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Ask HN: What book have you given as a gift?
Which book have you found so compelling that you've gifted it to others? This could be a technical book, business-related, a self-help guide, or any other genre. I first posed this question eight years ago and received some fantastic responses.
[1] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=12243611
- atlgator 2y agoRich Dad, Poor Dad
- humbleferret 2y agoBarbarian Days: A Surfing Life — William Finnegan — (2015)
- gnatman 2y agoFantastic book. After I finished it, I was thinking- OK, how can I now best devote the rest of my life to surfing?
- humbleferret 2y agoIt really is. My takeaways after reading it were not to surf, but rather, the importance of uncertainty, taking risks and how transformative the power of obsession really is.
- bediger4000 2y agoThe Magicians, Lev Grossman A Wizard of Earthsea
- d416 2y agoThe China Study: The Most Comprehensive Study of Nutrition Ever Conducted and the Startling Implications for Diet, Weight Loss and Long-term Health https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_China_Study https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_China_Study it’s the Red Pill of diet and nutrition (not for everyone)
- h2odragon 2y agoIlluminatus trilogy: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Illuminatus!_Trilogy https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Illuminatus!_Trilogy Knuth's TAoCP.
- Doctor-R 2y ago1. Winnie the Pooh to kids on their third or fourth or fifth birthday. 2. The Mythical Man Month to non-tech bosses. 3. The Moon is a Harsh Mistress to girlfriends (it's a test). 4. "Get It Together: Organize Your Records So Your Family Won't Have To" to 70+ old friend (single) and 70+ old sister (single).
- WheelsAtLarge 2y ago"4. "Get It Together: Organize Your Records So Your Family Won't Have To" to 70+ old friend (single) and 70+ old sister (single)." Thanks, I've been looking for something like this book.
- sfmz 2y ago"Cypherpunks: Freedom and the Future of the Internet" Julian Assange. "Our Lady of Guadalupe and the Conquest of Darkess." Warren Carroll
- reify 2y agoBeyond Doer and Done to_ Recognition Theory, Intersubjectivity and the Third - Jessica Benjamin - (2017, Routledge) The Therapeutic Relationship - Petruska Clarkson - (2003, Wiley) Love's Executioner & Other Tales of Psychotherapy - Irvin D. Yalom - (2012, Basic Books) Beautiful Chaos - Robert M. Drake - (2014, Vintage Wild)
- jpiratefish 2y ago* The Chronicles of Amber (10 volumes) * CODE - Microsoft Press * Snowcrash
- fsflyer 2y agoMore of a pamphlet than a book, I give it to all the college graduates in the family. https://www.etf.com/docs/IfYouCan.pdf https://www.etf.com/docs/IfYouCan.pdf
- verdverm 2y agoA Business and its Beliefs Conquest of Mind
- interbased 2y agoThe Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle
- mooreds 2y agoI've given a few: * the hard thing about hard things (by Horowitz) * climate wars (dwyer) * ender's game
- jjice 2y agoI Will Teach You To Be Rich by Ramit Sethi. Corny name, but generally good advice for people who don't have an interest in personal finance. I buy it for friends when they get engaged.
- WheelsAtLarge 2y agoOutliers: The Story of Success by Malcolm Gladwell This is the first book that clearly made me realize that anyone can be very successful at any task that they pick. Talent is important but it's not the only and most important characteristic to success. People aren't born to succeed. They can and do learn how to do it. It's a learned process, not a God given gift.
- brudgers 2y agoThe Art of Computer Programming boxed set.
- kirkarg 2y agoPoems for the lost, because I'm lost too. By exurbia. Excellent book, some poems go very deep but most of them are just funny (at least for me).
- skydhash 2y agoDepends on the audience. Generally, it's always "Getting Things Done" and "So Good They Can't Ignore You". For fellow programmers it's "Clean Coder" and "The Pragmatic Programmer". And I always wish my managers and tech leads read "The Mythical Man-Month".
- mapasj 2y agoSapiens by Yuval Noah Harari
- 11001100 2y agoA Wild Ride Through the Night by Walter Moers Plot summary: "The story begins with 12-year-old Gustave, captain of the Aventure as he attempts to escape the deadly Siamese Twins Tornado. When the storm finally catches up with his crew, everyone is killed except Gustave, who meets Death, and his crazy sister Dementia. After the wicked siblings play dice for Gustave's soul, Death gives him six seemingly impossible tasks in order to stay alive. In one night, he must face six giants, rescue a damsel in distress from the clutches of a dragon, make himself conspicuous amidst a forest of evil spirits, encounter the Most Monstrous of all Monsters, and even meet himself." [0] In addition the book has great illustrations from Gustave Doré. [0]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Wild_Ride_Through_the_Night https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Wild_Ride_Through_the_Night
- bmm6o 2y agoGave my nephew the Hitchhiker's Guide and Surely You're Joking this past xmas.
- paulcole 2y agoTao Te Ching - short enough to be read by anyone in one sitting and potentially very meaningful
- fruity231 2y agoA Short History of Nearly Everything by Bill Bryson.
- darkest_ruby 2y agoMy own book https://a.co/d/gaHPDkT https://a.co/d/gaHPDkT You get a copy of you write a good review
- gnatman 2y agoLabyrinths - Jorge Borges (I've gifted this many times) Duino Elegies - Rainer Rilke, translated by Robert Hunter
- Mithriil 2y agoThe Three Body Problem (Liu Cixin) for my best friend. It's some of the best sci-fi I read. The Courange to Be Disliked (Ichiro Kishimi, Fumitake Koga) to a friend that was struggling with social anxiety.
- marklubi 2y agoHow to Win Friends and Influence People If you give it to someone, be very careful about who you give it to. I've given it to several different people that needed some self-confidence boosting, but one of them ended up using some of the lessons from it in some devious ways.
- constantinum 2y agoIntelligent investor — Benjamin graham
- billylo 2y agoMultipliers: How the Best Leaders Make Everyone Smarter by Liz Wiseman Great stories on how to amplify the teams' collective impact.
- Wonnk13 2y agoThe Way to Love by Anthony Demello. Fits in your pocket and almost zen like koans. Little meditations on happiness and suffering without pushing too much religion down your throat.
- t-3 2y agoAn omnibus edition of A Wizard of Earthsea, containing all the books and short stories.