Breath
Breath by James Nestorby James Nestor
Shares rank 12 of 50 popular science books by recommenders
Readers recommend it as a readable, practical guide to breathing, with habits that some found had a lasting positive effect. The most common caveat is that parts of it feel like woo.
Readers recommend it as a readable, practical guide to breathing, with habits that some found had a lasting positive effect. The most common caveat is that parts of it feel like woo.
8 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 6
- criticize it
- 2
- approval share
- 75%
Recommended in 3 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: recommended
- May 2026: recommended
- June 2026: not recommended
- July 2026: not recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: not recommended
- October 2026: not recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 6 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, not met.
- 3 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 3 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, not met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Practical breathing and mouth habits
“you can literally change the shape of your nose, palate, and jaw from just practice”
Comment from 23 May 2026 in “Sleep research led to a new sleep apnea drug” “It made me always try to keep my mouth closed when i'm not eating or talking.”
Comment from 23 Apr 2026 in “Breathing Exercises to Relieve Stress” Lasting positive impact, top pop science
“One of those rare books that had a noticeable, positive impact on my life.”
Comment from 16 Apr 2026 in “Breathing Exercises to Relieve Stress” “The only health/pop sci book I'd recommend.”
Comment from 19 Dec 2025 in “Buteyko Method”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Some parts feel like woo
“a lot of it felt like woo, even though I know full well that the author is a well-respected journalist”
Comment from 23 May 2026 in “Sleep research led to a new sleep apnea drug”
Other popular science books people recommend
The four most recommended other popular science books, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gödel, Escher, Bachby Douglas Hofstadter | 47 | 10 | 82% | 10 | — | Approved |
| Thinking, Fast and Slowby Daniel Kahneman | 17 | 13 | 57% | 9 | — | — |
| Thinking in Systemsby Donella Meadows | 17 | 0 | 100% | 8 | — | Approved |
| The Selfish Geneby Richard Dawkins | 14 | 5 | 74% | 8 | — | Approved |
| Breathby James NestorThis page | 6 | 2 | 75% | 3 | — | — |
What people said
6 of the 8 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“a lot of it felt like woo, even though I know full well that the author is a well-respected journalist”
“you can literally change the shape of your nose, palate, and jaw from just practice”
“It made me always try to keep my mouth closed when i'm not eating or talking.”
“One of those rare books that had a noticeable, positive impact on my life.”
“did not find it illuminating”
“The only health/pop sci book I'd recommend.”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.