers
- 92
Nonviolent Communication
Marshall B. Rosenberg
47 people recommended it in 22 threads, 2015–2022
“In general, the book is about realizing that you have a choice in most things - even things like whether you want to earn money to feed your kids. Likewise, it's about eliminating …” BeetleB
- 93
A Fire Upon the Deep
Vernor Vinge
47 people recommended it in 21 threads, 2007–2025
“Just an amazing work of sci-fi exploring the internal logic of radically different forms of intelligence.” kaycebasques
- 94
Deep Learning
Ian Goodfellow, Yoshua Bengio, Aaron Courville
47 people recommended it in 14 threads, 2016–2025
“My favorite aspect of this book is that it provides a graphical models interpretation of DL methods, which is the most powerful perspective we have right now to reason about model …” ericjang
- 95
12 Rules for Life
Jordan Peterson
47 people recommended it in 10 threads, 2018–2022
“This book gave me the courage to take responsibility in my life and start working towards things which are important for myself.” zuzuleinen
- 96
Catch-22
Joseph Heller
46 people recommended it in 27 threads, 2007–2024
“It's funny, very dark and even though most people think they know all about it without reading it because they understand the term "catch 22", they are missing out on a very good s…” pimmen
- 97
The Power of Habit
Charles Duhigg
46 people recommended it in 25 threads, 2012–2023
“Why toothpaste tingles, how Febreeze was a flop, and hundreds of other tidbits that are perfect for cocktail parties and future Jeopardy episodes.” portman
- 98
Concrete Mathematics
Donald Knuth
46 people recommended it in 23 threads, 2009–2023
“Concrete Maths. I understand that this book is taught in college, but it requires very little advanced maths, and its techniques are hugely useful for high school students too.” hintymad
- 99
The Demon-Haunted World
Carl Sagan
45 people recommended it in 26 threads, 2008–2025
“Great thoughts and advice from Carl Sagan. The last chapter had a profound effect on the way I think of the US constitution.” photon_lines
- 100
Economics in One Lesson
Henry Hazlitt
45 people recommended it in 18 threads, 2007–2022
“After this book, I now think much more carefully about proposed policies/rules/business strategies/etc. "Subsidized child care" or "charge businesses per seat" can sound great on t…” lpolovets