Coming Into the Country
by John McPhee · first published 1976
100% recommend
Why HN recommends it
Long-form narrative nonfiction about Alaska, praised as some of the best English-language essay writing of the 20th century; suits readers who enjoy deep, detailed reporting that reads like a novella.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
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What Hacker News says
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…on here. Yes, a New Yorker piece is going to be long and have backstory. Their feature pieces are like novellas of non-fiction. Many get republished into books, that receive acclaim like the amazing Coming into the Country[1]. It doesn't skim as well as some business insider article that is just a list of bullet points, but it was never meant to. https://www.amazon.ca/Coming-into-Country-John-McPhee/dp/037... https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1977/06/20/coming-into-th...
on “Energy, and How to Get It” ↗…long time (it even includes software you can install). If you're not familiar with McPhee, you're missing out. He's one of the greatest English-language essayists of the 20th century. My favorite is "Coming into the Country" (on Alaska), but the Hacker News set in general may prefer "The Control of Nature".
on “Using the wrong dictionary” ↗I'm going to plug a few great non-fiction books that are easy(ish) to read and deep on content. I'm sure there are a lot more out there. Thinking, Fast and Slow - Daniel Kahneman Coming Into the Country - John McPhee The Unwinding - George Packer Anything by James C Scott (Thinking Like a State, The Art of Not Being Governed) The Righteous Mind - John Haidt The Selfish Gene - Richard Dawkins (Regardless…
on “Analyzing Hacker News book suggestions in Python” ↗I really enjoy anything from John McPhee, especially Coming Into The Country.
on “Ask HN: What are your favorite non-fiction books of all time?” ↗McPhee's Coming into the Country? One of his better books--which is saying a lot--though it's been years since I read it.
on “Is there anywhere in the world someone can just live for free?” ↗