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Ask HN: Books you plan to read in 2020?

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Re: Ask HN: Books you plan to read in 2020?

#231

Post by renjimen »

matsemann wrote: post #130
bilekas wrote: post #110

Everyone else with nice collections of books. Mine : Harry Potter

Well, I still read them almost every christmas. At least a few of them. I'd also recommend Brandon Sanderson. Mistborn series is very good, and Stormligh Archive is good so far. I really like his world-building, and I think the way he uses magic is something most HNers would approve of. It's often well defined, and the characters try to exploit it the same way a reader would.

I’ll add The Kingkiller Chronicles by Patrick Rothfuss to this, having recently gotten into Brandon Sanderson. Probably my favourite fantasy series. Lots of similarities to the Mistborn Series.

Re: Ask HN: Books you plan to read in 2020?

#232

Post by entropyneur »

kidintech wrote: post #23

My compiled list for 2020, as suggested by friends I respect and HN: General ==== - Master & Margarita (w reader's guide) - Why we sleep - The righteous mind: why good people are divided by politics and religion - The wisdom of insecurity - The denial of death - The three body problem (friend's advice: slow burn, stick with it) - The dubliners - The devils (Dostoyevski) - The name of the rose - Enten-Oller (Kierkegaa…

> If anyone has read any and has feedback/notes, I'm looking forward to hearing them!

The wisdom of insecurity: very very good if you are at all interested in the matters it explores

Zero to one: the whole genre of business wisdom books is crap IMHO, but at least this one is short

Basic economics (Thomas Sowell): total must read

Re: Ask HN: Books you plan to read in 2020?

#234

Post by henrik_w »

pjmorris wrote: post #98

I hilariously overestimate the number of books I can get through when I make these lists, but my current list for 2020 is as follows: Digital Minimalism: Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World The Man Who Solved the Market: How Jim Simons Launched the Quant Revolution Book of Proof Designing Data-Intensive Applications: The Big Ideas Behind Reliable, Scalable, and Maintainable Systems Seeing Like a State: How Certa…

"Designing Data-Intensive Applications" is excellent, but it took me a long time to get through (it really helped that we read it in the book club at work). I am very glad I read it though - there is so much good stuff in it. I wrote a summary of it (mostly so I would learn the contents better): https://henrikwarne.com/2019/07/27/book-review-designing-dat...

Re: Ask HN: Books you plan to read in 2020?

#235

Post by gizmo385 »

yboris wrote: post #128
pjmorris wrote: post #98

I hilariously overestimate the number of books I can get through when I make these lists, but my current list for 2020 is as follows: Digital Minimalism: Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World The Man Who Solved the Market: How Jim Simons Launched the Quant Revolution Book of Proof Designing Data-Intensive Applications: The Big Ideas Behind Reliable, Scalable, and Maintainable Systems Seeing Like a State: How Certa…

Start with Guns, Germs, and Steel and/or Digital Minimalism ;)

I've heard there is lots of controversy surrounding Guns, Germs, and Steel. The author gets chided in some historian communities on Reddit rather frequently.

Re: Ask HN: Books you plan to read in 2020?

#236

Post by deesep »

andreilys wrote: post #160

Well here are the books I’m currently reading (physical, kindle, and audible). I bounce around a lot. Sometimes it takes me a week to finish a book, other times I take a few months. Sometimes I never finish. But these are the ones I have some progress on so far: 1. Faust by goethe 2. I am That 3. Book of why 4. The gift by hafiz 5. Simulacra and simulation 6. Candide by Voltaire 7. Meeting the shadow: the hidden powe…

I am That by Sri Nisargadatta is a great book.

Re: Ask HN: Books you plan to read in 2020?

#237

Post by Syntoniclese »

mattdanger wrote: post #103

Next up on my list is Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. I was given it as a gift from a friend and have seen it recommend here on HN

When I read this book the first time, I was slightly intrigued and somewhat disappointed. Years later, when I was on a spiritual journey, a reread revealed profound depth and led me toward a complete shift in perspective on life.

After months of philosophy, I again questioned the value of the ideas the book hints at. It's one of those books that can be a guide - if you need one, are ready for one, and haven't yet encountered the deeper themes.

Re: Ask HN: Books you plan to read in 2020?

#238

Post by jbn »

ronyfadel wrote: post #80
kidintech wrote: post #23

My compiled list for 2020, as suggested by friends I respect and HN: General ==== - Master & Margarita (w reader's guide) - Why we sleep - The righteous mind: why good people are divided by politics and religion - The wisdom of insecurity - The denial of death - The three body problem (friend's advice: slow burn, stick with it) - The dubliners - The devils (Dostoyevski) - The name of the rose - Enten-Oller (Kierkegaa…

Can someone tell me why Master and Margarita is a masterpiece? I’ve read it this year and it was a slow read, of basically (possibly) the author’s dreams or long mescaline trip.

I, for one, found it unbearable to read. I wouldn't recommend it. Maybe someone with the right background and who can read it in the original language could find some appreciation for it. I did not, but YMMV.

Re: Ask HN: Books you plan to read in 2020?

#239

Post by beaconstudios »

yboris wrote: post #221
beaconstudios wrote: post #203

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Much of philosophy is concerned with "how are we to live"? And how does one decide that question? Presumably in response to a model of how the world is. > I am consistently puzzled what people seek when they read Nietzsche, or what of value they take away from his writings. I'm sorry that you aren't able to benefit from his writing.

I wonder if we both agree on our dislike of Ayn Rand. She presents a world view that is nicely convenient to people who don't want to care about others. Having a model of how the world is based on her writing would make one a callous person.

That's a poor comparison - just because the universe is amoral, doesn't mean we have to be. There's two parallel paths that I see people confuse all the time, that of how the world is (truth) and how we should be (good). Nietzsche is interesting for talking about truth, not necessarily good. Practical philosophy is just telling you what is good, and so far I haven't seen a moral framework that is competent at that. Especially utilitarianism. Partly because I think the idea of a moral framework is reductionist, but this isn't the right place, nor perhaps you the right counterparty, for me to lay out my issues with reductionism.

Tldr: yes I think Rand is a poor moral philosopher too.

Re: Ask HN: Books you plan to read in 2020?

#240

Post by hhjinks »

crimsonalucard wrote: post #210
douglaswlance wrote: post #73

My top priority books: Software Requirements - Karl Wiegers Programming TypeScript - Boris Cherny Associate Cloud Engineer Study - Dan Sullivan Design Patterns - Gang of Four Refactoring - Kent Beck, Martin Fowler Programming Pearls - Jon Bentley Patterns of Enterprise Application Architecture - Martin Fowler The Pragmatic Programmer - David Thomas, Andrew Hunt CSS: The Definitive Guide - Eric A. Meyer, Estelle Weyl…

Skip design patterns, I think it locks developers into a sort of religious loyalty towards OOP abstractions. When you understand the pattern it describes you get a sort of catharsis for discovering a new interesting thing. In reality, any of these patterns are just bad despite the cleverness. Modern programming is heading in a different direction already so it'd be better to move forward without it.

Thanks for the heads up. I'm going to read it soon despite your warnings, but I'll keep what you're saying in mind while going through it.
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