Ask HN: 2018 Summer Reading List? • Hacker News Board

Re: Ask HN: 2018 Summer Reading List?

#161

Post by drited » Fri, Jul 13, 2018, 9:10 AM UTC

It's an audiobook but if you're interested in Chinese history I thought The Fall and Rise of China was fascinating. It is available on audible.

Re: Ask HN: 2018 Summer Reading List?

#162

Post by iventwind » Fri, Jul 13, 2018, 9:10 AM UTC

jboynyc wrote: post #132

I recently read The Dispossessed and The Lathe of Heaven by Ursula K. Le Guin, and will continue reading her stuff over the summer for sure. It's really great. (HN discussion about her obituary: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=16218439 ) The other day I started Pictures of a Gone City , a book about the Bay Area by critical geographer Richard Walker. It was recently discussed here ( https://news.ycombinator.com/…

Hey, thanks! I have never heard of that website. Will be truly useful.

Re: Ask HN: 2018 Summer Reading List?

#163

Post by DanBC » Fri, Jul 13, 2018, 9:17 AM UTC

More children's books:

Hello Ruby. Adventures in coding https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1250065003/ (But I might spend mroe time with a Scratch book).

Nine Open Arms https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1743315856

My Little Book of Big Freedoms https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1780555067

The Lost Words https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/0241253586

All of those are perhaps a bit "worthy", and we read a load of other books. We're going to make our way through anything published by Little Gems. These are small, short, books with a clear font and nice illustration. I think these are great for reluctant or new readers. Here's one example, but they have a load: Mr Birdnest and the House Next Door (lovely illustration by Hannah Shaw) https://www.amazon.co.uk/Birdsnest-House-Next-Door-Little/dp...

And things like The London Eye Mystery (which may be a bit too old for my child, we'll see how it goes) https://www.amazon.co.uk/London-Eye-Mystery-Siobhan-Dowd/dp/...

We're still reading a few heavily illustrated books. I love Kate Hindley's work, so I'm buying The Knight Who Said No! https://www.amazon.co.uk/Knight-Who-Said-No/dp/1788002083

Re: Ask HN: 2018 Summer Reading List?

#164

Post by mns06 » Fri, Jul 13, 2018, 9:18 AM UTC

I'm 2/3 of the way through Enlightenment Now by Stephen Pinker, having seen Bill Gates describe it as his new favourite book of all time: https://www.gatesnotes.com/Books/Enlightenment-Now.

With the daily news cycle full of violence, hatred and despair, the book is an rationally optimistic (possibilist!) argument that the human condition has been improving since the days of the Enlightenment - and that the improvement is driven by reason, science and humanism. Definitely recommended.

Re: Ask HN: 2018 Summer Reading List?

#165

Post by nobrains » Fri, Jul 13, 2018, 9:18 AM UTC

Ready Player One.

Read it before seeing the movie.

If you were born in late 70s or 80s, you will enjoy the references.

Re: Ask HN: 2018 Summer Reading List?

#166

Post by midhir » Fri, Jul 13, 2018, 9:25 AM UTC

If I could recommend one book from what I've read this year it'd be When China Rules the World by Martin Jaques.

For fiction; Solar Bones by Mike McCormack. One-sentence novel about a man on the West coast of Ireland shortly before the crash hit. Won the Dublin Literary Prize.

Re: Ask HN: 2018 Summer Reading List?

#167

Post by rpeden » Fri, Jul 13, 2018, 9:26 AM UTC

TripleH wrote: post #142

A classic which appears so frequently in HN comments that I decided to find the time to read it. It was really worth it. "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance" by Robert Pirsig

If you enjoyed it, you might like the sequel Lila as well.

I think I may have even liked Lila a bit more than Zen.

Re: Ask HN: 2018 Summer Reading List?

#168

Post by agigao » Fri, Jul 13, 2018, 9:28 AM UTC

Going through:

* Faust - Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

* How To Read a Book - Mortimer J. Adler

* Python Machine Learning 2nd Edition - Sebastian Raschka

* Economics 19e - Samuelson/Nordhaus

Next in line:

* The Sleepwalkers - Hermann Broch

* The Will to Power - Friedrich Nietzsche

* Oxford Handbook of Business and Government - David Coen(and other dozens of lecturers)

Re: Ask HN: 2018 Summer Reading List?

#169

Post by georgehaake » Fri, Jul 13, 2018, 9:34 AM UTC

Southern Reach Trilogy. On the last book. All three very well written.

Re: Ask HN: 2018 Summer Reading List?

#170

Post by fredley » Fri, Jul 13, 2018, 9:37 AM UTC

a-saleh wrote: post #108

Before I started a new job I had myself read: 1. So good they can't ignore you 2. Deep work 3. Mythical man-month 4. Power of habit Now I am reading Tools of titans by Tim Ferris. I never thought I would get into the genre of self-improvement books, but it seems I like these :-) Even though I am conscious about the fact, that I am applying maybe 10% of the books advice :P Another thing I am reading is Math from three…

I found 59 Seconds: Think a little, change a lot by Richard Wiseman to be a good contribution to the genre, if you're looking for more.