Ask HN: Books with a high signal to noise ratio?

doesn't have a particularly high "signal-to-noise ratio" but it's one of the most interesting books I've ever read.

this book will have a terrible SNR. (I think it's nonetheless worth reading.

Probably Godel Escher Bach

Seconded. This book has a very high signal-to-noise ratio.

I recently finished his "Thinking, Fast and Slow" (I did notice it's mentioned in the comments, but still), over a period of deliberate slow reading of 5 months. Much has been said and written (more than well deservedly!) about this book.

while it was mostly good, I think it started off strong and then became less so as it went on.

Sapins[1] by Yuval Noah Harari. Currently 220 pages into it, I wholeheartedly recommend -- it's remarkably well written and is full of very interesting perspectives.

The Selfish Gene is wonderfully tight, indeed very little noise and a whole lot of signal.

The Art of Computer Programming.

TAOCP really is excellent.

* Influence by Cialdini - great overview of the psychology of human motivation and influence. You'll get the inside dirt on a lot of sales and marketing tricks.

"Influence" by Robert Cialdini, both fascinating reads about how the mind works that yield useful insights for UI design and marketing.

"Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion" by Robert Cialdini Pretty much a must-read for anyone interested in sales, marketing, or "persuasion". However, even if you're not in that line of work it will blow you away.

The Four Steps to the Epiphany - Steve Blank

A Short History of Nearly Everything - Bill Bryson

Sun Tzu's The Art of War is itself very focused

you should look at The E-Myth by Michael Gerber, no matter what you're doing it'll have some essential advice

"The Elements of Style" by Strunk & White.

How to Solve It, by Polya.