Ask YC: Good books to take on a week away? • Hacker News Board

Re: Ask YC: Good books to take on a week away?

#31

Post by Tichy » Mon, May 26, 2008, 12:49 PM UTC

justindz wrote: post #17

Haruki Murakami. Sputnik Sweetheart, Norwegian Wood, Kafka on the Shore. After the Quake, if you like short stories. Great stuff. If you want something lighter, try Banana Yoshimoto. If you want something with more sex and gruesome murders, try Ryu Murakami.

I'd recommend to start with Norwegian Wood for Murakami. Didn't like Sputnik Sweetheart at all, and many of his other books tend to be too esoterical for my taste. But NW was esoterics-free, if I remember correctly.

Re: Ask YC: Good books to take on a week away?

#32

Post by gruseom » Mon, May 26, 2008, 1:03 PM UTC

rokhayakebe wrote: post #8

Take "no books". Use this time to physically get in touch with the rest of the world. Spend time with you, then with total strangers. Now if you are an introvert like me, this will look scary, but I think it will do you more good then reading. Enjoy your vacation.

Oh, goody: an excuse to link to the "Blog" of "Unnecessary" Quotation Marks. http://quotation-marks.blogspot.com

Re: Ask YC: Good books to take on a week away?

#33

Post by eznet » Mon, May 26, 2008, 1:47 PM UTC

I know what book I am taking for my week away next week: The Ultimate HitchHiker's Guide - 5 complete novels and 1 story. This is an awesome group of stories that are really fun to read. If you haven't read them at least once or have only read the guide to the galaxy, you should definitely check it out.

Re: Ask YC: Good books to take on a week away?

#34

Post by ovi256 » Mon, May 26, 2008, 2:27 PM UTC

senthil_rajasek wrote: post #3

As a hacker you will like this non-technical fiction http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Curious_Incident_of_the_Dog...

It was amazing. As a blurb, I could describe it as an insight into the mind of an autist. On a personal note, I'll say it was a trip through the mind of an almost ramen.

Re: Ask YC: Good books to take on a week away?

#35

Post by michael_dorfman » Mon, May 26, 2008, 2:45 PM UTC

gruseom wrote: post #32

rokhayakebe wrote: post #8

Take "no books". Use this time to physically get in touch with the rest of the world. Spend time with you, then with total strangers. Now if you are an introvert like me, this will look scary, but I think it will do you more good then reading. Enjoy your vacation.

Oh, goody: an excuse to link to the "Blog" of "Unnecessary" Quotation Marks. http://quotation-marks.blogspot.com

Wow. Amazing site. (I mean, "amazing" site.)

Thanks for that.

Re: Ask YC: Good books to take on a week away?

#36

Post by gruseom » Mon, May 26, 2008, 5:15 PM UTC

michael_dorfman wrote: post #35

gruseom wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Oh, goody: an excuse to link to the "Blog" of "Unnecessary" Quotation Marks. http://quotation-marks.blogspot.com

Wow. Amazing site. (I mean, "amazing" site.) Thanks for that.

"Your welcome".

Re: Ask YC: Good books to take on a week away?

#37

Post by ca98am79 » Mon, May 26, 2008, 8:38 PM UTC

lbrandy wrote: post #7

> I'd prefer things not directly technical though not necessarily fiction. Sounds exactly like me. I strongly suggest: 1. The Selfish Gene (Richard Dawkins) 2. The Demon-Haunted World (Carl Sagan) ...or if you need a little inspiration... 3. Founders at Work

I'm on a week vacation right now and brought along Founders at Work - it is great.

Re: Ask YC: Good books to take on a week away?

#38

Post by avinashv » Mon, May 26, 2008, 9:58 PM UTC

GEB? Might take you more than a week, but it's great reading.

Re: Ask YC: Good books to take on a week away?

#39

Post by justindz » Wed, May 28, 2008, 4:45 PM UTC

Tichy wrote: post #31

justindz wrote: post #17

Haruki Murakami. Sputnik Sweetheart, Norwegian Wood, Kafka on the Shore. After the Quake, if you like short stories. Great stuff. If you want something lighter, try Banana Yoshimoto. If you want something with more sex and gruesome murders, try Ryu Murakami.

I'd recommend to start with Norwegian Wood for Murakami. Didn't like Sputnik Sweetheart at all, and many of his other books tend to be too esoterical for my taste. But NW was esoterics-free, if I remember correctly.

You do. I'm a fan of magical realism, so the esoteric content doesn't bother me but I totally get your ranking on that point. Norwegian Wood is all psychology and no parapsychology. If I remember correctly, South of the Border, West of the Sun is similar in that regard.