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Capital

Capital by John Lanchester

by John Lanchester

Shares rank 109 of 122 novels by recommenders

People recommend it as a wonderful novel about the financial crisis and bankers' hedonic treadmill.

People recommend it as a wonderful novel about the financial crisis and bankers' hedonic treadmill.

2 people gave an opinion

recommend it
2
criticize it
0
approval share
100%
Each figure is one person. RecommendsCriticizes

Recommended in 2 of 13 months

  1. November 2025: recommended
  2. December 2025: not recommended
  3. January 2026: not recommended
  4. February 2026: not recommended
  5. March 2026: not recommended
  6. April 2026: not recommended
  7. May 2026: not recommended
  8. June 2026: recommended
  9. July 2026: not recommended
  10. August 2026: not recommended
  11. September 2026: not recommended
  12. October 2026: not recommended
  13. November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)

Why it doesn’t carry the badge

  • 2 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, not met.
  • Nobody criticizes itNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
  • Recommended in 2 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

  • Wonderful novel about the financial crisis

    “a novel about the financial crisis and bankers on the hedonic treadmill, is wonderful too”

    Comment from 2 Jun 2026 in “Squillions – two books about money-laundering”

Other novels people recommend

The four most recommended other novels, 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.

Capital by John Lanchester compared with 4 alternatives
ProductRecommendCriticizeApprovalMonthsOwnedBadge
Crime and Punishmentby Fyodor Dostoevsky39981%6—Approved
The Brothers Karamazovby Fyodor Dostoevsky28878%5—Approved
Infinite Jestby David Foster Wallace26584%910 yrs6 ownersApproved
The Great Gatsbyby F. Scott Fitzgerald24973%6—Approved
Capitalby John LanchesterThis page20100%2——
See all 122 novels, ranked

What people said

All 2 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.

“a novel about the financial crisis and bankers on the hedonic treadmill, is wonderful too”

RecommendsComment from 2 Jun 2026 in “Squillions – two books about money-laundering”

“I don't agree with his labor theory of value, but I do think algebra is good.”

MixedComment from 21 Nov 2025 in “Homeschooling hits record numbers”

Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.