You must read at least one book to ride

Finding and Choosing Good Books

• Many agree that “reading at least one good book” in a domain is a big accelerator, but finding the right book is hard.
• Suggested strategies: follow bibliographies/footnotes of books you liked; read more from authors you already value; use Goodreads lists; look for recommendations in communities and from respected practitioners.
• Tools mentioned: LLMs for highly specific, personalized recs; Gnod/Literature Map for author discovery (with mixed reviews and data‑quality concerns); HN itself as a meta‑search (“HN best book on X”).
• Some say recommendations from people whose taste you trust outperform algorithms.

Motivation, Focus, and Reading Habits

• Several distinguish between:
  • People who don’t care to learn more.
  • People who want to learn but don’t execute.
  • People who read, reflect, and practice.
• Reading books (including non‑technical) is credited with improving attention span, reducing doomscrolling, and boosting day‑to‑day productivity and creativity.
• Some describe “training” focus like a muscle, including in the context of ADHD, through deliberate, repeated practice.

Quality and Type of Books

• Strong skepticism toward self‑help/pop‑business books: often padded, story‑heavy, and built around overextended slogans.
• Counters: stories significantly aid recall and help readers see themselves in examples; application matters more than mere “knowing.”
• Some recommend high‑quality fiction or philosophy (Locke, Hume, Nietzsche, Singer, Orwell) as powerful for reasoning and perspective.
• Technical books vary widely: the “right” book for one person (e.g., Strang for linear algebra) can be unusable for another; fit and pedagogy matter.

Industry Skill Levels, Hiring, and Signals

• Many report working with engineers who never seriously try to improve, ship naive or fragile code, and lack curiosity.
• Others argue reading alone is an imperfect signal; prior results and practical competence matter more.
• Proposed hiring signal: ask candidates about a favorite tech book and probe depth of understanding.
• Concern that “broadcasting” and playing thought‑leader games can overshadow actual ability; strong people can remain hard to spot.

Practice vs. Theory and Broader Culture

• Broad agreement that reading is a force multiplier but must be coupled with practice; some liken “only reading” to a mechanic who’s never touched a car.
• Debate over school culture: effort seen as “uncool,” many students in CS “for the money,” and institutions often failing to teach basics like version control.
• Some see low standards and weak epistemology (e.g., in psychology and other fields) as systemic problems, not unique to software.