Y Hacker News Books

What books would you recommend reading? Why? ↗

The books people recommended

2007-09-19 · 37 points · 89 comments · 65 books named by at least one person here and at least 3 people overall. The number on the left is how many people named it in this thread.

  1. 4

    How to Win Friends and Influence People

    Dale Carnegie

    4 here · 175 all-time · #8 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.7 out of 5, 106,505 ratings on Amazon
  2. 3

    Gödel, Escher, Bach

    Douglas Hofstadter

    3 here · 347 all-time · #1 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.7 out of 5, 2,713 ratings on Amazon
  3. 3

    The Mythical Man-Month

    Frederick Brooks Jr.

    3 here · 137 all-time · #13 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.5 out of 5, 1,811 ratings on Amazon
  4. 3

    Freakonomics

    Steven D. Levitt, Stephen J. Dubner

    3 here · 26 all-time · #225 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.2 out of 5, 7,647 ratings on Amazon
  5. 3Speaker for the Dead

    Speaker for the Dead

    Orson Scott Card

    3 here · 18 all-time · #355 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.5 out of 5, 14,675 ratings on Amazon
  6. 3Master and Commander

    Master and Commander

    Patrick O'Brian

    3 here · 8 all-time · #857 overall

  7. 2

    Ender's Game

    Orson Scott Card

    2 here · 109 all-time · #21 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.6 out of 5, 45,794 ratings on Amazon
  8. 2

    The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

    Douglas Adams

    2 here · 101 all-time · #28 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.3 out of 5, 30,738 ratings on Amazon
  9. 2

    Guns, Germs, and Steel

    Jared Diamond

    2 here · 83 all-time · #39 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.5 out of 5, 14,634 ratings on Amazon
  10. 2

    Fooled by Randomness

    Nassim Nicholas Taleb

    2 here · 81 all-time · #41 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.4 out of 5, 6,682 ratings on Amazon
  11. 2

    Economics in One Lesson

    Henry Hazlitt

    2 here · 45 all-time · #100 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.6 out of 5, 4,979 ratings on Amazon
  12. 2

    The Elements of Style

    William Strunk Jr.

    2 here · 38 all-time · #129 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.7 out of 5, 7,297 ratings on Amazon
  13. 2Ender's Shadow

    Ender's Shadow

    Orson Scott Card

    2 here · 16 all-time · #407 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.7 out of 5, 5,741 ratings on Amazon
  14. 2The Four Hour Work Week

    The Four Hour Work Week

    Tim Ferriss

    2 here · 4 all-time · #1804 overall

  15. 2All Marketers Are Liars

    All Marketers Are Liars

    Seth Godin

    2 here · 3 all-time · #2489 overall

  16. 1

    Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programs

    Harold Abelson

    1 here · 316 all-time · #2 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.7 out of 5, 742 ratings on Amazon
  17. 1

    Dune

    Frank Herbert

    1 here · 250 all-time · #3 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.7 out of 5, 104,032 ratings on Amazon
  18. 1

    Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance

    Robert Pirsig

    1 here · 193 all-time · #5 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.4 out of 5, 13,921 ratings on Amazon
  19. 1

    Neuromancer

    William Gibson

    1 here · 117 all-time · #17 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.3 out of 5, 20,213 ratings on Amazon
  20. 1

    The Lord of the Rings

    J.R.R. Tolkien

    1 here · 114 all-time · #18 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.9 out of 5, 14,620 ratings on Amazon
  21. 1

    Black Swan

    Nassim Nicholas Taleb

    1 here · 110 all-time · #19 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.4 out of 5, 8,277 ratings on Amazon
  22. 1

    Code Complete

    Steve McConnell

    1 here · 108 all-time · #22 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.6 out of 5, 1,353 ratings on Amazon
  23. 1

    Founders at Work

    Jessica Livingston

    1 here · 51 all-time · #80 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.4 out of 5, 689 ratings on Amazon
  24. 1

    The Little Schemer

    Daniel P. Friedman, Matthias Felleisen

    1 here · 51 all-time · #81 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.6 out of 5, 185 ratings on Amazon
  25. 1

    Discworld

    Terry Pratchett

    1 here · 50 all-time · #87 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.4 out of 5, 28,137 ratings on Amazon
  26. 1

    Catch-22

    Joseph Heller

    1 here · 46 all-time · #96 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.4 out of 5, 14,669 ratings on Amazon
  27. 1The Art of War

    The Art of War

    Sun Tzu

    1 here · 43 all-time · #110 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.7 out of 5, 9,633 ratings on Amazon
  28. 1

    The 48 Laws of Power

    Robert Greene

    1 here · 36 all-time · #136 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.7 out of 5, 90,218 ratings on Amazon
  29. 1

    The Prince

    Niccolò Machiavelli

    1 here · 34 all-time · #152 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.4 out of 5, 8,164 ratings on Amazon
  30. 1

    The Republic

    Plato

    1 here · 32 all-time · #174 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.7 out of 5, 1,034 ratings on Amazon
  31. 1

    A Short History of Nearly Everything

    Bill Bryson

    1 here · 30 all-time · #187 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.6 out of 5, 19,783 ratings on Amazon
  32. 1

    The Odyssey

    Homer

    1 here · 28 all-time · #200 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.7 out of 5, 5,214 ratings on Amazon
  33. 1

    The Iliad

    Homer

    1 here · 28 all-time · #201 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.7 out of 5, 5,214 ratings on Amazon
  34. 1

    Mindset

    Carol Dweck

    1 here · 26 all-time · #222 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.6 out of 5, 23,745 ratings on Amazon
  35. 1

    Grapes of Wrath

    John Steinbeck

    1 here · 22 all-time · #269 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.6 out of 5, 25,575 ratings on Amazon
  36. 1

    Nexus

    Ramez Naam

    1 here · 21 all-time · #288 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.4 out of 5, 3,715 ratings on Amazon
  37. 1

    The Catcher in the Rye

    J.D. Salinger

    1 here · 21 all-time · #290 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.4 out of 5, 48,047 ratings on Amazon
  38. 1

    To Kill a Mockingbird

    Harper Lee

    1 here · 21 all-time · #296 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.7 out of 5, 149,155 ratings on Amazon
  39. 1Dark Tower Series

    Dark Tower Series

    Stephen King

    1 here · 18 all-time · #343 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.2 out of 5, 34,581 ratings on Amazon
  40. 1The Four Agreements

    The Four Agreements

    Don Miguel Ruiz

    1 here · 17 all-time · #378 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.7 out of 5, 121,779 ratings on Amazon
  41. 1Lila

    Lila

    Robert Pirsig

    1 here · 16 all-time · #389 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.6 out of 5, 817 ratings on Amazon
  42. 1The Effective Executive

    The Effective Executive

    Peter Drucker

    1 here · 14 all-time · #457 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.5 out of 5, 3,714 ratings on Amazon
  43. 1Getting to Yes

    Getting to Yes

    Roger Fisher, William Ury

    1 here · 14 all-time · #459 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.5 out of 5, 11,602 ratings on Amazon
  44. 1The Fabric of the Cosmos

    The Fabric of the Cosmos

    Brian Greene

    1 here · 12 all-time · #516 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.6 out of 5, 2,315 ratings on Amazon
  45. 1The Origin of Wealth

    The Origin of Wealth

    Eric Beinhocker

    1 here · 11 all-time · #565 overall

    Buy on Amazon4.5 out of 5, 135 ratings on Amazon
  46. 1Against the Gods

    Against the Gods

    Peter L. Bernstein

    1 here · 10 all-time · #642 overall

  47. 1The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat

    The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat

    Oliver Sacks

    1 here · 9 all-time · #728 overall

  48. 1The Fabric of Reality

    The Fabric of Reality

    David Deutsch

    1 here · 9 all-time · #737 overall

  49. 1A Clockwork Orange

    A Clockwork Orange

    Anthony Burgess

    1 here · 8 all-time · #788 overall

  50. 1Free to Choose

    Free to Choose

    Milton Friedman

    1 here · 8 all-time · #832 overall

  51. 1The Innovator's Solution

    The Innovator's Solution

    Clayton Christensen

    1 here · 8 all-time · #836 overall

  52. 1Never Eat Alone

    Never Eat Alone

    Keith Ferrazzi

    1 here · 7 all-time · #905 overall

  53. 1Voltaire's Bastards

    Voltaire's Bastards

    John Ralston Saul

    1 here · 7 all-time · #967 overall

  54. 1Programming Erlang

    Programming Erlang

    Joe Armstrong

    1 here · 7 all-time · #1012 overall

  55. 1Language in Thought and Action

    Language in Thought and Action

    S. I. Hayakawa

    1 here · 6 all-time · #1071 overall

  56. 1Built to Last

    Built to Last

    Jim Collins

    1 here · 6 all-time · #1088 overall

  57. 1Symposium

    Symposium

    Plato

    1 here · 6 all-time · #1125 overall

  58. 1The Evolution of Cooperation

    The Evolution of Cooperation

    Robert Axelrod

    1 here · 5 all-time · #1286 overall

  59. 1The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

    The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

    Stieg Larsson

    1 here · 5 all-time · #1309 overall

  60. 1The Problem of Pain

    The Problem of Pain

    C. S. Lewis

    1 here · 5 all-time · #1422 overall

  61. 1Bridge of Birds

    Bridge of Birds

    Barry Hughart

    1 here · 4 all-time · #1649 overall

  62. 1A Tree Grows in Brooklyn

    A Tree Grows in Brooklyn

    Betty Smith

    1 here · 4 all-time · #1805 overall

  63. 1Emergence

    Emergence

    Steven Johnson

    1 here · 3 all-time · #1980 overall

  64. 1Epic of Gilgamesh

    Epic of Gilgamesh

    1 here · 3 all-time · #2182 overall

  65. 1Phaedrus

    Phaedrus

    Plato

    1 here · 3 all-time · #2183 overall