1) sure, there was effort put into this and it likely wouldn't have been made w/out affiliate links, so clearly there's value provided.
2) it's pretty clear that a list like this is going to underrepresent books where an amazon link is less likely --- superior free alternatives to the books listed in some cases. Using affiliate links (and, as far as I can tell, only undisclosed affiliate links) suggests that getting an accurate "top 30" wasn't the highest priority.
So the affiliate links are a signal of intent, and intent affects accuracy in this case. But the list wouldn't have been written otherwise.
"You've figured out a way to post native content advertising to Hacker News" would be the equally uncharitable counterpoint to your mock quote.