The test of time. I just recently finished reading Skunk Works, and in the last few months seen a few references to it here on HN and and on reddit. It was published almost 30 years ago and people still talk about it online? That's an easy signal for quality to go by. Counter example: Freakanomics. It did not pass. Even though everyone was so hyped about it at the time. Too bad we don't have a time traveller hanging around to give recommendations.
Ask HN: How do you decide a non-fiction book is worth your time?
21–30 of 50 posts
Re: Ask HN: How do you decide a non-fiction book is worth your time?
#22i try to read a lot of (even recommended books) of the blog post expanded into book type. If the author is so disrespectful of my intellect to repeat the same statement fifty billion times in different ways - they can go to hell, i wont continue reading their book.
Reading the first actual chapter + a power skim helps work out if its worth your time. I also dont have time for people that dont write in Plain English...i dont need your ego making complex topics harder to understand because you like the smell of a thesaurus.
Re: Ask HN: How do you decide a non-fiction book is worth your time?
#23I try guesstimating the "information density". Often you can tell from the title that a topic is so specific that the book shouldn't be as long as it is. Self help books selling you one revolutionary idea are an example. Other books (often general business advice types) will fill themselves with many examples, but there's little novelty with each next example. On the other hand, some topics, e.g. history, would have to present a lot of facts that you wouldn't have guessed otherwise (unless you've read something similar before), so I'm inclined toward these books.
Re: Ask HN: How do you decide a non-fiction book is worth your time?
#24At some point I realized that it is okay to drop a book I started reading. If it turns out to be boring or not meeting whatever expectations I had, I just ditch it and move on.
Re: Ask HN: How do you decide a non-fiction book is worth your time?
#25I mostly listen to audiobooks so difficult to skim though these beforehand.
Get candidates from blogs I follow, magazines and the like. Also do keyword searches for my areas of interests and look for new books in those areas.
Usually I just do a quick check of the Amazon reviews and maybe some professional reviews and if it sounds okay I'll add it to the queue.
I finish about 95% of the books I start.
Re: Ask HN: How do you decide a non-fiction book is worth your time?
#26At some point I realized that it is okay to drop a book I started reading. If it turns out to be boring or not meeting whatever expectations I had, I just ditch it and move on.
Sometimes the introduction chapter(s) is the killer when the author tries too hard to convince you to read the book when you're in fact already reading the book. It starts to feel like forever before I actually learn anything new or useful from the book.
Re: Ask HN: How do you decide a non-fiction book is worth your time?
#27Consider the following: reading bad books can help you better appreciate good books.
Re: Ask HN: How do you decide a non-fiction book is worth your time?
#28[dead]
Re: Ask HN: How do you decide a non-fiction book is worth your time?
#29If it's anything but journalism, I won't read a book written by a journalist. They almost always lack the expertise to be reliable.
Re: Ask HN: How do you decide a non-fiction book is worth your time?
#30I have subscribed to a book summary app, which is not anywhere closer to what you get from reading a book, but it will give an idea of what book is worth investing time and money.