Recommendations you can check.
Programmer in Vancouver who writes at scattered-thoughts.net about databases, programming languages and building tools; author of the Imp/Zest language experiments.
11 things
Espresso LessonsBook Arno Ilgner
I also love Espresso Lessons, although it's much more climbing-specific.
His standing "Reads that lasted" page — books and essays that had a lasting impact on him. The page carries no visible date; 2026-08-20 is its Last-Modified header.
The Rock Warrior's WayBook Arno Ilgner
While notionally a book about climbing, it's really about what the author calls 'personal power' - the ability to act effectively in the world - and all the ways that that power can be drained by ego, fear, comfort-seeking, and even poor definitions of success and failure.
His standing "Reads that lasted" page — books and essays that had a lasting impact on him. The page carries no visible date; 2026-08-20 is its Last-Modified header.
MicroadventuresBook Alastair Humphreys
This book congealed for me the idea that adventure is more an attitude or a habit than a circumstance. I'd experienced that before, especially in the parkour scene in London, but always in narrow contexts. Alastair convinced me to treat my whole life the same way.
His standing "Reads that lasted" page — books and essays that had a lasting impact on him. The page carries no visible date; 2026-08-20 is its Last-Modified header.
A City DreamingBook Daniel Polansky
Pretending to be urban fantasy, but really a love letter to New York and to unplanned adventures.
His standing "Reads that lasted" page — books and essays that had a lasting impact on him. The page carries no visible date; 2026-08-20 is its Last-Modified header.
UncontrolledBook Jim Manzi
I read this as a cognitive science post-grad and it perfectly captured my unease with the field.
His standing "Reads that lasted" page — books and essays that had a lasting impact on him. The page carries no visible date; 2026-08-20 is its Last-Modified header.
Deep WorkBook Cal Newport
They argue that daily solitude is necessary for emotional processing, and that being deprived of solitude by constant entertainment leads to anxiety and insomnia, your mind racing in bed as it tries to catch up with the work it missed. Nearly a decade after reading I'm thoroughly convinced by this theory.
His standing "Reads that lasted" page — books and essays that had a lasting impact on him. The page carries no visible date; 2026-08-20 is its Last-Modified header.
Digital MinimalismBook Cal Newport
This is when I first started to notice how much of my experience of life is determined by where and how I direct my attention.
His standing "Reads that lasted" page — books and essays that had a lasting impact on him. The page carries no visible date; 2026-08-20 is its Last-Modified header.
FactfulnessBook Hans Rosling
More than anything, these books convinced me to work hard to avoid these negativity chambers entirely and aim to only hang out in spaces where people are trying to make things better, instead of delightedly bemoaning that everything is awful.
His standing "Reads that lasted" page — books and essays that had a lasting impact on him. The page carries no visible date; 2026-08-20 is its Last-Modified header.
Not the End of the WorldBook Hannah Ritchie
What struck me the most about both of these was the strength and pervasiveness of the media bias towards negativity, and how fervently people want to continue believing in downfall of all that is good and the intrinsic evil of modernity, even when faced with clear evidence otherwise.
His standing "Reads that lasted" page — books and essays that had a lasting impact on him. The page carries no visible date; 2026-08-20 is its Last-Modified header.
The Life Goals of Dead PeopleOther
I won't summarize it - it's only a few minutes read. But I often catch myself being a dead person, and having a term for it has noticably improved my life.
His standing "Reads that lasted" page — books and essays that had a lasting impact on him. The page carries no visible date; 2026-08-20 is its Last-Modified header.
The World Beyond Your HeadBook Matthew B. Crawford
There is a lot I disagree with in this book (not least his intense distaste for safety features in cars), but I feel there is something important in there somewhere.
His standing "Reads that lasted" page — books and essays that had a lasting impact on him. The page carries no visible date; 2026-08-20 is its Last-Modified header.
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