If you have any relatives, famous or not, that have kept a journal, or written family history - it offers a unique biographical reflection. You can read biographies about the greats, but you also can not be something you are not, and reading about relatives can offer needed perspective about your capacities.
Ask HN: What are some good biographies to read?
21–30 of 62 posts
Re: Ask HN: What are some good biographies to read?
#22Monash: The outsider who won a war. - Roland Perry.
Re: Ask HN: What are some good biographies to read?
#23Linus's biography, Just For Fun, is not bad.
I have sentimental attachments to Man Out of Time, the Tesla biography.
No Man Knows My History is about Joseph Smith, founder of the Mormon church. It is naturally controversial to the LDS, for its depiction of Smith as a polygamist con man who fell sideways into a religious racket and never quite fell out. I found it very readable, full of color. It might depend on your interest in the period and the subject matter.
Stephen King's On Writing is about half biography, half writing manual. I thought it was terrific. It's had several rereads already.
Re: Ask HN: What are some good biographies to read?
#24Richard Feynman: "Surely you're joking Mr. Feynman".
Not a conventional biography, but Richard wasn't a conventional man either.
Re: Ask HN: What are some good biographies to read?
#25Peter the Great: His Life and World, by Massie (this book won a Pulitzer but all his histories are very good)
Re: Ask HN: What are some good biographies to read?
#26The key thing is to differentiate between a biography and a hagiography.Oppenheimer is a must read let it be "American Prometheus" or my favorite "http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0195166736/qid=1151026828/s...".
This guy is awe-inspiring in almost every sense of the word.Despite reading all biographies you still feel a sense of enigma about his personality. Try understanding why the american government revoked his top secret clearance despite being "da man" at Los Alamos. He could walk into any deep technical discussion and lead them through their blocking situations.He can write poetry and amazingly well read about other cultures and still finding time to deliver more than expected results. Thats one heck of a biography to write..
Re: Ask HN: What are some good biographies to read?
#27It's a bit more than a biography, but I'd recommend "The Metaphysical Club: A Story of Ideas in America" by Louis Menand. It's about the lives and history surrounding Oliver Wendell Holmes, William James, Charles Peirce, and John Dewey, and the pragmatist philosophy they were involved in creating.
Re: Ask HN: What are some good biographies to read?
#28Iacocca: An Autobiography
He was responsible for the ford mustang, and later went on the revive Chrysler.
Re: Ask HN: What are some good biographies to read?
#29Thomas Edison or Benjamin Franklin. Such brilliant minds with some many little anecdotes us hackers can relate to.
Re: Ask HN: What are some good biographies to read?
#30Craig Venter's autobiography was intriguing. It would be especially good if you were already familiar with Biology and DNA. I ripped through it and reading it was quite enjoyable.
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