Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Ask HN: What is one book you would recommend everyone to read?

news.ycombinator.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

341–350 of 365 posts

Re: Ask HN: What is one book you would recommend everyone to read?

#341

Post by EVa5I7bHFq9mnYK »

uniqueuid wrote: post #183
biren34 wrote: post #114

Okay at the risk of being offensive, all the comments before mine are made by overly intellectual fools. I'm not usually so insulting--but as a father of two, if my 3 year old and 1.5 year old could only read one book, it would have to be "Oh, the places you'll go" by Dr. Suess. Sorry to stomp on Das Kapital and its ilk, but if you get only one book, I can't imagine a better first message to convey than the endless p…

You will probably agree that the hidden recommendation here is to have kids :) With small kids, the world is your oyster and everything is a great wonder, and that's the real treasure. So perhaps we can say the advice is to learn from kids and stay hungry and foolish? And that can of course apply to reading as well!

Which is rather insensitive, given that large percentage of HN readers have never seen the place where children come from!

Re: Ask HN: What is one book you would recommend everyone to read?

#342

Post by ollran »

shafyy wrote: post #150

To have or to be - Erich Fromm Erich Fromm is a great author and in this book he looks at the difference of having (owning stuff) vs. being (enjoying experiences). He argues that too many people are focused on "having", and that our whole society and even language is built around that. For example, you would say "I have a relationship". He argues that it's a weird choice of words, since you don't own the relationship…

Erich Fromm came to mind as well. The same ideas and themes also appear in the books of Hermann Hesse.

Re: Ask HN: What is one book you would recommend everyone to read?

#343

Post by laumars »

orange8 wrote: post #325
laumars wrote: post #267

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> You spoke only of one withheld account, that of Mary, and you said it was because of her gender. Yes, and I explained why I did in the post above > And when you say it lacks authenticity, is it because it's a mans account? Meaning a mans account cannot be authentic in its own right.. Fuck me this is getting repetitive. Let’s just forget all mention of gender because my points stand up without that context. The poin…

> Let’s just forget all mention of gender because my points stand up without that context. Good. I rest my case then. > The points being the Bible lacks the accounts from those closest to Jesus and his teachings. Moving on, assuming you are talking about Mary here, and have read the gospel of Mary, can you tell us just a few things that it contains that are lacking in the other gospels, written by men who were also v…

We’ve gone through all this already.

For someone who’s advocating we read, you’re having a hard time doing that yourself.

The sad thing is I genuinely would have enjoyed your insights into the Bible but I guess that was too much to ask.

As also mentioned elsewhere, I’m not going to bother replying further because I think you’ve already exhausted all possible iterations of this repetitive argument you’ve got us on.

Re: Ask HN: What is one book you would recommend everyone to read?

#344

Post by laumars »

orange8 wrote: post #330
laumars wrote: post #287

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> If you have read the gospel of Mary, why don't you tell us more about your take on in? How does it differ from the other male written accounts? What in your opinion makes it more authentic? What does it talk about that the others don't? Please give us something more details that the generic "not authentic" refrain. Given the conversation that lead up to this point, I’m going to respectfully decline this offer becau…

> I’m going to respectfully decline this offer because I’m not really in the mood to risk another argument on another topic. lol! > Then there are issues about how it was written by man, in the literal sense. Female testaments were left out. > I didn’t say the Bible lacked any female accounts. It looks like I'm doing a better job than yourself of keeping track of what you've said. > Book editors generally work in con…

> A "reinterpretation"? That's not what a book editor does.

I know! You’re the one that made the stupid argument about book editors and I told you at the time that wasn’t what a book editor did.

> Drama, by definition is a specific type of fiction. So how can non-fiction works be dramatized and remain non-fiction?

You say that and then go on to say absolute truth doesn’t exist and if you ask people the same question twice you get a different version of the truth. Literally contradicting your opening sentence.

> It looks like I'm doing a better job than yourself of keeping track of what you've said.

You’re either incredibly piss poor at reading comprehension or just trolling. I’m assuming the former given conversing with you has been like trying to hold a debate with someone who’s suffering from severe mental trauma. You repeatedly contradict yourself (sometimes in the same post), build up entire arguments around some subtext you’ve derived and then refuse to move past that even when it’s pointed out that you’re completely in the wrong.

Either way, this could have been an interesting discussion where you presented why you might recommend the Bible but instead it’s been a frustrating affair of you demonstrating how some people are incapable or reading any form of texts.

With that in mind I’m going to terminate our conversation here because we are just going round in circles with yourself repeatedly missing the mark at every opportunity.

Re: Ask HN: What is one book you would recommend everyone to read?

#345

Post by orange8 »

laumars wrote: post #344
orange8 wrote: post #330

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I’m going to respectfully decline this offer because I’m not really in the mood to risk another argument on another topic. lol! > Then there are issues about how it was written by man, in the literal sense. Female testaments were left out. > I didn’t say the Bible lacked any female accounts. It looks like I'm doing a better job than yourself of keeping track of what you've said. > Book editors generally work in con…

> A "reinterpretation"? That's not what a book editor does. I know! You’re the one that made the stupid argument about book editors and I told you at the time that wasn’t what a book editor did. > Drama, by definition is a specific type of fiction. So how can non-fiction works be dramatized and remain non-fiction? You say that and then go on to say absolute truth doesn’t exist and if you ask people the same question…

> You’re the one that made the stupid argument

lol.

> You say that and then go on to say absolute truth doesn’t exist and if you ask people the same question twice you get a different version of the truth.

lol! Different accounts !== different versions of the truth. Once you've calmed down enough to think clearly, go and reflect on the term "absolute truth".

> You’re either incredibly piss poor at reading comprehension

> conversing with you has been like trying to hold a debate with someone who’s suffering from severe mental trauma

> some people are incapable or reading any form of texts

The insults are now flying fast and furious, all over the place, lol! I do agree with you on one thing though: this conversation is now over.

Re: Ask HN: What is one book you would recommend everyone to read?

#346

Post by geraltofrivia »

NoboruWataya wrote: post #245
geraltofrivia wrote: post #169

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Apologising in advance to derail from the point of this comment. Lately, I've been giving audiobooks a go. It really does make "consuming" a book much, much easier. Listening during commute/chores is a huge plus. But also, I can't help but feel that listening to books is far less engaging, rewarding than reading them. I've found this holds not just for immaculately written books, but even for easy reads (e.g. wheel o…

Honestly I find I have a fairly low success rate with audiobooks. Temporary distractions might cause me to zone out and miss a part of the story, and "rewinding" to listen to the same part again isn't as easy as just re-reading a paragraph. I also find that I can be put off good books by poor narration, particularly if there is a lot of dialogue involved. I find I have most success with "pop science" books. Not too d…

> Temporary distractions might cause me to zone out and miss a part of the story, and "rewinding" to listen to the same part again isn't as easy as just re-reading a paragraph.

I agree. I think it also explains why I find them less rewarding. When reading, I'm usually just ... reading. Maybe walking and reading. But when I'm listening to audiobooks, I'm involved in a commute, doing some chores, or just fiddling on the phone. The audio input enough is not enough stimuli for me to focus on. I'm literally giving myself something to do along with. It makes complete sense I would not be as involved in the story.

> success with "pop science" books.

That actually sounds like a good idea.

> Audible subscriptions

I didn't have the Audible subscription up until very recently (using Audible.in and paying with a french debit card doesn't allow for recurrent payments), and I would just buy the audiobook at the offered price. Most books go for 900-1700 INR (10-20 EUR), whereas their ebook variants go for 300-900 INR (4-10 EUR). I've seen similar ratios on french stores as well.

E.g. the paperback of Turtles all the way down (John Green) [1] is 10,30 EUR on Amazon, Kindle ebook is 5,20 EUR [2] and Kate Rudd's narration is 23,50 EUR [3].

[1] https://www.amazon.fr/Turtles-All-Down-John-Green/dp/0525555...

[2] https://www.amazon.fr/Turtles-All-Way-Down-English-ebook/dp/...

[3] https://www.audible.fr/pd/Turtles-All-the-Way-Down-Livre-Aud...

Re: Ask HN: What is one book you would recommend everyone to read?

#347

Post by koziserek »

playeren wrote: post #292
is_true wrote: post #273

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There's also atomic habits. It seems authors were in search of the smallest habit possible. Probably smaller = easier for readers searching for shortcuts to build willpower Can't wait for subatomic habits!!

I'm actually writing a book called "Quantum Habits". I've only gotten to the title, so far.

Maybe it should remain a quantum book as well ;]

Re: Ask HN: What is one book you would recommend everyone to read?

#348

Post by TameAntelope »

tomcooks wrote: post #339
TameAntelope wrote: post #151

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I would only recommend Ripptoe if you’re already strength training or have a passion for the mechanics of strength exercises, because if it’s not immediately practical or a fascination, the book will likely bore you.

Opposite of my experience, helps you have the proper mechanical info to learn the basics, skipping marketing nonsense and mumbo jumbo. Knowing how to lift something heavy safely goes beyond the practice of strength training, it's a life skill.

It's multiple hundreds of pages, and a gigantic waste of time for anyone who isn't interested in the mechanics of strength training.

Not everyone is interested in the same things as you.

Re: Ask HN: What is one book you would recommend everyone to read?

#349

Post by leoh »

AnimalMuppet wrote: post #340
leoh wrote: post #337

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Well, if you look at Oedipus and Jesus, they appeal to Girard’s definition of being scapegoats in that they didn’t do anything wrong, but are presented as resolving a serious problem, which they don’t actually solve. In the case of Oedipus, he is accused not merely of marrying his mother and marrying his father, but of bringing a plague into Thebes, which is just silly and demonstrably impossible; and his death does…

But if I understand correctly, that isn't Girard's point. Girard is saying that they do realize that they are scapegoating, though they don't admit it publicly. The society knows, but it's on the quiet - they don't acknowledge it out loud, but they know. So, yeah. Evidence for that is somewhat lacking - it requires interpretation , which a cynic could call "making stuff up".

We are not in agreement. Girard takes issue with any process where someone is blamed for misfortune, for which they are not actually guilty — ie the process of scapegoating.

You propose that all the individuals involved in scapegoating are always aware. This does not accord with my reading of Girard.

What Girard does believe, in my understanding, is that individuals _can_ become aware of the fact that they scapegoat; he is even perhaps hopeful in that he proposes that some folks even _hide_ the fact that they are scapegoating from themselves; but can become aware of it, with the advantage of truth on the other side.

Post reply on HN