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Ask HN: Best book you read in 2011
My choice this year is Burton Malkiel's "A Random Walk Down Wall Street"
- tlammens 15y agoBorn to run by Christopher McDougall Read it in the beginning of this year when I was starting to run, very inspiring. And look, I'm still running!
- vijayr 15y ago+1, that is an amazing book. even if one is not a runner, it is still worth reading the book. The author goes to great lengths to track the tarahumara, and to organize the race, in a dangerous region.
- cpt1138 15y agoLean Startup, got it for X-MAS.
- kurtvarner 15y agoSecond the Lean Startup
- david927 15y agoAchebe's "Things Fall Apart"
- james-fend 15y agoThe Fast Lane by MJ Demarco You won't regret it.
- bulte-rs 15y agoBest read for me is actually a non-tech book; the Dutch "Hoe hoort het eigenlijk" (roughly translated as: "how it should be done") which is considered "the Dutch Etiquette Bible". There is not enough courtesy and etiquette in this world. That, and I really liked SICP (finally got off the shelf).
- AngryParsley 15y agoIt's not tech-related, but my favorite book this year was Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea. The book is a collection of stories from North Korean defectors, combined with some history and background info. It's a quick but satisfying read.
- pilap82 15y agoOpen Services Innovation from Henry Chesbrough
- bogdand 15y agoVictor Hugo ~ Les Misérables
- pplante 15y agoBoomerang: Travels in the New Third World A scary tale about the collapse of the various markets across the globe. I constantly had to keep checking to see if the book was from the fiction section. The stories are so far out there it seemed unreal.
- patrickk 15y agoSecond this. I'm a huge Michael Lewis fan. If you enjoyed this, I would recommend reading (in the following order): - Liar's Poker. Lewis' account of how the bond market really got huge in the 80's. The book that put him on the map. He was a bond salesman in Solomon Brothers investment bank, a really interesting read with many larger than life characters. An insider account on how companies and financial institutions gorged themselves in debt. - The Big Short. In a way this is like a "sequel" to Liar's Poker (weird to say for non-fiction I know), as the 20 year "story arc" from the grow of junk bonds, to the massive deleveraging due to the subprime mortgage collapse is examined. He also follows the stories of those canny enough to stack up massive bets in anticipation of the collapse. Finance is a boring topic generally, but Lewis focuses on the characters and is a superb storyteller. He has a real knack for being able to explain these complex, earth-shattering events in a way that those of us without PhD's in quantitative finance can understand.
- pplante 15y agoThanks for the recommendations. Those are free to read on my Kindle with amazon prime membership, definitely will be reading them now!
- patrickk 15y agoYou're welcome. Lewis also writes for Vanity Fair, where in fact some of the material for Boomerang and his other works originated. You might be interested in these also. http://www.vanityfair.com/search?query=michael+lewis&sort=score+desc http://www.vanityfair.com/search?query=michael+lewis&sor...
- davee 15y agoLearned Optimism by Martin Seligman
- linuxrulz 15y agoAPI Design for C++ - Martin Reddy
- blub 15y agoThe table of contents looks very good. Do you know any other recent and worthy C++ books? I'm more interested in design-related and deeply technical ones.
- lkozma 15y agoBest books I read in 2011: * "Salonica, City of Ghosts" by M.Mazower. Tells the history of Thessaloniki, informative, entertaining, at times nostalgic. * "The Cauchy-Schwarz Master Class" by J.M.Steele. A guided tour of mathematical inequalities. Very entertaining and readable (for a math book) and extremely well written. * "Indiscrete Thoughts" by G-C.Rota. Irreverent anecdotes about mathematicians. * "Black Swan" by N.N.Taleb. Maybe overhyped and at times annoying and pompous, but extremely insightful nevertheless.
- capkutay 15y ago"Salonica, City of Ghosts" is definitely an excellent read. I thought it was somewhat sad how the world wars of the 20th century diminished one of Europe's great, culturally rich cities.
- sdoering 15y agoBlack Swan and Fooled by Randomness are both great reads from N.N. Taleb. Imho both are must reads.
- drumdance 15y agoI'm reading Fooled by Randomness and really like it. The Black Swan I couldn't finish because it kind of rambled. Not sure if he had a better editor for Fooled by Randomness or what.
- sdoering 15y agoFooled by randomness seemed to me a little bit less rambling as well and a little bit more straight to the point. But I liked the more essayistic style of Black Swan as well (well, I studied literature, so i think I am just used to these kinds of writing).
- bambax 15y agoI'd like to mention two books because I can't decide which is greatest (they're very different): - The Checklist Manifesto by Atul Gawande (often quoted here, and rightly so; it's short and really really great) - How to Live, or A life of Montaigne by Sarah Bakewell (a fantastic take on Montaigne's essays by a contemporary scholar with a refreshing take on everything).
- iambot 15y agoYes! I've read "How to Live, or A life of Montaigne" and it _is_ brilliant, partly due to Montaigne being brilliant I'd recommend Penguins Great Ideas Book "On Friendship" by Montaigne. And seeing as you mention on of my favorites to, I'll be sure to check out The Checklist Manifesto, thanks.
- keeptrying 15y agoCare to share the gist if the book?
- iambot 15y agoPenguin's Great Ideas series [1] is a collection of abridged (i think) versions of popular/influential books, or essays by influential writers, the "On Friendship" one by Montaigne is a few of his essays from his Essays [2] Short essays brilliantly eloquent, accessible pragmatic philosophy. [1]: http://www.penguin.co.uk/static/cs/uk/0/minisites/greatideas/index_1.html#displayall http://www.penguin.co.uk/static/cs/uk/0/minisites/greatideas... [2]: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Essays_%28Montaigne%29 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Essays_%28Montaigne%29
- gahahaha 15y ago"""Montaigne likes to point out that philosophers don’t know everything, and that they would be a lot wiser if they laughed at themselves a little more. He also writes in a personal and often very frank way designed to shock the prudish. “Kings and philosophers shit, and so do ladies,” he says, “Even on the highest throne in the world, we are seated still upon our arses.” """ Sounds like a good man.
- drewblaisdell 15y agoSurely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman by Richard Feynman It made me feel like I'm not thinking enough about everything around me.
- dkberktas 15y ago"How We Decide" from John Lehrer
- studiomohawk 15y agoHardboiled Web Design by Andy Clarke.
- meow 15y agoI read "Wheel of time" series by Robert Jordan this year. The books in this series are just so addictive.. wasn't able to stop till I read all thirteen books :)
- beilabs 15y agoJust one left to go, I've been waiting for a very very very long time.
- tmeasday 15y agoOh god, don't talk about it.
- meow 15y agoOh, when ever I get the longing for the last one, I go on a revision of my favorite parts in previous books.. Thank fully I started this in August and haven't heard of it before.. Now just one more year to go till the last book.. :) I still wonder how BS is going to cover all loose ends in one book!
- beilabs 15y agoI'm fairly sure it was well mapped out for him. I'll go and re-read the lot a couple of months before I do. TIL today, there is a comic book for The Eye of the World.
- jasonlotito 15y agoApparently it's finished. It will require numerous rewrites and edits, but the book is essentially finished. Sanderson said to look for the final book in the fall.
- freshfey 15y ago"Seeking Wisdom: From Darwin to Munger" by Peter Bevelin. Excellent read.
- stevanl 15y agoI've been trying to get a hold of this book for a while in the UK, but it seems very tough to get a copy of without paying through the teeth for international shipping. Anyone have any tips?
- freshfey 15y agoCheck the libraries in your region and/or ask the biggest one whether they could buy it for the library -> free option.
- amrnt 15y agoRework
- ncarroll 15y agoFiction: The Poisionwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver. Non-Fiction: Improv Wisdom: Don't Prepare, Just Show Up, by Patricia Ryan Madison. Edited for formatting
- mikecsh 15y agoOn Intelligence by Jeff Hawkins
- beagle3 15y ago"Left in the dark" - a theory about how our mind works. It is either crackpot or one of the most amazing discoveries of the last few decades. Hard to tell which, but it is a very interesting read regardless. http://leftinthedark.org.uk/ http://leftinthedark.org.uk/
- obtu 15y agoCrackpot, because I couldn't go through the first page with a straight face. It is attacking science for lacking rigor (why not, depending on your standards and the field) and ignoring a momentous event, then proceeds to put forth an explanation that is not rigorous at all (cultural arguments do not support neuroscience jargon).
- beagle3 15y agoFirst page of the website or the first page of the book? Either way, you should spend more time reading it. Consider it science fiction if it bothers you. "The origin of consciousness in the breakdown of the bicameral mind" is also mind blowing. Neither is foolproof, and both are potentially crackpot -- but if should read a crackpot book to broaden your horizons. Just consider it scifi instead of science.
- laironald 15y ago"No Higher Honor" - Condoleeza Rice. An amazingly accomplished person that is humble enough to analyze her own thinking process.
- armandososa 15y agoThis year I read again '100 years of solitude' (in spanish, of course) and I enjoyed every bit of it.
- anatoly 15y ago* Anne Tyler, Dinner At The Homesick Restaurant * Gene Wolfe, Peace * Vladimir Nabokov, Pale Fire
- wahnfrieden 15y agoAnd I read Pnin - Pale Fire's next!
- zachwill 15y agoI thought Designers Don't Read was great (don't let the name fool you). It's basically an art director's take on advertising and design with bits of history and insights thrown in: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1581156650 http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1581156650
- train_robber 15y agoIn Cold Blood - Truman Capote
- chad_oliver 15y agoI just finished reading "The Origin of Political Order", which was recommended by Venkatesh Rao. It's refreshing to read an overview of world history that doesn't focus on kings and kingdoms, but rather on the underlying causes. This book covers some dense material, but remains readable at all times. Highly recommended.
- cbare 15y agoI'll second the recommendation for The Origins of Political Order: From Prehuman Times to the French Revolution. It lays out a systematic way of thinking about political development and decay. I wrote a review here: http://pragmaticpoliticaleconomy.blogspot.com/2011/09/im-reading-francis-fukuyama-s-latest.html http://pragmaticpoliticaleconomy.blogspot.com/2011/09/im-rea...
- xn--ls8h 15y ago"Go the F--k to Sleep", by Adam Mansbach. It's a great book that's helped me much in my personal life. I used to have trouble falling asleep at night, often finding myself worrying about issues that had come up during the day, and being unable to put work away when I needed to sleep. Since reading it, I've found that I can put away these fears and problems far better than I could before. I highly recommend it to anyone who has trouble sleeping from time to time.
- mkopinsky 15y agoI'm not sure whether to downvote you for trolling, or upvote you for humor. Since I don't have a downvote button, I'll have to upvote.
- rockstar88 15y agoI did not complete offcourse but I started reading The Alchemist - really very interesting book to read and the Seven Habits of Highly Effective People - completed the first chapter - this is a good book written on personal inward-out change.
- wyclif 15y agoThe Civilization Of The Renaissance In Italy by Jacob Burckhardt: http://www.amazon.com/Civilization-Renaissance-Italy-2/dp/B002CQ9OS4/ http://www.amazon.com/Civilization-Renaissance-Italy-2/dp/B0... Pioneering Swiss art historian Jacob Burckhardt saw the Italian Renaissance as no less than the beginning of the modern world. In this hugely influential work he argues that the Renaissance’s creativity, competitiveness, dynasties, great city-states and even its vicious rulers sowed the seeds of a new era. Great book for entrepreneurs, scientists, thinkers, inventors, coders, radicals, and visionaries.
- cafard 15y agoExcellent book. With a bit of looking around you can find a volume of his letters, and also a book called "Judgments on History and Historians."
- donw 15y agoI was so incredibly tempted to put 'Twilight' down and wait for the lynch mob, but then realized that the Reddit color scheme is different. This year was solely devoted to pleasure reading. Neal Stephenson's REAMDE was quite good, although I imagine everybody on HN has read it, as Neal is practically a Valley institution. The original 'Starship Troopers' by Ray Bradbury was also a good read, and easy to miss if you're into more modern science fiction.
- drac 15y agoDid you mean Robert Heinlein? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starship_Troopers http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starship_Troopers
- donw 15y agoDamnit, yes, thanks. I now feel a bit stupid. I dug through a mixed stack of Bradbury, Heinlein, and Niven earlier in the year, so who-wrote-what is a bit mixed up in my brain.
- obtu 15y agoHey, I'm sure Twilight has novelty value. You could appreciate the parodies with a new depth.
- motxilo 15y ago"A little history of the world" by E.H. Gombrich. I've never been too enthusiastic about History in general, but I couldn't put this book down until finished.
- alisey 15y agoHis "Art and Illusion" is very good too.
- jasondrowley 15y agoI'm going to be on the receiving end of a great deal of vitriol for saying The Bible and the Koran, but sitting down and reading those two books—for the first time in my 21-year existence—was a really interesting experience. I'm not going to turn this into a personal essay. I realized—after reading both books with a critical eye—that there are a lot of trumped-up claims made about each books' contents that ultimately fail to bear themselves out. But there's a great deal to learn from each, and I say this as a nontheist.
- alinajaf 15y agoAs someone who's made the transtion from muslim -> atheist, I was disappointed, confused and terrified when I first read a translation of the Koran. I'm genuinely curious as to what you've learned from it that's of any use, apart from perhaps, a deeper understanding of the thought-process and ethos of Islamic fundamentalists.
- nyellin 15y agoYour reaction seems very strange. Can you explain why you had never read the koran if you were muslim?
- jasondrowley 15y agoNow, to be fair, most Christians haven't read the Bible.
- deleted 15y ago[deleted]
- enko 15y agoThe obvious answer is that he/she was a child, and simply received the religion from the parents. As far as I can tell, most people are religious because their upbringing was, and of those most simply adopt an interpretation of the religion they were brought up under. Even in adulthood I'd be absolutely astonished if even 50% of any major religion have read to completion the core text of that religion, indeed I would expect the number to be far lower.
- largepuma 15y agoMy choice is "Hackers and Painters" in Chinese edition, though it is first pressed in 2004.
- wqfeng 15y agoIs it necessary to be books published in 2011? If not, Calculus Made Easy is the best book I read in 2011.
- alinajaf 15y agoThis is on my todo list. "Maths and stuff" is a big gaping whole in my intellectual toolbox and I've been meaning to get it sorted out for a while. I'll probably pick something like this up, right after I'm done with "Speech and Language Processing"
- bherms 15y agoNot tech related, but I loved Devil in the White City by Larson and Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Pirsig. Also, I reread Rework about 3 times this year. Always a good and quick read.
- eliben 15y agoAh, but Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Pirsig is very much tech related!
- dsr_ 15y agoFor those who want a clue: the book is largely concerned with two things: how to get unstuck, and how to recognize quality.
- bherms 15y agoAhh true... That book is really deep. I love it. Unrelated comment, but I feel compelled to mention... I just moved to SF and read that book right when I got here, only to find out that Pirsigs son (who is one of the main characters of the book) was stabbed and killed at roughly 22 (I am 25) a few blocks from where I work. For some reason, that story really affected me and has changed the way I look at life. I highly recommend the book to anyone in any field. Being an engineer amplifies its meaning.
- Santas 15y agoThe Art of War - Sun Tzu
- eliben 15y agoSeriously? I've often seen this book recommended, but I just can't figure out what people find in it. Care to share?
- dlss 15y agoYou need to read it in a context where there is nothing else to do, and you can leisurely let your thoughts move between the book and your life. Read in this way, the book can act as a catalyst for meditative insights -- overlooked possibilities, bigger pictures, new roles and options, and alternative directions for the future.
- hello_moto 15y agoPhilosophy. I find certain books required a deep thought before you can get anything out of it. These books aren't something that you can read in a plane on the way to New York from LA.
- jasondrowley 15y agoGalatea 2.2 by Richard Powers It's about a "resident humanist" at a research institution who makes an improbable bet with a computer scientist/AI researcher. For people in tech, it's a fantastic read.
- wr1472 15y agoI've read a lot of books this year, some have already been mentioned (eg. Gawande, Gombrich). I've been devouring the Game of Thrones books since summer, and as no one has mentioned it yet, I'll point it out.
- sathishmanohar 15y agoI started listening to audio books very recently, so some of these books might be old to you. * Predictably Irrational - How Humans behave and why. * 4 hour work week - About how to earn money to live not live to earn money * Made to stick - How to convey ideas in a way others will remember * Lean Startup - How to build products using continuous innovation * Guerrilla Marketing - Basic Marketing principles in 30 days * Rework - Myth Buster for Internet/Tech companies * Outsider Edge - Condensed History and reasoning for success of self-made billionaires * Linus Torvalds - Just for Fun - About Linus Torvalds Ebooks ( haven't finished reading yet, but they are great so far ) * Getting thing Done - Management principle for knowledge workers by David Allen * Agile Development - Building Rails apps using agile methodology I can't believe I've finished 8 books in 2011, long live audio books.
- szcukg 15y agoA song of Ice and Fire series
- dangrossman 15y agoThat's probably the best thing I read this year too. It's very good, but not amazing, which just means I haven't read anything amazing this year.
- CWIZO 15y agoI'm ashamed to admit that I haven't read any books (beside some programming related stuff) in over a year. But I did start reading A game of thrones in the middle of August this year, now I'm on page 300 of the A dance with dragons. Simply amazing book.
- capkutay 15y agoI'd say it's a tie between 2 books by Jonathan Safran Foer: "Everything is Illuminated" and "Extremely Loud, Incredibly Close".
- iamandrus 15y agoThe Lean Startup by Eric Ries. It's a really good book for starting entrepreneurs.
- tmeasday 15y agoHey guys, just made a little Bindle of some of the choices you've made, for those of you who like a more visual perspective: http://bindle.me/bindles/298 http://bindle.me/bindles/298. My contribution: "Devices and Desires" by KJ Parker: An interesting fantasy book that is centered around an engineer---his unique take on complex human situations might appeal to the more analytical amongst us.
- vilts 15y ago"Willpower: Rediscovering the Greatest Human Strength" by Roy F. Baumeister and John Tierney. Really good book about willpower, mental fatigue, dieting, working etc. Lots of nice examples and tips to improve different aspects of your life.
- rhizome31 15y agoTech: Code by Charles Petzold Novel: Invisible by Paul Auster Essay: Après la démocratie (French) by Emmanuel Todd
- jasonlotito 15y ago"Code" is an excellent book, and I'd agree, it's worth it regardless of what you do in computers.
- ntkachov 15y agoDesign for Hackers by David Kadavy. Besides being informative it was really really interesting to read. Really opened my eyes to a lot of the things designers do deliberately and not just because "its pretty".
- rahulrg 15y agoI enjoyed James Gleick's The Information. Wonderful book from one of the best science writers around.
- jfager 15y agoSeconded. The last few chapters were unsatisfying to me, but overall a really fun read that does a good job of tying together a bunch of different threads of science around information theory.
- Maro 15y agoThe Art of Readable Code Best book on software engineering in a good while.
- chriseidhof 15y agoStatus Anxiety - Alain de Botton It's about how we have come to live in a meritocracy, where your status depends on what you have achieved. Very insightful and readable work by the contemporary philosopher/writer.
- david927 15y agoI don't think de Button mentions anywhere that status is based on merit (which is good because the correlation depends on many factors and is tenuous, at best), or what you have achieved. He's saying that your therapist might ask about your parents and family, but won't probably ask about the nameless people you run into every day -- your neighbors, the people in line at the store, etc. -- but these people also play a large role in terms of your self-esteem and ultimately your happiness because you are constantly defining yourself in terms of those around you. You will be happier living in a place where you make 10% more than the average, than where you make 10% less, no matter what that amount is.
- chriseidhof 15y agoYou're right, thanks!
- alinajaf 15y agoI had a fantastic reading year, too much to choose from: "Cosmos" - Carl Sagan "Hyperion" + "Fall of Hyperion" - Dan Simmons "Red Mars" - Kim Stanley Robinson "The Prince" - Niccolo Machiavelli
- dbalatero 15y ago+1 for "Hyperion" + "Fall of Hyperion" – both are amazing books that I just finished. Also, "Glasshouse" by Charles Stross was pretty rad too.
- pinaceae 15y agoPolitics: The Gamble by Thomas E. Ricks Economics: How Markets Fail by John Cassidy Fiction: read through the works of Jo Nesbo, Dennis Lehane, Don Winslow and Stieg Larrsson - all of them recommendable
- ljy 15y ago- The 4 Hours Work Week (Tim Ferriss) - The Lean Startup (Eric Ries)
- martinvanaken 15y agoFor work : Rework, from 37signals. Fresh, opinionated and funny. For leisure : A Dance with Dragons, from Georges R.R. Martin "Game of Thrones" series (the HBO version is superb, but do not miss the books either).
- juanre 15y agoKahneman's "Thinking, Fast and Slow". It's a great account of things we know about how the mind works, with amazing insights.
- david927 15y agoIt's been on my list after watching this great lecture: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CjVQJdIrDJ0 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CjVQJdIrDJ0 I plan to follow it with Moonwalking with Einstein: The Art and Science of Remembering Everything.
- juanre 15y agoMoonwalking with Einstein is a good read. I found it worth the time I spent on it. But it's on an altogether different league.
- bthomas 15y agoAgreed, I'm reading it a second time now. I find it absolutely remarkable that Kahneman is 77.
- soitgoes 15y agoAlways on the lookout for a good read. Thanks for posting the question. Through HN I discovered: "A Guide to the Good Life: The Ancient Art of Stoic Joy" Which I enjoyed very much.
- bleakgadfly 15y agoI can strongly recommend this book!
- sdoering 15y agoTwo (fiction) Books, I really read in one piece: Deamon & Freedom from Daniel Suarez Non Fiction: Black Swan - N.N. Taleb Anything you want - Derek Sivers
- brettweaverio 15y agoBig +1 for Daemon, one of the best modern science fiction novels I've read.
- mickeyben 15y agoNight train to lisbon - Pascal Mercier It's about a professor who quits his job and his country to explore the life of an author he just discovered.
- dejv 15y agoSpeaking of business books: Growing a business (old but still valid and great) and Setting the Table. Speaking of fiction I want to recommend Neil Gainman The Graveyard Book
- technology 15y agojust curious, where do you get updates for book recommendations or updates ?
- mcdowall 15y agoThe 33 by Jonathan Franklin, but aside from that, most of the recommendations by Derek Sivers.
- jvandenbroeck 15y agoThe Selfish Gene by Richard Dawkins, old but definitely worth the read. Changes the way you look at things.
- prpon 15y agoIf you loved the book Selfish Gene, I recommend listening to the story of George Price. http://www.radiolab.org/2010/dec/14/ http://www.radiolab.org/2010/dec/14/ It is both depressing and enlightening.
- Aramgutang 15y ago"The 4-Hour Body", by Tim Ferriss. Because of that book, within 3 months I went from running completely out of breath after 2 minutes of running, to finishing a half-marathon in 2 hours. And during the prior 3 months, I had lost 15 kilos by following the "slow-carb diet" described in the book. Reading it seemed to flip a switch in my brain: before, I would think of my body as something I had little control over, while after, I saw it as not only something I had full control over, but as something I could hack. I've also followed up on quite a few of the product recommendations in the book (e.g. Inov-8 trainers, Aqua Sphere goggles, etc), and have yet to be disappointed. That said, the book does come with a heavy dose of Tim's pointless boasting, half-assed chapters (e.g. the polyphasic sleep or the baseball batting ones), and far more conjecture than a book of that sort should have.
- lucraft 15y agoYep. For all its faults, that book has changed my life. For the sole reason that it convinced me to try slow-carb dieting. That led to reading more about low-carb diets, and from there to (so far) sustainable weight loss.
- jlees 15y agoOn a similar note I'd nominate Good Calories, Bad Calories as my book. Ferris gets my back up, especially the received wisdom that others quote from him, but Taubes really opened my eyes to the fact I could change what I eat and feel ten times better.
- Hates_ 15y agoI highly recommend his other book "Why we get fat" too.
- yummyfajitas 15y agoI'll just point out that Taubes is a charlatan, and most of his scientific claims have been debunked. See here, for one example: http://wholehealthsource.blogspot.com/2011/08/carbohydrate-hypothesis-of-obesity.html http://wholehealthsource.blogspot.com/2011/08/carbohydrate-h...
- adnam 15y agoI enjoyed "Debt: The First 5,000 Years" by David Graeber, an anthropoligical look at the history of money, morality and the nature of debt.
- nodemaker 15y agoThe origin of consciousness in the breakdown of the bicameral mind - Julian Jaynes Very Powerful Read!
- Cardinal 15y agoIt has to be Java Concurrency in Practice. Even though it has Java in its name I think every programmer should read this. Other books I absolutely loved are Effective Java 2 and Programming Interviews Exposed. I'm waiting for Amazon to ship me the second edition of the latter. Hackers and Painters is a classic I default to whenever I'm looking for inspiration.
- lawn 15y agoI can't really decide, but here are a few of my favorites. * Song of Ice and Fire series. I never really liked fantasy but this series is wonderful. The TV-series (Game of Thrones) is okay but a far cry from the books. * The Pragmatic Programmer. The best programming book I've seen. A must read for programmers I'd say. * Introduction to Algorithms. Haven't really gone through it but so far it's been great.
- kenver 15y agoI've seen the series and read the first book and thought it did a pretty good job. What do you feel the TV show got wrong- not being argumentative btw, I'm just interested!
- ilconsigliere 15y agoMy only major inaccuracy is re: Sansa Stark. I found her to be a well-intentioned yet manipulated and confused child in the books. She just wants to be a quintessential 'Lady' - courteous, artful, etc. In the show they made her out to be... American. Rude, spoiled, etc. Other than that I just wish they had the time and the audience to tell the FULL story in all it's glory. Of course it's expected that the sub-plots have to be trimmed of the minutiae, but the complexity and ambiguity is part of what makes ASoIaF so amazing.
- overgryphon 15y agoOut of curiosity, what makes you define "american" as rude and spoiled?
- ilconsigliere 15y agoFair question. After initially seeing Sansa represented this way, I began to ask myself "Why would they do this? What advantage does it serve?" Using the common motive of "making the show appeal to a wider [American] audience," it seemed to me that they wanted her character to hit closer to home than a polished young lady would. Of course, my opinion is just a shallow one - a thought in passing. Thinking on it now you are probably right to question me on my association of 'rude and spoiled' with 'American,' but that was just my gut reaction. FWIW, I'm an American with minimal knowledge of the demeanor teenage girls from other societies, Western or otherwise.
- yurylifshits 15y agoOnward by Howard Schultz Howard has returned to CEO post at Starbucks just before the crisis of 2008. A great story about turnaround effort.
- sayemm 15y ago"The Cambridge Handbook of Expertise and Expert Performance" - http://www.amazon.com/Cambridge-Expertise-Performance-Handbooks-Psychology/dp/0521600812/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1324988081&sr=8-1 http://www.amazon.com/Cambridge-Expertise-Performance-Handbo... Here are some excerpts: - http://www.psy.fsu.edu/faculty/ericsson/ericsson.exp.perf.html http://www.psy.fsu.edu/faculty/ericsson/ericsson.exp.perf.ht... - http://www.psy.fsu.edu/faculty/ericsson/ericsson.mem.exp.html http://www.psy.fsu.edu/faculty/ericsson/ericsson.mem.exp.htm...
- obtu 15y agoDeclare, by Tim Powers. Very well-written and convincing, considering the subject matter (a spy thriller with elements of horror).
- alrex021 15y agoAnimal Liberation by Peter Singer Peter Singer introduced and popularized the term "speciesism" in the book that is often referred to as the bible of the animal rights movement.
- Confusion 15y agoProfessionally, The Art of Project Management did the most for me. Privately, general-fiction-wise, The Wind-up Bird Chronicles by Haruki Murakami did the most for me. Privately, SF-wise, three books by Kurt Vonnegut: Cat's Cradle, Slaughterhouse-five and The Sirens of Titan
- MengYuanLong 15y agoI am loving this thread. There are so many wonderful suggestions. My personal additions (though I know they are not obscure): Down and Out in Disneyland - Cory Doctorow (This was gifted by a friend and really inspired me to make some significant changes in my life. That includes the decision to learn to code and escape the user end of the spectrum.) Procrastination- Jane B. Burka , Lenora M. Yuen (This book has fundamentally altered my introspective conclusions. That is to say, I am now more aware of times when I am procrastinating and the impact it has on my life.) This year was a great year for reading and I hope to read even more next year.
- teja1990 15y agoMine are : Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand, I just love this book! Greatest Trade Ever by Gregory Zuckerman. And I read manga , so include One Piece as well :D
- gbaygon 15y agoAtlas Shrugged is a must read for any entrepreneur.
- tspiteri 15y agoI'm not going to debate the merits of Rand's philosophy in Atlas Shrugged, but as a novel, I found it horrible. I found that all the characters fall into one of two groups, those who agree with Rand's philosophy, and those who don't, and there is no credible character that disputes Rand's philosophy. There is also a lot of repetition, as if the novel is simply trying to indoctrinate the reader.
- mantas 15y agoThere were grey characters too. Dagny Taggart did not truly agree with Rand's philosophy. In addition to that, Lord of the Rings must be terrible for the same reasons too. As well as most of the other popular books I can think of.
- tspiteri 15y agoI cannot find a fundamental difference in the thought process of Dagny Taggart, Hank Rearden, Francisco d'Anconia, and the rest of that group. In fact, at the end of the novel, they all share a virtually identical philosophy, they all develop into Rand's ideal character. As for the other group, they are all greedy lazy parasites who want to do nothing productive and live off others. One character, although not a major character, which did not seem to fall into those two groups and which seemed to have some development potential was Cherryl Brooks, but as soon as she had a conflict to resolve, Ayn Rand chose not to develop the character, took the easy way out, and had her commit suicide.
- pencilcode 15y agoCode by Charles Petzold. It's made me think about computers in another light. AND to be amazed at how simple things (input/output, on/off) can add up to really big and complex systems.
- yock 15y agoI got this for Christmas and have eagerly consumed the first few chapters. Who'd have thought that the history of information encoding would be so intriguing?
- maeon3 15y agoAudio book for Tim Sanders, the Likeability Factor. http://timsanders.com/books/likeability-factor.html http://timsanders.com/books/likeability-factor.html I listened to this twice, and applied everything he said to do in my life. I went from a lonely programmer to an extrovert in 18 months. He put Extroversion into words a programmer can understand, as lists of instructions. Now i have so many friends I have to prioritize time with them.
- nyellin 15y agoIt isn't a proper book, but Eliezer Yudkowsky's Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality was incredible. Don't judge it by the fact that it is a fanfic.
- DevX101 15y agoHow interesting will this be if i've never read the Harry Potter series? (i've seen a couple of the movies)
- mquander 15y agoI was in roughly the same prior-Harry-Potter-knowledge state as you are and I enjoyed it.
- timdumol 15y agoIt's set in an alternate universe to the actual Harry Potter series, and starts from the events in the first book. You won't miss much from not having read the actual books.
- Sukotto 15y agoI hesitated to start. Partly because I found the original Harry Potter kind of boring/frustrating. And partly because it's fanfiction, a sort of writing I do not normally enjoy. Still, I found it enjoyable and worth my time. Even though I thought Harry's portrayal was pretty uneven (swinging between "scientist/genius in an irrational world" and "arrogant prick demigod"). I liked Drako's additional depth far better than Rowling's one dimensional jerk. http://www.elsewhere.org/rationality/ http://www.elsewhere.org/rationality/ (rehash of my previous comment: http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=3231266 http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=3231266 )
- thebigshane 15y agoThere are some inside jokes you would miss out on if you didn't know the canonical universe, but overall, like others have said, it can stand on its own as a great work.
- nfarina 15y ago
- retroafroman 15y agoShop Class as Soulcraft - Matthew B. Crawford (2009) Non-fiction This will resonate well with people who enjoy working with their hands. It also has some pretty entertaining anecdotes from the author's personal life, but it's not overly autobiographical. I personally found this one interesting because I've had some similar experiences in life-working on (and driving) an old Volkswagen as a first car, working in the trades, going to college, getting a desk job, and now, thinking perhaps that a desk job isn't for me, as he realized.
- rcamera 15y agoMusashi by Eiji Yoshikawa. Highly recommended for anyone who has discipline problems, it is really inspiring, one of the top 3 books I've read. It tells the history of the real samurai named Miyamoto Musashi.
- metachris 15y agoI thoroughly enjoyed Iain M. Banks 'Culture' novels [1] (sci-fi), in particular 'Surface Detail', 'Matter' and 'The Player of Games'. [1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Culture http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Culture
- yock 15y agoRe-read a classic fiction, Treasure Island by Stephenson. Of the non-fiction I read, and completed, this year, Endurance: Shackelton's Incredible Voyage by Lansing.
- southpolesteve 15y agoMake sure to check out "South" which is Shackelton's own telling of the journey.
- yock 15y agoIt's free on Kindle, so it's now on my Kindle. Thanks for the tip.
- bmcleod 15y agoPoor Economics - Changed my views on some areas of how to combat poverty and poor education. As well as relating a huge amount a detail regarding the unexpected ways people with different backgrounds behave.
- technology 15y agojust curious, where do you get updates for book recommendations or updates cuz that one is my favorite ?
- davidw 15y agoLet's see... in no particular order: * Thinking, Fast and Slow: http://amzn.to/sXQGSR http://amzn.to/sXQGSR - probably makes my list because I just finished it, and as he says "what you see is all there is" - we're biased towards things that come to mind easily. Actually, it is a pretty good book even looking through all the others I've read. * 1491: http://amzn.to/uaR0yf http://amzn.to/uaR0yf - about the Americas prior to the arrival of "Cristoforo Colombo". * Built to sell: http://amzn.to/ukmyNP http://amzn.to/ukmyNP - how to create a business that is something that you can sell because it can exist without you. Not quite so relevant to startups working on a product, but some good concepts nonetheless. A good summary is probably just as good as reading the book, as the core concepts are fairly simple. * Empires of the Word: A Language History of the World: http://amzn.to/tVvltK http://amzn.to/tVvltK the history of the world as seen through languages. * The Long Divergence: How Islamic Law Held Back the Middle East: http://amzn.to/spQCF7 http://amzn.to/spQCF7 - a look at how the legal systems of 'the west' and the middle east differed and the results those systems led to. And of course, if you haven't read this one, I think it's a great read: Start Small, Stay Small: http://amzn.to/v2DHyx http://amzn.to/v2DHyx - a great guide full of practical advice on "startups for the rest of us". What I haven't read: Lean Startups by Eric Ries. Does it contain much practical advice? I get the impression it's a bit on the 'strategic' side without giving you concrete ideas about how to go about doing things. The Steve Jobs biography. It looks to be so pervasive and widespread that I'm wondering if I can absorb most of the good parts from other people who have read it. I may get it anyway; we'll see. FWIW, all links contain a referral code to help fuel my reading habit.
- cstejerean 15y agoI recommend reading The Lean Startup. I found it full of good ideas. One example: cohort analysis. You might already be familiar with all the concepts and ideas in the book, but even then I think the various examples of real companies doing some of these things will be inspiring.
- russjhammond 15y agoThe Lean Startup is good but I found Running Lean to be much more tactical. Plus the guy who wrote it, Ash seems to be very active in providing content beyond the book in his newsletters, blog posts, and his Lean Canvas.
- momo-reina 15y agoEnder's Game by Orson Scott Card Foundation series by Isaac Asimov Orion series by Ben Bova Stranger in a Stange Land, Farnham's Freehold by Robert Heinlein
- joshz 15y agoThe one I've enjoyed the most, was probably "Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman" but additionally read a couple that kept being mentioned on here: * A Random Walk Down Wall Street * Predictably Irrational * Black Swan * Blink and enjoyed those too. I've also read "How To Make Friends and Influence People" and started "Lords of Finance" but never finished.
- daniel_iversen 15y agoIn no particular order, the best ones I read this year on top of my mind are: - enchantment by guy kawasaki - rework by 37signals - the prince (machiavelli?) - the 4 hour work week (ferris?)
- lvillani 15y ago- "Clean Code: A Handbook of Agile Software Craftsmanship" by Robert C. Martin - "Physics for Future Presidents" by Richard Muller Not really a book but I found the "MIT Guide to Lock Picking" an interesting read.
- dimmuborgir 15y ago"Friedrich Nietzsche: A Philosophical Biography" by Julian Young.
- forkrulassail 15y agoNeuropath - R Scott Bakker.
- mcphilip 15y agoPrime Obsession : http://amzn.com/0309085497 http://amzn.com/0309085497 - a great introduction to the Riemann hypothesis with chapters alternating between the history and impact of the claim, and a dive into the mathematics behind the claim. I have a mediocre background in math (i.e. up through Calculus III in college) but I had no trouble following the chapters explaining the maths behind the hypothesis. The Undiscovered Self : http://amzn.com/0451217322 http://amzn.com/0451217322 - A distillation of much of Carl Jung's lifetime of research in psychology into a short book. The blurb on the book jacket sums it up best: 'In his classic, provocative work, Dr. Carl Jung-one of psychiatry's greatest minds-argues that the future depends on our ability to resist society's mass movements. Only by understanding our unconscious inner nature-"the undiscovered self"-can we gain the self-knowledge that is antithetical to ideological fanaticism.'
- michaelochurch 15y agoBest book is hard. Best technical book is either: Concepts, Techniques, and Models of Computer Programming: http://www.amzn.com/0262220695 http://www.amzn.com/0262220695 or: Programming in Scala: http://www.amzn.com/0981531644 http://www.amzn.com/0981531644
- aba_sababa 15y agoConsider the Lobster - essays by DFW Startup Nation - discourse on startups in Israel Tempo - narrative strategy by Venkatesh Rao - REALLY good read, distilled and full of gold
- kgosser 15y ago"The Information" by James Gleick
- alanav 15y ago"Physics of the Impossible" by Michio Kaku
- vm 15y ago* Steve Jobs biography. I couldn't put it down and I'm shocked there aren't more fans on HN For those who liked Malkiel's Random Walk, read: * Ben Graham's Intelligent Investor * Philip Fisher's Common Stocks and Uncommon Profits They counter Malkiel's thesis (yup, he's wrong) and Warren Buffet credits both men for teaching him how to invest. True classics.
- davidw 15y agoI read both Malkiel's book and Grahams' book this year and was much more convinced by the former, especially in the context of just wanting to put some money away and not work at it too much - although to his credit, Graham also says that investors like this should not be all that active. I think reading both is not a bad idea, but for those of us not in a position to crack open a company's books like someone like Buffet can do, I'm not convinced of the wisdom of trying to beat the market at determining which companies are 'value' companies.
- hello_moto 15y agoSteve Jobs may be a great entrepreneur and innovator (or tweaker, whatever, people can debate this for decade) but not all people care much about his life. Especially when most of it have been exposed for years. I borrowed the book from library and only read a few pages here and there. Returned the book within a week because I have other priorities or other books to read. I think it's good that the "herd" mentality is missing on this book. In fact, I hope the herd/blogger mentality decreases as well in any other books (like Gladwell's, Ferris's, etc).
- Riesling 15y agoI strongly disagree. I got the biography for christmas this year and finished it in two days. Having never owned a piece of apple hardware due to its closed nature and being an open source supporter myself, I was quite surprised by the joy I got from reading this book. The honesty used by Walter Isaacson to describe Jobs was really refreshing and not expected by me at all. I was able to draw many conclusions from this book. For example I do not think that there is the possibility of using it as a recipe for your own success as an entrepreneur, which might be the reason of why the hn community might be undervaluing this book. It clearly shows that Steve had many unique character traits which made him successful after all. Most of them were negative in my eyes. Actually he often seemed borderline insane. When thinking about the way he treated people, the way he manipulated people, the way he thought that he knew it all and used all of those techniques in order to make those things happen, I realized that those are character traits that lie deep within and cannot easy be emulated, if at all. As a conclusion I might add that I really respect Steve and his family for allowing such a self critical biography to be published.
- cafard 15y agoPerhaps best, certainly most depressing (and 20 pages or so to go, but there's time left yet): Bloodlands, by Timothy Snyder, http://www.powells.com/s?kw=bloodlands http://www.powells.com/s?kw=bloodlands Very good, long: China Marches West: The Quing Conquest of Central Eurasia by Peter C. Perdue, http://www.powells.com/biblio/1-9780674057432-0 http://www.powells.com/biblio/1-9780674057432-0 Odd, interesting, relatively short: Principles of Human Knowledge and Three Dialogues by George Berkeley, http://www.powells.com/biblio/1-9780674057432-0 http://www.powells.com/biblio/1-9780674057432-0 Techie: Effective Perl Programming by Joseph Hall, http://www.powells.com/biblio/1-9780321496942-0 http://www.powells.com/biblio/1-9780321496942-0
- jswinghammer 15y agoFor me they were: "An Austrian Perspective on the History of Economic Thought" by Murray Rothbard This was great because of the history lesson packed into a book that's mostly about economics. I didn't realize how libertarian the economic thought of the east was until I read this book. I also appreciated the focus on economics before Adam Smith since I knew only about Aristotle and St. Thomas Aquinas's contributions prior to reading the book. Rothbard's take-down of Marx was both thorough and satisfying. "City of God" by Augustine of Hippo The history lesson here was helpful as was the perspective on how the church should view the state though I should have invested more money in a better version for Kindle. The version I had was filled with grammatical mistakes due to the poor translation to the Kindle format.
- naithemilkman 15y agoa bit late to the party but ender's game for fiction, gantz for manga, founders at work for non fiction
- ec429 15y agoI'd read Ender's Game some time before, but recently someone lent me the next three and they're similarly brilliant. Can't decide which is my favourite though; probably not Children of the Mind because the aiùa stuff is weird.
- serverdude 15y ago"The Moral Landscape" (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/143917122X/ http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/143917122X/) by Sam Harris The book discusses how science can be used to deal with questions on morality.
- fduran 15y ago"The snowball: Warren Buffett and the business of life" "The autobiography of Benjamin Franklin" "The toilet paper entrepreneur" "The lean startup" "Anything you want"
- nonrecursive 15y ago"Bridge of Birds" by Barry Hughart was great. It's a hilarious "detective" novel set in a fictional ancient China. One of the two main characters is an 80 year old sage with a drinking problem and the ability to con almost anybody. The pace never slows and it always has you wondering what'll happen next. Technically, I'd say "Land of Lisp" has been the most fun and the most rewarding.
- alisey 15y ago"Picturing the Uncertain World" by Howard Wainer. http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0691137595 http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0691137595 - World record improves linearly for over 50 years, for how long will the trend continue? - Is it OK not to rescore erroneously high SAT scores? - Why among examinees who get the same SAT score White examinees do better on easy items, whereas Black examinees do better on hard items? - How comes that areas with the lowest and the highest kidney cancer death rate are rural areas?
- g3orge 15y agoLinux in a nutshell. Best book for Linux noobs and pros.
- codypo 15y agoOn the fiction side, I absolutely loved Shogun by Clavell. I didn't know what to expect, and I found an epic that was captivating in many ways. I also started Neil Gaiman's Sandman series. I realize I'm about 10 years behind everyone else, and I've found it most deserving of all of the hubbub. With respect to nonfiction, I enjoyed Schroeder's recent biography of Warren Buffett, entitled the Snowball. It was much less of a hagiography than much of what you read on him. He's a fascinating, complex man.
- brown9-2 15y agoNot sure if you will see this but have you read any of Clavell's followups to Shogun yet? I recently read Shogun as well and really loved it, but haven't had the courage to tackle the other books in the series - as they sound so different (and take place hundreds of years later).
- brettweaverio 15y agoAtlas Shrugged - Ayn Rand The Lean Startup - Eric Reis Rework - 37signals
- pknerd 15y agoEat That Frog by Brain Tracy. An excellent read to get rid of procrastination.
- davidwparker 15y agoFor me, I had a few that I really liked: * The Art of Game Design by Jesse Schell. Probably one of the best books I've read, even for people who don't want to make games, it was really good. * Business Model Generation by Osterwalder and Pigneur. One of the better business books I've read through. Also one of the most creative. And I finally read: * The C Programming Language by K&R. 'nuff said.
- rsoto 15y agoToo bad this comment is too down, but The Art Of Game Design is a fantastic book about design and user experience, even if you're not into games, there's some interesting psychology to learn and to apply in whatever you're doing.
- Terry_B 15y agoI've read a lot of the most well known game design books and its staggering how good this book is. League of its own.
- christiangenco 15y ago"Incognito - The Secret Lives of the Brain" (http://amzn.com/0307377334 http://amzn.com/0307377334) blew me away. Very interesting read on the current understanding of how the brain/consciousness work and the implications of these models on free will, etc. I've now given it as a present no less than 4 times and counting.
- mtimur 15y agoTangled Web by Michal Zalewski.
- svec 15y ago"Accelerando" by Charles Stross. I think this was the third time I read it. There will be a 4th, and a 5th, ... It's a very interesting idea of how "The Singularity" might look.
- abhaga 15y ago"To Kill a Mocking Bird", "Logicomix" in English. A play called "Andha Yug" (The Age of Darkness) in Hindi. English translation is also available for those interested. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0198065221/ http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0198065221/
- babebridou 15y agoI just finished Logicomix (got it as a Christmas gift), in French though. It's a great read for anyone looking for a refreshing take on the history of mathematics in the early 20th century.
- koopajah 15y agoI really did find it boring and had a hard time going till the end despite my fondness for mathematics history. Nothing was really interesting in it, only simple facts adn I was a bit disappointed after seeing it on a "must read" list from a math professor for its students.
- tspiteri 15y agoI also read "To Kill a Mocking Bird" for the first time, and it is truly a work of art.
- rimantas 15y ago"Lila" (http://www.amazon.com/Lila-Inquiry-Morals-Robert-Pirsig/dp/0553299611/ http://www.amazon.com/Lila-Inquiry-Morals-Robert-Pirsig/dp/0... ) gave me most food for thought this year.
- hello_moto 15y agoPersonally for me The Bible is and has always been. I'm not a religious fanatics but The Bible has taught me how to live life no matter how hard life is so that's good enough for me. Lately I've been reading old books as well from Og Mandino. Ditto with technical books: books from the 70's, 80's, 90's are quite good. The rest are... "OK".
- zavulon 15y agoE-Myth revisited http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0051QVESA/ http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0051QVESA/ I've read it early in the year, and it made me think about my business in a totally new way. Way too many parts me had me nodding sadly "yes, this happens to me too". A must for any business owners
- miles_matthias 15y agoRework. Also, "The Long Run" by Matt Long. Mr. Long wrote a book about his experience as a NYC firefighter who, a few days after qualifying for the Boston marathon, got run over by a bus while riding his bike and literally got split in half up to his chest. Almost two years later, he ran the New York City marathon and went on to do the ironman. Insanely great story and the book is a good read. His story was inspiring to never give up.
- drumdance 15y agoIf you're a self-consciously hip music snob like me, two works of fiction you will enjoy are: Stone Arabia by Dana Spiotta Juliet, Naked by Nick Hornby
- mashmac2 15y agoMan's Search For Meaning by Victor Frankel. It was recommended by several friends, and I finally got around to reading it. Helped, along with Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance to work through my personal thought process. Highly recommended.
- gwern 15y agoPinker's _Better Angels_. Mind-blowingly detailed and thorough.
- SanjeevSharma 15y agoI posted my list in this recent blog post: http://dundat.com/blog/2011/11/30/a-wannabe-founder/ http://dundat.com/blog/2011/11/30/a-wannabe-founder/
- hockeybias 15y agoUnder The Banner of Heaven.
- tyohn 15y agoWhat Technology Wants by Kevin Kelly - I highly recommend reading this book. The title describes what the book is about ~ as a hacker it might just make you rethink everything you do.
- alexanderberman 15y agoIn no particular order: * Boomerang by Michael Lewis * Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson * The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins * The Thank You Economy by Gary Vaynerchuk
- rasmus4200 15y agoThe War of Art http://www.stevenpressfield.com/the-war-of-art/ http://www.stevenpressfield.com/the-war-of-art/ Break through the blocks and win your inner creative battles. Many books mentioned here are good, this is the only I haven't seen referenced. But this one book really helped me deal with resistance and get stuff done. Seth Godin is a big fan and references it a lot in his material. Steven Pressfield also wrote 'The Legend of Bagger Vance' and Gates of Fire (Spartan 300 kind of book but way deeper).
- makatiguy 15y agoI'd have to recommend "Holy War" by Nigel Cliff. Great read about how one little tiny country (Portugal)in Europe ended being the first colonial power through their dominance of the seas, spice trade and their desire to see Islam vanquished.
- navan 15y agoNaked Economics: Undressing the Dismal Science by Wheelan, Charles Economics explained in the most intuitive way. On a related note I started an account at goodreads.com at the start of this year. It is great for keeping track of what you read and to find books for future reading.
- erikpukinskis 15y ago"The Dispossessed" by Ursula K. Le Guin. It really challenged many of my beliefs about the underpinnings of society. Quite relevant in the year of Occupy Wall Street as well. Feminist Science Fiction for the win.
- ptabatt 15y ago"The God Delusion" - Dawkins Very blunt and mean. But also convincing...
- omarchowdhury 15y agoRene Guenon's Man and His Becoming according to the Vedanta Bhagavad Gita - Recension by William Quan Judge
- CoffeeDregs 15y agoBest book every year since I read it every year: The Tree of Knowledge. Given how grounded I am in computers, it's important to know what it is to be human. The book starts with simple micro biology and ends by explaining the biological foundation of love. it's the only book I've read that literally changed the way I see the works (and if you read the book you'll know that I mean "literally" in the most literal sense). It's a difficult book, but some excellent reading guides exist do I highly recommend giving it a read.
- diego 15y ago* Thinking Fast, Slow by Daniel Kahneman * Steve Jobs, by Walter Isaacson * Slack, by Tom DeMarco (also re-read Peopleware). Both of these books are fundamental to anyone developing software within an organization. * Delivering Happiness, by Tony Hsieh. It's not fantastic but it's helpful if you are trying to build a business. * Tribal Leadership - recommended by the above. Not great but interesting. * Rework - short read, worth the time. * Managing Humans by Rands - very entertaining, useful if you manage people. Other stuff I read is not worth mentioning in a "best books" list.
- babebridou 15y agoI often got back to Playing to Win by David Sirlin - http://www.sirlin.net/ptw/ http://www.sirlin.net/ptw/ Though it's certainly aimed at competitive gaming, I also use it at times as an inspiration for my business. It helps whenever I need to take a second look and play the devil's advocate about my own decisions. Reading it also earned me an extremely effective weapon against procrastination.
- Sukotto 15y agoParticularly memorable books I read (or re-read) this year: - Don't Make Me Think by Krug: http://www.amazon.com/Dont-Make-Me-Think-Usability/dp/0321344758 http://www.amazon.com/Dont-Make-Me-Think-Usability/dp/032134... - Apartment Therapy by Gillingham-Ryan http://www.amazon.com/Apartment-Therapy-Eight-Step-Home-Cure/dp/0553383124 http://www.amazon.com/Apartment-Therapy-Eight-Step-Home-Cure... - Presentation Zen by Gar http://www.amazon.com/Presentation-Zen-Simple-Design-Delivery/dp/0321525655 http://www.amazon.com/Presentation-Zen-Simple-Design-Deliver... - Belisarius Saga by Flint and Drake http://baencd.thefifthimperium.com/13-TheBalticWarCD/TheBalticWarCD/ http://baencd.thefifthimperium.com/13-TheBalticWarCD/TheBalt... - Wise Man's Fear by Rothfuss http://www.amazon.com/Wise-Mans-Fear-Kingkiller-Chronicles/dp/0756404738 http://www.amazon.com/Wise-Mans-Fear-Kingkiller-Chronicles/d... - Wizard of Oz by Baum http://www.amazon.com/Wizard-Oz-Puffin-Classics/dp/0141321024 http://www.amazon.com/Wizard-Oz-Puffin-Classics/dp/014132102...
- pdenya 15y agoWise Man's Fear was incredible. That's the only non-technical book I've read multiple times in years.
- dholowiski 15y agoDon't make me think was the best book I made someone else read in 2011. It changed my boss's view of our web site, and now he's on my 'side'.
- ElliotH 15y agoIt took me 2010 as well as 2011, but I really enjoyed Godel, Escher Bach now I've finally got through it. It's hard going, but I can't think of a book that chnaged what I think about the world as much as that book has.
- jlarocco 15y agoI'm guessing most HN readers won't be too interested in this list, but here goes: Instant Karma: The Heart & Soul of a Ski Bum Wild Snow: 54 Classic Ski and Snowboard Descents of North America Roof of the Rockies: A History of Colorado Mountaineering Gang Leader for a Day: A Rogue Sociologist Takes to the Streets Computational Geometry: Algorithms and Applications
- jberryman 15y agoEverything and More - David Foster Wallace It's a book on the history of math, focused around the story of math's struggle to deal with infinity. There's really nothing like it. (okay, technically I still haven't finished it, but it's still 2011)
- schnaars 15y agoIn no order: - Word Catcher - http://amzn.to/s1Ykku http://amzn.to/s1Ykku - The Postmortal - http://amzn.to/rpaQyL http://amzn.to/rpaQyL - Moonwalking with Einstein - http://amzn.to/tDkRkY http://amzn.to/tDkRkY - The Post American World - http://amzn.to/4ex38B http://amzn.to/4ex38B
- sandal 15y agoThe Penguin and the Leviathan. It is an interesting mix of science and anecdotal evidence which hints that most people, most of the time, would actually benefit more from cooperative behavior than they would from competitive behavior. http://www.amazon.com/Penguin-Leviathan-Cooperation-Triumphs-Self-Interest/dp/0385525761 http://www.amazon.com/Penguin-Leviathan-Cooperation-Triumphs...
- yannickt 15y agoSolar Trillions, by Tony Seba. The book makes a strong case for seven market opportunities for solar energy. A great read that got me interested in clean tech.
- kd5bjo 15y ago* The Count of Monte Cristo, by Alexandre Dumas * Dune, by Frank Herbert
- dudurocha 15y agoNice thread! My favorite books this year were: The power of Less: http://amzn.to/t4umWo http://amzn.to/t4umWo . It discuss how you can simplify your life. It give many practical advices, and is good for all kinds of people. The message in the book is " be aware and simplify". Brilliant, Crazy, Cocky. By Sarah Lacy, former writer fo techcrunch. http://amzn.to/vMJwhR http://amzn.to/vMJwhR. It show how the entrepreneurship and startups are going around the world. As a brazilian reader, I find the picture of brazil very accurate, so the rest of the world must be accurate too. It's a good resource for anyone wanting to understand and know the startup community in countries like India, China, Brazil, Indonesia and others. If you want to write, by brenda Ueland ,http://amzn.to/w5gQyz http://amzn.to/w5gQyz: It's a nice book about the craftsmanship of writing. It's a bit 'philosophic' book, but also give a little practical advice. It's and old book, don't be amazed when it refer to the typewriter. And it's very cheap, only 3,99. And to finish, time warrior, by steve chandler. http://amzn.to/vNBawK http://amzn.to/vNBawK If you want a book to beat procrastination, and other modern plagues, this is the book. very practical advice, the book has more then 100 tips. Every should read it. Thats my favorite books of this year, apart of the ones everyone has talked about, like Steve Jobs bio, Lean Startup, and others startup world books.
- powertower 15y agoSomeone once said that 100s of thousands of books have been written to try to express the inexpressible, but only 1 has succeeded... The Book of Mirdad. > Logic is immaturity weaving its nets of gossamer wherewith it aims to catch the behemoth of knowledge. Logic is a crutch for the cripple; but a burden for the swift of foot; and a greater burden for the winged. Most people will read two pages of this book and hand it back. But that's their failure, not the books'. If you read the above quote, and don't get its true meaning, don't get this book, it will read as pure nonsense. The true meaning is that we (the cripple, all of us) use logic (a tool, the crutch) to help us (which is good), but at some point in time (after you've mastered logic) you reach an understand that there is no right or wrong, no point in progress or success, that the universe does not care about any of this, and that logic now holds you back (from enlightenment). Using logic, you can be a scholar, even a philosopher, but you'll never reach enlightenment. Now watch the truly crippled downvote this away.
- StavrosK 15y agoOoh, you had me until the last sentence. It doesn't sound enlightened, just spiteful.
- zooz 15y agoIncognito: The Secret Lives of The Brain - David Eagleman. A much recommended read. http://www.amazon.co.uk/Incognito-Secret-Lives-Brain-ebook/dp/B004SP1UEI/ref=pd_sxp_f_pt http://www.amazon.co.uk/Incognito-Secret-Lives-Brain-ebook/d...
- pardner 15y agoGame Theory At work by James Miller is a great non-mathematical description of key game theory and how to apply it in real life. I consider it to be a must-read for any entrepreneur.
- arank 15y agoDragons of Eden: Speculations on the Evolution of Human Intelligence (1986) from Carl Sagan.
- mindcrime 15y agoHmm... there have been a few, and I'd have to look through my "read books stack" to remind myself exactly which ones fell into 2011 and not prior years... but offhand, I'd mention: Fiction: Mona Lisa Overdrive - William Gibson Zero History - William Gibson 11/22/63 - Stephen King The Name of the Wind - Patrick Rothfuss The Wise Man's Fear - Patrick Rothfuss Non-fiction: Ghost in the Wires - Kevin Mitnick The Elegant Universe - Brian Greene The Trouble With Physics - Lee Smolin Not Even Wrong - Peter Woit The Lean Startup - Eric Ries Blue Ocean Strategy - W. Chan Kim and Renée Mauborgne Built To Last - Jim Collins Business Model Generation - Alexander Osterwalder Started, but unfinished, may yet make the list: Simulacra and Simulation - Jean Baudrillard Reamde - Neal Stephenson The Fabric of the Cosmos - Brian Greene
- mosjeff 15y ago"Outliers" by Malcolm Gladwell. Completely changed the way I think about success and my future.
- pauljonas 15y ago* The Idea of America: Reflections on the Birth of the United States by Gordon Wood — an outstanding collection of essays on the creation of America. They range in chronology from the 1960s until the present time and explore themes like Roman (founders all big devotees and disciples of Cato, Cicero, etc.… able to recite lines and relished in theater enactments) influence on the founders, the "radicalism" of Paine and Jefferson, the American brew of Enlightenment, monarchy v. democracy (democracy simply had no historical precedent, except for the brief, crude and flawed Athenian model thousands of years earlier), democracy v. republic, etc.… * Republic, Lost: How Money Corrupts Congress--and a Plan to Stop It by Lawrence Lessig * Evolution for Everyone: How Darwin's Theory Can Change the Way We Think About Our Lives by David Wilson Sloan — …jargon is toned down for a universal audience, and appeal is made that evolution should be broadly applied, and not just confined to the biology domain. 36 chapters, after a gentle introduction, tilt from specific path carving experiments to general queries on religion, morals, human nature. * Debt: The First 5,000 Years by David Graeber — Anthropologist shreds sacred classical "economics" cows on markets, debt, capitalism, etc.… …hard not to see things after taking in this fantastic research. * Christian Anarchism: A Political Commentary on the Gospel by Alexandre Christoyannopoulos — Christian anarchism has been around for at least as long as “secular” anarchism. The existing literature cites Leo Tolstoy as its most famous (sometimes even as the only) proponent, but there are many others, such as Jacques Ellul, Vernard Eller, Dave Andrews or the people associated with the Catholic Worker movement. Both individually and collectively, these Christian anarchists offer a compelling critique of the state, the church and the economy based on numerous passages from the New Testament. Yet despite the relevance and growth of this literature, no generic study bringing together these different thinkers or reflecting on their contribution has been published to date, because such work involves meticulous searching, compiling and structuring of countless different texts and sources, not all of which are easily accessed. This book, however, provides precisely such a study, and thereby presents Christian anarchism to both the wider public and the wider academic community. * To Know as We Are Known: Education as a Spiritual Journey by Parker Palmer — …an eloquent inquiry into "obedience of truth", what it means to educate and to be educated, that to love is "to know" and "to know" is to love. That it is about asking questions and inciting an inner fire, not about authoritarian objectivism or subjective "everyone has their own truth" relativism.
- libraryatnight 15y agoThe Exegesis of Philip K. Dick -- Fascinating to have some insight into Dick's thinking and attempts to understand his experiences. The book isn't really something to just sit down and read cover to cover, but more to explore and move around in, but if you love Philip K. Dick it's awesome.
- djb10401 15y agoI read a lot this year. Catch-22 was hilarious, insightful, and my personal favorite.
- bumbledraven 15y agoQuite possibly the best book I ever read in my life came out in 2011: The Beginning of Infinity by quantum physicist David Deutsch. http://amzn.to/mSTNCn http://amzn.to/mSTNCn It talks about the kinds of ideas that lead to progress in human societies and those that lead to stagnation. I believe Deutsch is, in this book, the first philosopher to actually explain why science works as well as it does. I wish I could do justice to this book in a short review, but instead I can only urge everyone reading this to give it a shot. Read the first chapter, and you'll know you have to read the rest.
- bolu 15y agoThe Emperor of All Maladies - spectacular journey into the history of the disease. Filled with great human stories of discovery, and also taught me a ton about the currently understood biology of cancer.
- nickhould 15y ago1. Founders At Work. Biographical - "Entrepreneurship stories at it's best" 2. Rework. Business-Book - "Think your business different" 3. Into Thin Air. Biographical . "An Everest Expedition Turn Wrong" 4. I Was Blind But Now I see. Biographical. "Leave Your Job, Start Your Business. Make Your Money Work For You, Don't Work For Your Money" 5. Anything You Want. Biographical. "Success comes from persistently improving and inventing, not from persistently doing what's not working. "
- aestetix_ 15y agoTied between "The Once and Future King" by T. H. White and "The Baroque Cycle" (yes, all three volumes) by Neal Stephenson.
- veidr 15y agoMy choice is Spin, a novel by Robert Charles Wilson (2005). This is IMO the very best kind of sci-fi: a plausible, scientifically grounded story about interesting people experiencing some fascinating shit. Wilson is a great writer, too; I hadn't heard of him previously, but have since read a bunch of his works. (As an aside, there has never been a year in my life where the best book of the year for me was a nonfiction title. Am I weird?) http://www.amazon.com/Spin-ebook/dp/B0016IXMWI/ref=kinw_dp_ke?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2 http://www.amazon.com/Spin-ebook/dp/B0016IXMWI/ref=kinw_dp_k...
- vishaldpatel 15y agoChapterhouse Dune.
- fcardinaux 15y ago"Enchantment", by Guy Kawasaki "Rework", by Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson "Web Design for Developers", by Brian P. Hogan "Scalability Rules", by Martin L. Abbott and Michael T. Fisher
- pradheap 15y ago'The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer' by Siddhartha Mukherjee
- markkat 15y agoBarbara Tuchman's The Guns of August.
- bleakgadfly 15y ago"Clean Code: A Handbook of Agile Software Craftmanship" by Uncle Bob.
- autumn_ 15y agoI'm surprised I'm not seeing more 1Q84 here.
- deStab 15y agoThe Swerve: How the World Became Modern by Stephen Greenblatt
- Nick_C 15y agoAnathem - Neal Stephenson. Recommended here last year, it blew my mind in a similar way to Name of the Rose but with a sci-fi theme. Dr Zhivago - Boris Pasternak. If you have not read any of the Russians, give this a go. Initially it is not easy, like all Russian literature, but the wonderfully poetic images and lyricism keep drawing you back. Easily my favourite for the year.
- samaraga 15y agoGodel,Escher,Bach by Douglas Hofstadter.
- emil0r 15y agoThe Exodus Case
- restreitinho 15y agoIt's not from this year, but I have to say it: I read Rework quite a few months back and it honestly changed my life. Other than that, The Thank You Economy is a good one as well.
- jazzdev 15y agoI got "The Most Human Human: What Talking with Computers Teaches Us About What It Means to Be Alive" for Christmas and it's just fascinating. Interesting history on the Turing test and AI and philosophy and very well written. I highly recommend it.
- ashitvora 15y ago- Don't make me think. - Delivering Happiness.
- FameofLight 15y agoThe Bhagwat Gita : You will very changed man once you read this, a very different person. This book is around 10000 years old,has even more relevance in the world today.
- herval 15y agoDoes fiction count? - Steve Jobs, the biography (edition is bad, lots of repeated passages and phrases and phrases, but the story itself is great) - Ender's Game (better at human psychology than Lord of the Flies) On the "biggest letdowns" ranking: - Lean Startup (shallow and basically a recollection of common sense stuff) - Game of Thrones series (I tried, then tried, then tried again. Not my kind of fiction, I guess)
- knes 15y agoGame design wise, the best are: - The Art of Game Design by Jesse Schell: http://amzn.to/zFOiEk http://amzn.to/zFOiEk It's pretty comprehensive, but I found it a bit "heads in the cloud" and not very hands on. The lenses give you some hands-on approach if you apply them though. If you are looking for a book with very specific "how-to-do-this-or-that" then it may not be your thing. I like to pair this book with David Perry on Game Design: http://amzn.to/ytXF7G http://amzn.to/ytXF7G That monster tomb is all hands-on and You can use it more like a cheatsheet:"OK I need a villain. Let me turn to the 'villain archetypes' section and pick one at random. OK he needs a weapon. Let me turn to the 'rifles' section and pick one at random" and so on. I also really liked "Level Up!: The Guide to Great Video Game Design" by Scott Rogers: http://amzn.to/xuVjWU http://amzn.to/xuVjWU It is the book I recommend to budding game developers because it is sort of like "Art of Game Design" lite. It covers most of the same topics but don't go into such an intellectual depth which is a GOOD thing for people just wrapping their heads around what game design is. Once they finish that, I move them to Schell's book. Cheers
- rinutk 15y agoTo kill a mocking bird!!