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Ask HN: 2018 Summer Reading List?

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Re: Ask HN: 2018 Summer Reading List?

#121

Post by davedx »

DanielBMarkham wrote: post #111

I cycle from business to pulp fiction to classics to non-fiction to biographies. Right now I'm doing classics. I find that taking a month or two each year and reading classics I may have overlooked makes all the other books I read that much better. (It also gives them a higher bar to reach!) This month it's The Count of Monte Cristo and The Brothers Karamazov. I'm having a blast. I can't believe it's taken me this lo…

Going with the "stuck on an island" theme, "The Magus" is another great classic. Definitely one of my favourite books in a while.

Re: Ask HN: 2018 Summer Reading List?

#122

Post by davedx »

mojoe wrote: post #70
pbnjay wrote: post #14

For sci-fi recs: I recently read The Three-body Problem by Cixin Liu (a trilogy) and thought it was really good. Also just started another sci-fi trilogy with A Fire Upon the Deep by Vernor Vinge which has some really fun and interesting (if hand-wavy) ideas about deep space physics.

Those two are fantastic, and if you like Vernor Vinge check out "A Deepness in the Sky" -- I think it's his best work, and is much more plausible (centered around slower-than-light travel). I have a few more recommendations in that vein here: http://compellingsciencefiction.com/blog/2016-12-18.html

I really liked the concepts of the story in Deepness, but it took so long to progress I got bored of it. :(

Re: Ask HN: 2018 Summer Reading List?

#123

Post by rayalez »

Here are the best books I've read over the last few months:

- Lost and Founder - the founder of Moz shares his advice and experience from building a 40M/year company. I found the things he says about building a startup extremely insightful and practically useful. Reading it feels like having a dinner with a friend who shares with you the things he has learned in a very honest, down to earth way. Highly recommend it.

- Rationality from AI to Zombies - probably the most influential book I've read in my life, profoundly changed the way I think. It's a collection of LessWrong essays on science and rationality. (recently they've released an an audio version by the way).

- "A Short History of Nearly Everything" and "Our Mathematical Universe" - two general popular science books I'm enjoying a lot. Haven't finished reading them yet, but so far they're brilliant(and very easy to understand, authors do an amazing job explaining complicated things in a simple, accessible way).

- Hacking Growth - an AMAZING book on "growth hacking". It provides a framework for marketing a startup, gives a ton of practical advice and specific tactics. It breaks down step by step how startups and big tech companies grow their products. Most of the books I've read on the subject were bullshit, but this one is absolutely fantastic, can't recommend it enough.

Other great books I should mention: This Idea is Brilliant, Actionable Gamification, The Design of Everyday Things, The Master Algorithm (great overview of machine learning techniqes), Springfield Confidential (fun behind the scenes from one of the writers on Simpsons), Homo Deus(from the author of Sapiens).

Re: Ask HN: 2018 Summer Reading List?

#124

Post by JonoBB »

msadowski wrote: post #60

Can anyone recommend some book about Africa? I would like to gain some insights about life there, ideally fact based, maybe some history? Doesn't need to be the whole continent as well, would love to start with any particular country. This year I decided to read at least one book a month the ones I found most inspiring were: * Factfulness - how we can misinterpret the data and how most of us have a wrong idea about t…

If you like James Michener, then The Covenant is a great read about South Africa

If you're looking for a somewhat bleak overview of corruption and despots since independence, then try Martin Meredith The State of Africa: A History of the Continent Since Independence

One of my favourites is Blood River: A Journey to Africa's Broken Heart

Disgrace, by JM Coetzee. Outstanding book, emotionally difficult to read. Made into a not-too-bad movie with John Malkovich, but the book is infinitely better.

Re: Ask HN: 2018 Summer Reading List?

#125

Post by Pietertje »

coccinelle wrote: post #89
msadowski wrote: post #60

Can anyone recommend some book about Africa? I would like to gain some insights about life there, ideally fact based, maybe some history? Doesn't need to be the whole continent as well, would love to start with any particular country. This year I decided to read at least one book a month the ones I found most inspiring were: * Factfulness - how we can misinterpret the data and how most of us have a wrong idea about t…

Congo by David Van Reybrouck was recommended to me as a great book, but I haven't read it yet!

This is indeed a great book. Definitely worth a read.

Van Reybrouck describes the history of Congo starting pre-colonial, the colonization by Belgium and the entire aftermath. The books gives you a good understanding on the impact and the how of colonization and the history of Congo.

Re: Ask HN: 2018 Summer Reading List?

#126

Post by plahteenlahti »

a_d wrote: post #107

I have a sort of meta-question, Specifically about non-fiction work: if one gets the central idea contained in the book (say, from a blog or Podcasts or YouTube video of author explaining the ideas) - Is it still useful to read the entire book? If a book is fundamentally about “ideas” — aren’t there more efficient ways available today (that were not pre-internet) to learn those ideas more quickly? As an example: Ther…

I think this depends how you value your time, and how you feel about reading. I personally feel that the point of reading is not simply about understanding the fundamental ideas those books are about. More important is to do something you enjoy, and if you don't enjoy reading that much, going with the more efficient way is most likely the better way to go.

Re: Ask HN: 2018 Summer Reading List?

#127

Post by avar »

I highly recommend the recently published book Radical Markets[1] which I read after listening to an interview with one of the authors on Econtalk[2]. From that summary:

> Weyl urges a radical transformation of land and housing markets using a new federal real estate tax based on self-assessment. Owners would be required to sell their houses at the self-assessed price.

That's just the first part of the book, it has similar suggestions for election law, how monopolies fueled by index funds can be addressed etc.

I don't know how workable all these ideas are in practice, but I found it to be a fresh look at some societal issues.

1. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36515770-radical-markets

2. http://www.econtalk.org/glen-weyl-on-radical-markets/

Re: Ask HN: 2018 Summer Reading List?

#129

Post by kenjinp »

mojoe wrote: post #70
pbnjay wrote: post #14

For sci-fi recs: I recently read The Three-body Problem by Cixin Liu (a trilogy) and thought it was really good. Also just started another sci-fi trilogy with A Fire Upon the Deep by Vernor Vinge which has some really fun and interesting (if hand-wavy) ideas about deep space physics.

Those two are fantastic, and if you like Vernor Vinge check out "A Deepness in the Sky" -- I think it's his best work, and is much more plausible (centered around slower-than-light travel). I have a few more recommendations in that vein here: http://compellingsciencefiction.com/blog/2016-12-18.html

omg I love your website!

Re: Ask HN: 2018 Summer Reading List?

#130

Post by ianmcgowan »

ashton314 wrote: post #79

_Anathem_ by Neil Stevenson. Science Fiction. Takes place in a universe very much like ours. The most noticeable difference is the culture: intellectuals live inside monastery-like sanctuaries, while religious people live outside. The story is written from the point of view of one of the intellectuals. Very rich world building. The book also explores (high-level, slightly fictitious in some parts) some fascinating ar…

The bat, the worm and the fly is still one of the most zen moments ever for me. Really felt like a smack on the head.
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