Comment by james_s_tayler | Hacker News Reader

Comment by james_s_tayler | Hacker News Reader

Why Nations Fail (amazing!)

Chimpanzee Politics (interesting)

Corporate Confidential (paranoid, but worth a read)

Developer Hegemony (red pill for developers!!!)

Bargaining For Advantage (reasonable)

Tempo: Timing, Tactics and Strategy in Narrative-Driven Decision Making (abstract as hell but rewarding)

Thinking Fast and Slow (loved it)

The Elephant In The Brain (seriously underrated)

The Brain That Changes Itself (inspirationally freaky)

The Power of Habit (good!)

The Secret Barrister (mildly disturbing)

Thinking In Systems (huge fan of this book!)

A Short History of Truth (meh...)

Man's Search For Meaning (brooo... I am so sorry)

Thinking In Bets (meh.. really meh)

The Road To Ruin (alright. Interesting even.)

Lying For Money (lots of fun!)

Great Answers To Tough Interview Questions (what it says on the tin)

Traction (good overview of marketing tactics)

Lean Customer Development (pretty good)

The Mom Test (eye opening)

Lean B2B (solid playbook)

Principles (instant classic)

Read your list, we have a bunch of books in common

Why Nations Fail (was an interesting read!)

Thinking Fast and Slow (This was on a lot of trader desks and was a good read.)

The Elephant In The Brain (this is the first audiobook i have ever listed to, agree, highly underrated.)

Principles (many years ago, I worked at BW for around 4 years... It was required reading, but remains one of my top recommended books. I actually own a copy of his original principals, and still bought the hard cover. Dalio's deep thinking is amazing).

I've got another one in my bookshelf I'm about to tackle next called "In Defense Of Troublemakers".

It's about how group dynamics also produce irrationality and why dissent is dangerous but necessary. I'd say you'd probably really enjoy it too.

> Man's Search For Meaning (brooo... I am so sorry)

??

First hand account of being in a concentration camp. Frankl was lucky in that he was shipped from Auschwitz, but it was still a brutal existence.

Yes I know what it is, I was questioning the "brooo... " comment, which seemed so tonally inappropriate and weird in what otherwise seemed like a thoughtful list.

Cos I addressed that one to the author, not the audience.

It's like I imagine he's standing right in front of me and what my visceral response would be to him. From one human to another I'm sorry we're capable of putting each other through that.

That book is just unyieldingly bleak in the most gripping way. And he was such a good guy right til the very end.

I see, and I believe your intentions weren't bad. But as some constructive criticism I'd say the optics are not good.

The phrase "brooo" just feels tone-deaf and minimizing here. And unless you are the most charmingly clueless surfer dude on the planet, I don't think it works when the survivor is standing in front of you either.

Most people who use bro are being at least a little ironic. It's a weird register to use for a Austrian man born in 1905. Wouldn't be a big deal except that it's literally the Holocaust. Not personally offended, just explaining why most people will probably not take it the way you mean.

Concur on Thinking in Bets, very meh

> Developer Hegemony

Thanks for giving me another Xmas gift idea - bought!

The interesting thing for me about books like that is whether it inspires or makes you more down about the situation, what's that one like?

It's a fantastic read but it depends on the reader. I think it will leave some people thinking why oh why didn't I take the blue pill? Hahaha.

Good list! You should add Orientalism by Said and Open Society and Its Enemies by Popper - both classics!

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