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Ask HN: What is one book you would recommend everyone to read?

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Re: Ask HN: What is one book you would recommend everyone to read?

#211

Post by yiyus »

geraltofrivia wrote: post #169
paulus_magnus2 wrote: post #160

Firstly, as a meta comment I think HN has jumped the shark. Secondly, come on. You can listen to around 200 audiobooks per year while commuting, doing chores, excercising etc. Lastly: if you only ever want to read a couple of few books, these should be the dictionary and thesaurus.

Apologising in advance to derail from the point of this comment. Lately, I've been giving audiobooks a go. It really does make "consuming" a book much, much easier. Listening during commute/chores is a huge plus. But also, I can't help but feel that listening to books is far less engaging, rewarding than reading them. I've found this holds not just for immaculately written books, but even for easy reads (e.g. wheel o…

It's not just you. What I experience with audiobooks is similar to listening to the description of a picture. Maybe the outcome is, in theory, similar, but I have the feeling I am missing the real thing.

I prefer to read books, and while I am on the move I listen music or podcasts.

Re: Ask HN: What is one book you would recommend everyone to read?

#212

Post by kqr »

jldugger wrote: post #117
lbacaj wrote: post #30

The best two books for engineers are 1) “How to win friends and influence people” 2) “Never split the difference” The first one will teach you how to work with people. The second will teach you how to negotiate salaries, raises, and promotions among other things. I don’t recommend many technical books because engineers can find all of that on the internet and are much more at risk of being bad at people stuff.

> The second will teach you how to negotiate salaries, raises, and promotions among other things. “Never split the difference” is a really good book, but I'm really confused by this context. The book is 90 percent 'how to encourage rational thinking in your counterparty.' The author's experience is in suicide prevention and hostage negotiation, where all you really want is the counterparty to do whats already in thei…

Granted, I'm just a single data point, but I've applied Voss' recommendations when negotiating purchases, salaries, and daily with my children. It's really improved my negotiation skills across the board.

In fact, negotiation is about helping people realise what's in their best interest among the options out there, rather than the options they want to be out there. But people won't hear what the available options are until they're sure you've heard what they want the available options to be.

Another good book in the same vein is How To Talk So Kids Will Listen And Listen So Kids Will Talk. It's not just about children.

Re: Ask HN: What is one book you would recommend everyone to read?

#213

Post by throwaway7464 »

banana2 wrote: post #48
nullptr_deref wrote: post #22

Maybe not for all but, Bhagavad Gita: As it is. Do not read the explanation which are biased to god and religion. But you can definitely read the stanzas. The idea that we are actor whose duty is to act is a powerful concept, especially when you are feeling low. The book also has some egoistic stuff like "I am god, obey me." But once you filter some of these, you see bigger picture.

Definitely not a recommendation I see often. I only came to know of the Gita by this quote: "To work you have the right, but not to the fruits thereof". Resonated with me, and brought me to the concept of "karma yoga". How did you come across it?

No post body was provided.

Re: Ask HN: What is one book you would recommend everyone to read?

#214

Post by refurb »

laumars wrote: post #43
aristofun wrote: post #31

The Bible - as an original source of all types of stories and narratives you’ll find in 99% of all fiction books and movies. New Testament — as an original source of most of moral principles and ideas modern european civilization is based upon (also fundamental stories and narratives).

I’ve read the Bible and frankly I wouldn’t recommend. Putting aside that the different translations can sometimes drastically change the meaning of some stories, the English Bible as a whole is harder to grok than Shakespeare. Then there are issues about how it was written by man, in the literal sense. Female testaments were left out. And some of the male testaments were only included hundreds of years after the deat…

You realize it’s the books you dont agree with that are most worth reading?

The capitalist should read Marx’s work. And the diehard communist should read Hayek.

To filter out a work like the Bible (or Koran, etc) because it goes against the grain of your current politics is retarding your intellectual growth, not expanding it.

Re: Ask HN: What is one book you would recommend everyone to read?

#218

Post by zalebz »

I'll make a suggestion that is somewhat odd for HN since it is effectively poetry:

The Prophet by Kahlil Gibran

This little book stumbles into my life every 5 or 10 years and always reinvigorates my appreciation for the beauty of life. It is like being swept away by a beautiful piece of music - it can touch your soul. Then again, like music, it is not for everyone nor even repeatable for yourself depending on what mood you are in.

Re: Ask HN: What is one book you would recommend everyone to read?

#219

Post by noiwillnot »

Scarblac wrote: post #90
lbacaj wrote: post #30

The best two books for engineers are 1) “How to win friends and influence people” 2) “Never split the difference” The first one will teach you how to work with people. The second will teach you how to negotiate salaries, raises, and promotions among other things. I don’t recommend many technical books because engineers can find all of that on the internet and are much more at risk of being bad at people stuff.

"How to win friends and influence people" contains so much self-repetition that it should be easily compressible to four pages, no doubt many people on the Internet have done that. Read one of those instead.

You can say the same for >95% of the "self-improvement" book market.

Re: Ask HN: What is one book you would recommend everyone to read?

#220

Post by laumars »

refurb wrote: post #214
laumars wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I’ve read the Bible and frankly I wouldn’t recommend. Putting aside that the different translations can sometimes drastically change the meaning of some stories, the English Bible as a whole is harder to grok than Shakespeare. Then there are issues about how it was written by man, in the literal sense. Female testaments were left out. And some of the male testaments were only included hundreds of years after the deat…

You realize it’s the books you dont agree with that are most worth reading? The capitalist should read Marx’s work. And the diehard communist should read Hayek. To filter out a work like the Bible (or Koran, etc) because it goes against the grain of your current politics is retarding your intellectual growth, not expanding it.

I wasn’t saying I don’t agree with any political messaging. I was saying it’s an objectively bad book to read by modern literary standards. Even those in this thread defending the Bible has literally said it’s not something you’d read cover to cover.
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