Ask HN: Which book have you re-read recently? • Hacker News Board

Re: Ask HN: Which book have you re-read recently?

#131

Post by dominotw » Sat, Feb 04, 2017, 5:57 PM UTC

manlio wrote: post #63

* The Doors of Perception, by Aldous Huxley. [0] So famous it became a bit of a cliche. I read it years ago and it didn't make any sense to me. But now that I've been studying Buddhism and practicing meditation for a while I picked it up again and I found it nothing short of brilliant, packed with interesting insights on philosophy, the arts, theology, the history of mysticism and the quest for the meaning of life. I…

I wonder how much of Huxley's work is influenced by his friendship with Jiddu Krishnamurthi.

I am only marginally familiar with K's work but have no knowledge of Huxley's . Would be curious if someone who has read both can comment about the similarities/influences between the two.

Re: Ask HN: Which book have you re-read recently?

#132

Post by henrik_w » Sat, Feb 04, 2017, 5:58 PM UTC

evplv wrote: post #21

Deep Work by Cal Newport. http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25744928-deep-work Eye opening reading for everyone who works in IT, science or any industry that requires long chunks of deep attention.

+1 for Deep Work, especially in this easily distracted world (get off Twitter and do deep work instead).

Re: Ask HN: Which book have you re-read recently?

#133

Post by dominotw » Sat, Feb 04, 2017, 6:01 PM UTC

hypertexthero wrote: post #52

The First and Last Freedom by Jiddu Krishnamurti https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_First_and_Last_Freedom

I read this many times as a teenager after finding this on a railway platform in India. Changed my life. Good to see it here.

Re: Ask HN: Which book have you re-read recently?

#134

Post by henrik_w » Sat, Feb 04, 2017, 6:01 PM UTC

pjmorris wrote: post #92

I re-read 'The Hobbit', which made me marvel again at such a delightful, thoughtful story, the world and characters that Tolkien wrought, and the morals of self-discovery and self-sacrifice... and sad for what the movie(s) could have been instead of what they were.

I re-read it two years ago, and was blown away by how good it was. A really good read!

Re: Ask HN: Which book have you re-read recently?

#135

Post by Shorel » Sat, Feb 04, 2017, 6:01 PM UTC

Godel, Escher, Bach.

But I'm not fully re-reading it, because the first time I only got to one third of it.

So, until I get to that first third, I'm re-reading, and after that, it is all new.

Re: Ask HN: Which book have you re-read recently?

#136

Post by henrik_w » Sat, Feb 04, 2017, 6:02 PM UTC

"How to win friends and influence people" by Dale Carnegie. Timeless wisdom that is good to be reminded of regularly.

Re: Ask HN: Which book have you re-read recently?

#137

Post by jraedisch » Sat, Feb 04, 2017, 6:06 PM UTC

Prelude to Foundation by Isaac Asimov

Re: Ask HN: Which book have you re-read recently?

#138

Post by criddell » Sat, Feb 04, 2017, 6:12 PM UTC

secfirstmd wrote: post #85

criddell wrote: post #37

Neil Strauss' Emergency and Peter Heller's The Dog Stars . I read the piece in the New Yorker about rich tech guys and their bug out plans for the apocalypse (including Reddit's Alex Ohanian). I love Strauss' journey from survivalist to community volunteer. It changed the way I think about preparedness. Heller's book is one of only a few that I find myself thinking about all the time. I'm a sucker for any book with a…

You might also like "The Knowledge" by Dr Lewis Dartnell.

Looks pretty interesting. Thanks for the recommendation.

Re: Ask HN: Which book have you re-read recently?

#139

Post by Synaesthesia » Sat, Feb 04, 2017, 6:17 PM UTC

chc4 wrote: post #125

Pattern Recognition by William Gibson. Really, anything by Gibson is worth reading multiple times, simply for the great writing style. Pattern Recognition also does something special: have you really ever /thought/ about brands and advertising? Lots of commentary on culture, memetic fashion, and what it means. Recursion by Tony Ballantyne is a book that I didn't actually like all that much, but reread anyways. It cov…

Pattern recognition was great. William Gibson can make some very compelling characters.

Re: Ask HN: Which book have you re-read recently?

#140

Post by patal » Sat, Feb 04, 2017, 6:21 PM UTC

Three Men in a Boat, by Jerome K. Jerome

I consider this timeless humour, because it gets me to laugh out loud in public. People get startled by this. Also, I read episodes from the book to my 7 year old, who loves it. Occasionally, I need to explain a very dry joke, but some I leave for him to discover later.