The Planiverse
Ask HN: What's the "best" book you've ever read?
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Re: Ask HN: What's the "best" book you've ever read?
#172"The best book I've ever read was Atlas Shrugged in 8th grade. Changed my life." Not because I remember anything about it, or believe anything it espouses, or even like it all that much, but because it's a useful filter for obnoxious people in meatspace. If someone I don't know too well asks me what my favorite book is, I say Atlas Shrugged. If they react inappropriately, I'll be cordial and treat them with respect,…
> "The best book I've ever read was Atlas Shrugged in 8th grade. Changed my life." "huh, ok" > Really, I'm just looking for people who won't jump down my throat on a faux pas. I think you're dismissing the people such as myself that would note you as an idiot without comment and move on wanting nothing to do with you. Edit: tests and trick questions with people you just met is an ineffective way to navigate the world…
I think you are proving his point.
Re: Ask HN: What's the "best" book you've ever read?
#173Steppenwolf By Herman Hesse. It's remarkable how a fictional character written by someone a century ago can resonate so deeply with a modern person. But then again, that's a common thread amongst great literature. I recommend this book to anyone struggling with loneliness or feeling like they haven't found their footing in this world.
“Learn what is to be taken seriously and laugh at everything else.”
Re: Ask HN: What's the "best" book you've ever read?
#174Earlier quoted context omitted.
What people forget to mention is when they have read a book. I read the Selfish Gene when I was a teen and it left a lasting impression. It was published in 1989. How the Mind works was published in 2011. Reading the Selfish Gene today as an adult, when you've probably read a dozen similar books already, is not going to have the same effect. It's going to be pretty boring. That's why asking for book recommendations i…
What similar books are there to The Selfish Gene? I read it not too long ago and found it astonishing. People are generally enthralled by Sapiens which is just a very mediocre extension + shallow interpretation of Dawkins’ thesis.
Probably too similar, but do follow up with "The Extended Phenotype" if you haven't already.
Re: Ask HN: What's the "best" book you've ever read?
#175Baudolino by Umberto Eco. I like all his works, but this one is the most moving and epic. I still think of it.
Re: Ask HN: What's the "best" book you've ever read?
#176"The best book I've ever read was Atlas Shrugged in 8th grade. Changed my life." Not because I remember anything about it, or believe anything it espouses, or even like it all that much, but because it's a useful filter for obnoxious people in meatspace. If someone I don't know too well asks me what my favorite book is, I say Atlas Shrugged. If they react inappropriately, I'll be cordial and treat them with respect,…
> "The best book I've ever read was Atlas Shrugged in 8th grade. Changed my life." "huh, ok" > Really, I'm just looking for people who won't jump down my throat on a faux pas. I think you're dismissing the people such as myself that would note you as an idiot without comment and move on wanting nothing to do with you. Edit: tests and trick questions with people you just met is an ineffective way to navigate the world…
I have to agree. Basing any of your life decisions on quick hacks with bad assumptions seems like a fast way to a mediocre outcome.
Re: Ask HN: What's the "best" book you've ever read?
#177Earlier quoted context omitted.
> "The best book I've ever read was Atlas Shrugged in 8th grade. Changed my life." "huh, ok" > Really, I'm just looking for people who won't jump down my throat on a faux pas. I think you're dismissing the people such as myself that would note you as an idiot without comment and move on wanting nothing to do with you. Edit: tests and trick questions with people you just met is an ineffective way to navigate the world…
You just failed the test.
Good. I don't want anything to do with people that "test" others like this. You cannot do so without making assumptions about intent.
Re: Ask HN: What's the "best" book you've ever read?
#178Not the best book, but the maddest was IQ84 by Haruki Murakami. It’s a wild story and lead me down a path to read several of his other books.
Re: Ask HN: What's the "best" book you've ever read?
#179Impossible to pick one... best I can do is five-ish, all fiction: The Odyssey; David Copperfield; Moby-Dick; Anna Karenina; Borges' short stories, in particular Ficciones & The Aleph
Do you have any comments on how to best absorb Ficciones? I read it recently and struggled through the whole book, needless to say, I don't comprehend why many hold that book on such a high pedestal.
Re: Ask HN: What's the "best" book you've ever read?
#180Earlier quoted context omitted.
> "The best book I've ever read was Atlas Shrugged in 8th grade. Changed my life." "huh, ok" > Really, I'm just looking for people who won't jump down my throat on a faux pas. I think you're dismissing the people such as myself that would note you as an idiot without comment and move on wanting nothing to do with you. Edit: tests and trick questions with people you just met is an ineffective way to navigate the world…
I think you are proving his point.
You're free to have your own perspective of course. I would suggest you re-read my post