The Courage to Be Disliked
"That's what I mean about falling in love with failure. Alfred Adler talked a lot about this. The Courage to Be Disliked is a good book presenting his ideas, and it offers a sharp analysis of this Mastodon phenomenon too."
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Books Recommended by David Heinemeier Hansson
Creator of Ruby on Rails, co-founder of Basecamp and HEY, author and racing driver
@dhh14 books recommended
David Heinemeier Hansson's Book Recommendations
We track book recommendations that David Heinemeier Hansson has publicly shared on Twitter/X. Each recommendation below includes the original quote and a link to the source tweet. Amazon links are affiliate links.
Radical Candor
"I don't love all the anecdotes, but this book really nails that lesson: https://www.amazon.com/Radical-Candor-Revised-Kick-Ass-Humanity/dp/1250235375/"
Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance
"Which is exactly what I was thinking about when I cited motorcycle repair 😄. Great book!"
San Fransicko
"It's a term coined by @shellenberger and the title of his excellent book: https://www.amazon.com/dp/0063093626?ref=cm_sw_r_ffobk_cso_cp_apan_dp_5VB85J1F5NBK4EMTCNA4&ref_=cm_sw_r_ffobk_cso_cp_apan_dp_5VB85J1F5NBK4EMTCNA4&social_share=cm_sw_r_ffobk_cso_cp_apan_dp_5VB85J1F5NBK4EMTCNA4&bestFormat=true&csmig=1"
What Do You Do With An Idea? / What Do You Do With A Problem? / What Do You Do With A Chance?
"I mentioned the trifecta of children books What Do You Do With An Idea/A Problem/A Chance on the Lex podcast. The author is Kobi Yamada, illustrated by Mae Besom. Wonderful books for kids (and their parents!). https://www.amazon.com/What-You-Do-Matters-Problem/dp/1946873144/"
The Comfort Crisis
"Loved that book."
Twilight of the Elites
"The book Twillight of the Elites cover this phenomenon well from the French perspective: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07L14PD5D"
Bad Therapy
"Shrier's book on this is eye-opening: https://www.amazon.com/Bad-Therapy-Kids-Arent-Growing/dp/0593542924"
The Road to Serfdom
"Great book! Finally read it recently."
The Quest for Cosmic Justice
"Sowell's The Quest for Cosmic Justice is an excellent book for wrestling with the real-life trade-offs required after the utopian ideals come short. Highly recommended reading! https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000FC0T72/"
The Vision of the Anointed
"Highly recommend this book by Thomas Sowell as an answer to the question of whether it's within the power of the Danes to "cure" people from certain nations of origin of their violent ways. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000FC0T72/"
Woke Racism
"If you'd like to explore the concept further, I highly recommend McWhorter's excellent book on Woke Racism. https://www.amazon.com/Woke-Racism-Religion-Betrayed-America/dp/0593423062/"
The Righteous Mind
"Haidt planted many good seeds. I read The Righteous Mind in 2015. Great book."
Lost to the West: The Forgotten Byzantine Empire That Rescued Western Civilization
"My favorite read of 2025 was Lars Brownworth's Lost to the West: The Forgotten Byzantine Empire That Rescued Western Civilization. Nothing gives you perspective like revisiting a thousand years of history. Much better than soaking in the present."
Frequently Asked Questions
How many books has David Heinemeier Hansson recommended?
David Heinemeier Hansson has publicly recommended 14 books on Twitter/X. The most recent recommendation is "The Courage to Be Disliked" by .
Where do these book recommendations come from?
All recommendations are sourced directly from David Heinemeier Hansson's public tweets on Twitter/X. We include the original quote and a link to the source tweet for verification.
How often is this list updated?
We regularly monitor David Heinemeier Hansson's Twitter/X account for new book recommendations and update this page when new ones are found.