Ask HN: Great books you read in 2009?

A great book, but it does require a lot of time and some serious thinking with a pencil and pad

Definitely a great read.

Zen and Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, by Robert Pirsig

I wouldn't say I agree with all of it, but its a great read nonetheless.

Shocking how relevant and prophetic it is, especially with respect to the events of 2009.

the closest I can think of (in the way of endings) is Snow Crash.

K&R works better as a tutorial, as an introduction to C programming.

loved the first one but the story felt like it started to putter out by the third

+1 for Selfish Gene, read a few years ago.

Selfish Gene, by Richard Dawkins

The best book I read in 2009 was The Selfish Gene by Richard Dawkins. It's surprisingly accessible

I loved reading about the founder's stories and first-hand perspectives of notable programmers.

Fooled by Randomness,

a fantastic book that I can't recommend enough.

after the first 200 pages it became a really great story that I couldn't put down

Anathem, by Neal Stephenson

Anathem started slow but ended up being one of his better efforts, I think.

Stephenson, 'Anathem' (first 150 pages slow)

my favorite book for 2009 was Neal Stephenson's Anathem.

Best post-cyberpunk book written thus far, IMO.

some really interesting ideas and analysis, although the book could have been 1/2 as short

that was interesting but not in the same league.