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Ask HN: Best book you read in 2010 and briefly why

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Re: Ask HN: Best book you read in 2010 and briefly why

#61

Post by avinashv »

brown9-2 wrote: post #57
ramidarigaz wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

One of my top five books. I've read it so many times that the binding broke and the book is now in three pieces. I'm amazed that James Clavell managed to capture the culture so well.

Would you recommend any of his followup books? I'm worried that stories with different characters, time periods etc won't have the same feel.

I've read only Noble House. It's quite rich on the culture--maybe not so much as Shogun--and captures the setting quite well, but I didn't find it nearly as entrancing as Shogun.

Worth a read, still.

Re: Ask HN: Best book you read in 2010 and briefly why

#62

Post by Alex3917 »

Anatomy of an Epidemic: http://www.amazon.com/Anatomy-Epidemic-Bullets-Psychiatric-A...

About how there has been an enormous rise in the rates of mental illness over the last 50 years. And despite the fact that the APA says it's because we've gotten better at diagnosing mental illness, the bulk of the evidence points to the fact that psychiatric drugs are causing diseases that used to mostly get better with time to become both more severe and long lasting.

Re: Ask HN: Best book you read in 2010 and briefly why

#63

Post by gruseom »

tptacek wrote: post #55
nikcub wrote: post #35

A toss between 'The Big Short' by Michael Lewis and 'Too Big To Fail' by Andrew Ross Sorkin. Both books are about the financial crisis on Wall Street. They provide excellent insight into how smart people made very bad decisions that had repercussions around the entire world. The last time I remember getting such an insight into this important industry was Lewis' own 'Liars Poker'. I think it is important for people t…

I liked both of these books --- "The Big Short" maybe a little more than "Too Big To Fail", because Lewis is just crazy!good about pacing and character development --- but had serious concerns about how accurate/unbiased they were. Particularly Sorkin's book, which I've heard negative things about. I'm about 2/3 of the way through _All The Devils Are Here_ by Joe Nocera and feel like it's doing a brilliant job of add…

I've found Nocera's commentaries on NPR to be unusually frank. Perhaps I'll check out his book.

Speaking of documents of the financial crisis (though it's not a book), I went to see Inside Job last night, partly because I'm interested in the subject and partly because a weird sort of hey-he's-a-startup-guy-too loyalty inclines me to patronize Charles Ferguson's movies. It's an overview that falls a little short as a movie, i.e. it doesn't quite structurally hold up to the level of outrage it's going for. The most interesting thing, though, is how Ferguson devotes the last quarter of the movie to ripping academic economists a new one for their shoddy work and gaping conflicts of interest. Given that he started out as a policy wonk on the Ivy League/DC circuit, it seems clear that this is where his heart is. I felt very uncomfortable watching those segments (Ali G makes me squirm too) but it seemed like it needed to be done.

Edit: Also, Nouriel Roubini, on whom the film relies heavily, turns out to be surprisingly good onscreen.

Re: Ask HN: Best book you read in 2010 and briefly why

#64

Post by sayemm »

"The Snowball: Warren Buffett and the Business of Life", by Alice Schroeder - http://www.amazon.com/Snowball-Warren-Buffett-Business-Life/...

This is by far the best biography on the man. Alice Schroeder did an amazing job. His life story is incredibly instructive whether you're an entrepreneur or an investor. When you study Buffett's life you get a deep appreciation for the intangible qualities that define extraordinary entrepreneurs.

Best business book I've ever read, and probably will ever read. I don't say that lightly. My copy is thoroughly dog-eared, highlighted, and I turn to it over and over again.

Will teach you far more business than any MBA will -- but only if you're serious about learning, and reading through 832 pages.

Re: Ask HN: Best book you read in 2010 and briefly why

#65

Post by patio11 »

boyter wrote: post #4

Easy. http://www.startupbook.net/ Informative, in a space I am interested in, and im already applying the techniques. Probably something everyone on this site should read.

I'm quoted on that site so it is kind of redundant, but there is some great advice in there. I particularly like the chapters on VAs and email marketing. For early stage companies, there is a basic primer to SEO and whatnot which covers some of the things I learned the hard and expensive way.

Re: Ask HN: Best book you read in 2010 and briefly why

#67

Post by Dananjaya »

"A Little History Of The World" by E.H Gombrich http://www.amazon.com/Little-History-World-H-Gombrich/dp/030...

From a long time I wanted to dig deeper in to the subject of human history starting from the undocumented prehistoric era. But the plethora of information available in the internet often bewilders me and I find my self thinking where to start. This book--mind you first printed in 1936--describes the story of humans from the stone age to atomic age in 40 concise chapters. It's like a reading a fiction (a good one..). This is the most comprehensive span of the human history and the most colorful and vivid account of it.. (at least comparing the history books I've read..)

Re: Ask HN: Best book you read in 2010 and briefly why

#68

Post by GeneralMaximus »

aaronblohowiak wrote: post #32

The Foundation trilogy, because it rekindled my interests in the relationship between determinism, humanity, choice and the succession of time.

I must say I'm not enjoying Foundation and Empire as much as the original Foundation. Foundation had me pausing every few pages to think, but I found the second book lacking in those viewpoint-altering ideas. Anyway, I'm only halfway through the second one. I hope it gets better towards the end.

Re: Ask HN: Best book you read in 2010 and briefly why

#69

Post by mdemare »

fogus wrote: post #44

Breakfast of Champions by Vonnegut. I've read a ton of books in my life, but for some reason never took the plunge into Vonnegut. I was utterly awe struck by this book. I think every person has a small list of things that they wish that they had created (well, the ability to create them that is). Breakfast of Champions immediately found its way onto my list. The only problem is that such a book makes me embarrassed t…

http://www.amazon.com/Breakfast-Champions-Novel-Kurt-Vonnegu...

Re: Ask HN: Best book you read in 2010 and briefly why

#70

Post by derrickpetzold »

brown9-2 wrote: post #57
ramidarigaz wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

One of my top five books. I've read it so many times that the binding broke and the book is now in three pieces. I'm amazed that James Clavell managed to capture the culture so well.

Would you recommend any of his followup books? I'm worried that stories with different characters, time periods etc won't have the same feel.

After Shogun I read a bunch of his books. The only one that stood out for me was Rat King.
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