9 ms·

YC's 2015 Reading List

238 points by 0x54MUR41 11y ago

eroo 11y ago
Another great source of reading material: FiveBooks[0] interviews "experts" and asks them to recommend five good books for understanding their field. E.g., this[1] interview with David Brooks from 2009 is a lot of the source material/ inspiration for his book. [0] http://fivebooks.com http://fivebooks.com [1] http://fivebooks.com/interview/david-brooks-on-neuroscience/ http://fivebooks.com/interview/david-brooks-on-neuroscience/
- BreakoutList 11y ago
  Oh my gosh, this is amazing. Thank you for sharing. How did you first come across this?
- dubroff 11y ago
  Vaguely reminds me of this list, where scholars were asked which book changed their mind the most: http://chronicle.com/article/What-Book-Changed-Your-Mind-/149839/ http://chronicle.com/article/What-Book-Changed-Your-Mind-/14... Would love to find more lists of the sort
- manish_gill 11y ago
  It's interesting now no book in the section about AI is an actually technical book (something like Russel and Norvig). They're all about philosophical conjectures about AI. Doesn't inspire confidence in other lists on that site tbh. :/
roastbeest 11y ago
Only 1 female author :,(
- colmvp 11y ago
  As a PoC, I could also question how many of the authors are a PoC. But I won't because I care a lot more about the content itself.
  - edanm 11y ago
    If you don't mind clarifying, what is a PoC? Haven't heard the term.
    - DanBC 11y ago
      Person of Color.
      - HSO 11y ago
        OT but I hate this kind of language. First, "white" is not a color? And much more importantly, so-called "white" people are not white at all. They call themselves white because some racist wingnut in the past designated the color traditionally associated with purity and light with his own race, thereby making it the benchmark and relegating all other people to off-colored aberrations. For example, I am of East Asian ancestry and thus naturally whiter than most Europeans, yet shall call myself "yellow" (or "PoC")!? If anything, it seems to me that blondes should be designated yellow. I could go on ranting but will stop here. Person "of color"... superficially PC bullshit that actually accepts the language of racial superiority and reinforces Eurocentrism. It couldn't be more wrong.
        brazzledazzle 11y ago
        Really OT: From a political, civil rights, egalitarianism, etc. point of view I'd say I'm very much aligned with groups that push this kind of stuff. But I can't support it because this is what you push when you're more concerned with feelings than results. "Winning" is more important than anything else when it comes to equality and eradicating prejudice. I wish we were more focused on objectives than pushing terms like this or trying to crucify every film director on twitter.
- whatever_dude 11y ago
  Jer Thorp[1] is a creative artist/developer/researcher which made a point of only reading female authors this year. I'm excited for his list, which I hope he'll be publishing soon. [1] https://twitter.com/blprnt https://twitter.com/blprnt
- DanBC 11y ago
  It's a shame you got so heavily downvoted. You make a reasonable point, and not in a flame-baiting way.
  - pullo 11y ago
    +1
  - Alex3917 11y ago
    It's not really productive though unless you name some that you think should have been included on the list. That said I've been enjoying this book a lot, and two of the three authors are female: http://www.amazon.com/Participatory-Culture-Networked-Era-Conversation/dp/0745660711/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1450629321&sr=8-1&keywords=participatory+culture+in+a+networked+era http://www.amazon.com/Participatory-Culture-Networked-Era-Co... I'd say it's just one piece of a larger body of literature on these issues rather than the definitive work that stands on its own, but it's also the kind of thing where when you look at the list of authors and the subject matter then the burden of proof is on you to justify not reading it.
- jdp23 11y ago
  Yeah, I was looking at the authors: Steve, Philip and Dan, David, John, Daniel, Elon, Marshall, Matt, John, P.G., ... Wait a second, Cheryl, what's she doing here? Oh that was Jessica's choice. And we now return you to your regularly-schedule programming: Neal, Andy, Charles, Yuval, Andrew ...
- rusbus 11y ago
  Wait what about Ashlee Vance? Wait never mind that's a man too
- tptacek 11y ago
  I think if you're going to raise that particular argument responsibly, you're obligated to cite some women authors you read this year that you think we should read.
  - edanm 11y ago
    You know, I generally agree with your sentiment, but the OP wrote the comment without casting aspersions and without blaming anyone. It was a bit terse, I agree, but it is a legitimately noteworthy fact that so few female authors are on the list. Noteworthy if you think it's because YC is biased, noteworthy if you think it's because so few female authors wrote meaningful books this year, noteworthy if you think it's because female authors aren't publicized as much. (It could also, of course, just be a random thing that happened this year, but I still think OP had a right to point this out).
    - tptacek 11y ago
      It's definitely not that there are too few female authors. There are lots of female authors, and they're well publicized. Rather, I think the issue is that with just a few exceptions, this is exactly the book list you'd expect from a cohort of 25-35 year old startup founders --- batteries, Elon Musk, data science, the energy industry, The Martian (really?), and business history. These are topics with, let's just say, a particular demographic concentration. I physically winced when I saw the Wodehouse recommendation. Some possible recommendations, if we're going to stick with "relevant to HN readers": * Annie Jacobson's DARPA book, The Pentagon's Brain * the Brene Brown book on mentally overcoming adversity, which might complement Nonviolent Communication (and might also be a more humane recommendation than David Brooks) * Between You And Me (more writing books, please! Also maybe Mary Karr's book on memoirs, though I haven't read it and am not a Karr fan)
      - Alex3917 11y ago
        > There are lots of female authors, and they're well publicized [...] this is exactly the book list you'd expect from a cohort of 25-35 year old startup founders If you look at any 'best books of the year' lists though, most of them are written by men, even though most people in the publishing industry are women. I suspect it's partly because if you look at the gender gap in reading preferences, women tend to read and write more books in winner-take-all areas. E.g. if you want to learn something about foreign policy then you might need one specific book out of the thousands that get written each year, but if you want to read a novel about relationships then there's not much reason to go beyond the best couple dozen of the year.
- c23gooey 11y ago
  Great point - but while you're breaking down the list to non-relevant characteristics of the authors, can we get a list of their: - nationalities - skin color - sexual preference - left handed/ right handed I can't make a politically motivated decision without these
n3on_net 11y ago
Bill gates anual reading list is also nice. For 2015: http://www.gatesnotes.com/About-Bill-Gates/Best-Books-2015 http://www.gatesnotes.com/About-Bill-Gates/Best-Books-2015
mrharrison 11y ago
Here is a list of lists: http://popsnip.com/topic/863/Best-Books-of-2015-List-of-Lists http://popsnip.com/topic/863/Best-Books-of-2015-List-of-List...
AVTizzle 11y ago
Great share! I noticed something funny about myself after reading Ayn Rand - I found her writing influenced my mindset and made me (personally - not casting this on all Rand fans) more isolationist, individualist, and just a little bit more of an asshole. Interested by that phenomenon, I've been on the lookout for books that might subtly influence my perspective in ways that would make me warmer, kinder, more sympathetic/empathetic. Two of these recommendations look spot-on for that. Purchased: The Road to Character "Focuses on the deeper values that should inform our lives. Responding to what he calls the culture of the Big Me, which emphasizes external success, Brooks challenges us, and himself, to rebalance the scales between our “résumé virtues”—achieving wealth, fame, and status—and our “eulogy virtues,” those that exist at the core of our being: kindness, bravery, honesty, or faithfulness, focusing on what kind of relationships we have formed." Tiny Beautiful Things: Advice on Love and Life from Dear Sugar "Cheryl Strayed was an advice columnist called Dear Sugar, and this collection of her essays is a guide to finding inner strength through tenderness. She masterfully links the problems of her readers to her own painful experiences, and the result will cling to you with its vulnerability, sweetness, and intimacy. I’ve been in love with this book all fall."
- chrisacree 11y ago
  Highly recommend David Foster Wallace for this. After Infinite Jest I was definitely had much higher general empathy for months.
  - arethuza 11y ago
    I heard the section about Erdedy preparing for a drug binge on a BBC Radio 4 arts review program and was fascinated - I've never used drugs and have no desire to start but there is something very powerful about the sections of IJ that cover addiction.
  - tptacek 11y ago
    A good David Foster Wallace starting point is "A Supposedly Fun Thing I'll Never Do Again". I'd tentatively recommend against starting with Infinite Jest. Infinite Jest is a project of a read.
sxcurry 11y ago
Before you go looking for "character" in David Brooks' book, remember that he was an enthusiastic backer of the Iraq War, and belittled and sneered at those protesting the war. His comments after the House voted to restrict NSA phone data collection: "I'd say it's a moral victory for the wingnuts. And, you know, you look at the moment. What are we faced with? We're faced with a rising libertarianism, both on the left and the right." I'd look for my "character" elsewhere.
icpmacdo 11y ago
Does anyone know if The Supermen is available on audiobook?
delish 11y ago
Nonviolent communication is a precise and liberating way of talking. You can be exposed by watching this talk too: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YwXH4hNfgPg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YwXH4hNfgPg It's three hours FYI. But my sales pitch is: Marshall Rosenberg is funny when talks about miscommunication. I haven't laughed out loud at a three hour youtube video before reading this. In case you cringe at the term "nonviolent communication": Marshall Rosenberg dislikes it too, and he coined it!
kriro 11y ago
I've worked halfway through "The Elements of Computing Systems" aka "Nand to Tetris" and it's fairly high on my already way too excessive todo list for 2016. Great recommendation :)
martythemaniak 11y ago
Why Information Grows is probably the best one I read this year. It's fairly ambitious and sets out to link information theory, the emergence of life, evolution and economic growth all in one coherent story. It doesn't quite hit the mark as it becomes a bit too abstract towards the end, but the first 3 chapters are the best story of how information theory fits into thermodynamics and the emergence of life. It's also the best summary of Ilya Prigogine's work I've read (including, ironically, Prigogine's own books) http://www.amazon.ca/Why-Information-Grows-Evolution-Economies/dp/0465048994 http://www.amazon.ca/Why-Information-Grows-Evolution-Economi...
henrik_w 11y ago
+1 for Sapiens. Good overview of the histroy of humanity, and I especially liked the theory of how shared beliefs enable cooperation among larger groups. The example of "The Legend of Peugeot" was also great: does the company Peugeot actually exist, can you point to what it is. No, it only exists as a shared belief. Also, Jeeves is great :-)
birdperson 11y ago
Nice list. The one by Nisan/Schocken is on my to read list. Does anyone know of any lists full of new math books?
deleted 11y ago
[deleted]
beambot 11y ago
Note that this is different than the YC library: https://www.ycombinator.com/resources/ https://www.ycombinator.com/resources/ The YC library keeps a good list of perennial favorites....
kirk21 11y ago
Best books I have read this year: - Shareholder letters of Warren Buffett: http://amzn.to/1OgZVh9 http://amzn.to/1OgZVh9 - Endurance: Shackleton's Incredible Voyage: http://amzn.to/1Oh09oz http://amzn.to/1Oh09oz
jeo1234 11y ago
'The Prize' is phenomenal. I took an econ class on the petroleum industry and the prof used it instead of a text book. PBS turn into into a really good multi-part documentary.
ScottBurson 11y ago
My recent favorite: The Planet Remade: How Geoengineering Could Change the World by Oliver Morton. Engagingly written -- I could hardly put it down! -- comprehensive, thorough, and optimistic without being credulous, this book contains a wealth of information about the "earthsystem" (as Morton likes to call it) and the effects we're already having on it as well as those we could potentially create intentionally. The book makes an excellent case for expanding research into geoengineering, and I hope it gets widely read.
r3bl 11y ago
I've seen Seveneves appearing across multiple lists of best books in 2015 (here, Amazon's top 20, Goodreads' list for 2015...). I can't wait to grab my hands on it!
Animats 11y ago
Nice. I've read four of those. I have some book buying to do.

238 points by 0x54MUR41 11y ago

eroo 11y ago

Another great source of reading material: FiveBooks[0] interviews "experts" and asks them to recommend five good books for understanding their field. E.g., this[1] interview with David Brooks from 2009 is a lot of the source material/ inspiration for his book. [0] http://fivebooks.com http://fivebooks.com [1] http://fivebooks.com/interview/david-brooks-on-neuroscience/ http://fivebooks.com/interview/david-brooks-on-neuroscience/

BreakoutList 11y ago
Oh my gosh, this is amazing. Thank you for sharing. How did you first come across this?
dubroff 11y ago
Vaguely reminds me of this list, where scholars were asked which book changed their mind the most: http://chronicle.com/article/What-Book-Changed-Your-Mind-/149839/ http://chronicle.com/article/What-Book-Changed-Your-Mind-/14... Would love to find more lists of the sort
manish_gill 11y ago
It's interesting now no book in the section about AI is an actually technical book (something like Russel and Norvig). They're all about philosophical conjectures about AI. Doesn't inspire confidence in other lists on that site tbh. :/

roastbeest 11y ago

Only 1 female author :,(

colmvp 11y ago
As a PoC, I could also question how many of the authors are a PoC. But I won't because I care a lot more about the content itself.
- edanm 11y ago
  If you don't mind clarifying, what is a PoC? Haven't heard the term.
  - DanBC 11y ago
    Person of Color.
    - HSO 11y ago
      OT but I hate this kind of language. First, "white" is not a color? And much more importantly, so-called "white" people are not white at all. They call themselves white because some racist wingnut in the past designated the color traditionally associated with purity and light with his own race, thereby making it the benchmark and relegating all other people to off-colored aberrations. For example, I am of East Asian ancestry and thus naturally whiter than most Europeans, yet shall call myself "yellow" (or "PoC")!? If anything, it seems to me that blondes should be designated yellow. I could go on ranting but will stop here. Person "of color"... superficially PC bullshit that actually accepts the language of racial superiority and reinforces Eurocentrism. It couldn't be more wrong.
      - brazzledazzle 11y ago
        Really OT: From a political, civil rights, egalitarianism, etc. point of view I'd say I'm very much aligned with groups that push this kind of stuff. But I can't support it because this is what you push when you're more concerned with feelings than results. "Winning" is more important than anything else when it comes to equality and eradicating prejudice. I wish we were more focused on objectives than pushing terms like this or trying to crucify every film director on twitter.
whatever_dude 11y ago
Jer Thorp[1] is a creative artist/developer/researcher which made a point of only reading female authors this year. I'm excited for his list, which I hope he'll be publishing soon. [1] https://twitter.com/blprnt https://twitter.com/blprnt
DanBC 11y ago
It's a shame you got so heavily downvoted. You make a reasonable point, and not in a flame-baiting way.
- pullo 11y ago
  +1
- Alex3917 11y ago
  It's not really productive though unless you name some that you think should have been included on the list. That said I've been enjoying this book a lot, and two of the three authors are female: http://www.amazon.com/Participatory-Culture-Networked-Era-Conversation/dp/0745660711/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1450629321&sr=8-1&keywords=participatory+culture+in+a+networked+era http://www.amazon.com/Participatory-Culture-Networked-Era-Co... I'd say it's just one piece of a larger body of literature on these issues rather than the definitive work that stands on its own, but it's also the kind of thing where when you look at the list of authors and the subject matter then the burden of proof is on you to justify not reading it.
jdp23 11y ago
Yeah, I was looking at the authors: Steve, Philip and Dan, David, John, Daniel, Elon, Marshall, Matt, John, P.G., ... Wait a second, Cheryl, what's she doing here? Oh that was Jessica's choice. And we now return you to your regularly-schedule programming: Neal, Andy, Charles, Yuval, Andrew ...
rusbus 11y ago
Wait what about Ashlee Vance? Wait never mind that's a man too
tptacek 11y ago
I think if you're going to raise that particular argument responsibly, you're obligated to cite some women authors you read this year that you think we should read.
- edanm 11y ago
  You know, I generally agree with your sentiment, but the OP wrote the comment without casting aspersions and without blaming anyone. It was a bit terse, I agree, but it is a legitimately noteworthy fact that so few female authors are on the list. Noteworthy if you think it's because YC is biased, noteworthy if you think it's because so few female authors wrote meaningful books this year, noteworthy if you think it's because female authors aren't publicized as much. (It could also, of course, just be a random thing that happened this year, but I still think OP had a right to point this out).
  - tptacek 11y ago
    It's definitely not that there are too few female authors. There are lots of female authors, and they're well publicized. Rather, I think the issue is that with just a few exceptions, this is exactly the book list you'd expect from a cohort of 25-35 year old startup founders --- batteries, Elon Musk, data science, the energy industry, The Martian (really?), and business history. These are topics with, let's just say, a particular demographic concentration. I physically winced when I saw the Wodehouse recommendation. Some possible recommendations, if we're going to stick with "relevant to HN readers": * Annie Jacobson's DARPA book, The Pentagon's Brain * the Brene Brown book on mentally overcoming adversity, which might complement Nonviolent Communication (and might also be a more humane recommendation than David Brooks) * Between You And Me (more writing books, please! Also maybe Mary Karr's book on memoirs, though I haven't read it and am not a Karr fan)
    - Alex3917 11y ago
      > There are lots of female authors, and they're well publicized [...] this is exactly the book list you'd expect from a cohort of 25-35 year old startup founders If you look at any 'best books of the year' lists though, most of them are written by men, even though most people in the publishing industry are women. I suspect it's partly because if you look at the gender gap in reading preferences, women tend to read and write more books in winner-take-all areas. E.g. if you want to learn something about foreign policy then you might need one specific book out of the thousands that get written each year, but if you want to read a novel about relationships then there's not much reason to go beyond the best couple dozen of the year.
c23gooey 11y ago
Great point - but while you're breaking down the list to non-relevant characteristics of the authors, can we get a list of their: - nationalities - skin color - sexual preference - left handed/ right handed I can't make a politically motivated decision without these

n3on_net 11y ago

Bill gates anual reading list is also nice. For 2015: http://www.gatesnotes.com/About-Bill-Gates/Best-Books-2015 http://www.gatesnotes.com/About-Bill-Gates/Best-Books-2015

mrharrison 11y ago

Here is a list of lists: http://popsnip.com/topic/863/Best-Books-of-2015-List-of-Lists http://popsnip.com/topic/863/Best-Books-of-2015-List-of-List...

AVTizzle 11y ago

Great share! I noticed something funny about myself after reading Ayn Rand - I found her writing influenced my mindset and made me (personally - not casting this on all Rand fans) more isolationist, individualist, and just a little bit more of an asshole. Interested by that phenomenon, I've been on the lookout for books that might subtly influence my perspective in ways that would make me warmer, kinder, more sympathetic/empathetic. Two of these recommendations look spot-on for that. Purchased: The Road to Character "Focuses on the deeper values that should inform our lives. Responding to what he calls the culture of the Big Me, which emphasizes external success, Brooks challenges us, and himself, to rebalance the scales between our “résumé virtues”—achieving wealth, fame, and status—and our “eulogy virtues,” those that exist at the core of our being: kindness, bravery, honesty, or faithfulness, focusing on what kind of relationships we have formed." Tiny Beautiful Things: Advice on Love and Life from Dear Sugar "Cheryl Strayed was an advice columnist called Dear Sugar, and this collection of her essays is a guide to finding inner strength through tenderness. She masterfully links the problems of her readers to her own painful experiences, and the result will cling to you with its vulnerability, sweetness, and intimacy. I’ve been in love with this book all fall."

chrisacree 11y ago
Highly recommend David Foster Wallace for this. After Infinite Jest I was definitely had much higher general empathy for months.
- arethuza 11y ago
  I heard the section about Erdedy preparing for a drug binge on a BBC Radio 4 arts review program and was fascinated - I've never used drugs and have no desire to start but there is something very powerful about the sections of IJ that cover addiction.
- tptacek 11y ago
  A good David Foster Wallace starting point is "A Supposedly Fun Thing I'll Never Do Again". I'd tentatively recommend against starting with Infinite Jest. Infinite Jest is a project of a read.

sxcurry 11y ago

Before you go looking for "character" in David Brooks' book, remember that he was an enthusiastic backer of the Iraq War, and belittled and sneered at those protesting the war. His comments after the House voted to restrict NSA phone data collection: "I'd say it's a moral victory for the wingnuts. And, you know, you look at the moment. What are we faced with? We're faced with a rising libertarianism, both on the left and the right." I'd look for my "character" elsewhere.

icpmacdo 11y ago

Does anyone know if The Supermen is available on audiobook?

delish 11y ago

Nonviolent communication is a precise and liberating way of talking. You can be exposed by watching this talk too: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YwXH4hNfgPg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YwXH4hNfgPg It's three hours FYI. But my sales pitch is: Marshall Rosenberg is funny when talks about miscommunication. I haven't laughed out loud at a three hour youtube video before reading this. In case you cringe at the term "nonviolent communication": Marshall Rosenberg dislikes it too, and he coined it!

kriro 11y ago

I've worked halfway through "The Elements of Computing Systems" aka "Nand to Tetris" and it's fairly high on my already way too excessive todo list for 2016. Great recommendation :)

martythemaniak 11y ago

Why Information Grows is probably the best one I read this year. It's fairly ambitious and sets out to link information theory, the emergence of life, evolution and economic growth all in one coherent story. It doesn't quite hit the mark as it becomes a bit too abstract towards the end, but the first 3 chapters are the best story of how information theory fits into thermodynamics and the emergence of life. It's also the best summary of Ilya Prigogine's work I've read (including, ironically, Prigogine's own books) http://www.amazon.ca/Why-Information-Grows-Evolution-Economies/dp/0465048994 http://www.amazon.ca/Why-Information-Grows-Evolution-Economi...

henrik_w 11y ago

+1 for Sapiens. Good overview of the histroy of humanity, and I especially liked the theory of how shared beliefs enable cooperation among larger groups. The example of "The Legend of Peugeot" was also great: does the company Peugeot actually exist, can you point to what it is. No, it only exists as a shared belief. Also, Jeeves is great :-)

birdperson 11y ago

Nice list. The one by Nisan/Schocken is on my to read list. Does anyone know of any lists full of new math books?

deleted 11y ago

[deleted]

beambot 11y ago

Note that this is different than the YC library: https://www.ycombinator.com/resources/ https://www.ycombinator.com/resources/ The YC library keeps a good list of perennial favorites....

kirk21 11y ago

Best books I have read this year: - Shareholder letters of Warren Buffett: http://amzn.to/1OgZVh9 http://amzn.to/1OgZVh9 - Endurance: Shackleton's Incredible Voyage: http://amzn.to/1Oh09oz http://amzn.to/1Oh09oz

jeo1234 11y ago

'The Prize' is phenomenal. I took an econ class on the petroleum industry and the prof used it instead of a text book. PBS turn into into a really good multi-part documentary.

ScottBurson 11y ago

My recent favorite: The Planet Remade: How Geoengineering Could Change the World by Oliver Morton. Engagingly written -- I could hardly put it down! -- comprehensive, thorough, and optimistic without being credulous, this book contains a wealth of information about the "earthsystem" (as Morton likes to call it) and the effects we're already having on it as well as those we could potentially create intentionally. The book makes an excellent case for expanding research into geoengineering, and I hope it gets widely read.

r3bl 11y ago

I've seen Seveneves appearing across multiple lists of best books in 2015 (here, Amazon's top 20, Goodreads' list for 2015...). I can't wait to grab my hands on it!

Animats 11y ago

Nice. I've read four of those. I have some book buying to do.