# The Art of Computer Programming Volume 1 by Donald Knuth

4 Hacker News commenters recommended The Art of Computer Programming Volume 1 by Donald Knuth and 0 criticized it, November 2025 to November 2026. It was recommended in 3 of 13 months.

**Verdict:** Recommended for connecting programming, computer science and mathematics, and for collecting earlier algorithm folklore in one book. No critical quotes, so no common caveat.

## Why people recommend it

- Links programming, computer science and mathematics (1 comments): "showing me the relationship between computer programming, computer science, and mathematics really did change my life" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49265781))
- Collects earlier algorithm folklore in print (1 comments): "it was great to finally see what had previously been folklore on mimeographed sheets in an actual book" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=50254692))
- Helps with understanding assembly programming (1 comments): "I benefited massively from reading Vol 1 of TAOCP and understanding Knuth's new assembly." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=50018282))
- Described as excellent (1 comments): "I started volume one recently and it is excellent" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47778776))

## Alternatives hackers recommend

- [Crafting Interpreters by Robert Nystrom](https://hackerapproved.com/p/crafting-interpreters.md): 60 recommend
- [Clean Code by Robert C. Martin](https://hackerapproved.com/p/clean-code.md): 31 recommend
- [The Pragmatic Programmer by Hunt and Thomas](https://hackerapproved.com/p/pragmatic-programmer.md): 28 recommend
- [How to Design Programs by Felleisen, Findler, Flatt and Krishnamurthi](https://hackerapproved.com/p/how-to-design-programs.md): 18 recommend
- [Mastering Emacs by Mickey Petersen](https://hackerapproved.com/p/mastering-emacs.md): 17 recommend

## Where to get it

- [See price on Amazon](https://www.amazon.com/dp/0134397606?tag=hackerapprove-20) (affiliate link)
- [Bookshop.org](https://bookshop.org/a/130825/9780134397603) (affiliate link)

## Cite as

Hacker Approved, "The Art of Computer Programming Volume 1 by Donald Knuth", https://hackerapproved.com/p/art-of-computer-programming-volume-1/ (counts from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026).