# The Circle by Dave Eggers

6 Hacker News commenters recommended The Circle by Dave Eggers and 3 criticized it, November 2025 to November 2026. It was recommended in 5 of 13 months.

**Verdict:** Recommended for its prescient portrayal of surveillance and tech control; critics find the ending weak and the drama excessive.

## Why people recommend it

- Prophetic portrayal of surveillance and control (2 comments): "it did do a surprisingly accurate job of depicting pretty much this exact scenario" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46981631)) "is looking more and more prophetic every day" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48384008))

## Alternatives hackers recommend

- [Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky](https://hackerapproved.com/p/crime-and-punishment.md): 39 recommend
- [The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky](https://hackerapproved.com/p/brothers-karamazov.md): 28 recommend
- [Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace](https://hackerapproved.com/p/infinite-jest.md): 26 recommend
- [The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald](https://hackerapproved.com/p/great-gatsby.md): 24 recommend
- [Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand](https://hackerapproved.com/p/atlas-shrugged.md): 23 recommend

## Where to get it

- [See price on Amazon](https://www.amazon.com/dp/0804172293?tag=hackerapprove-20) (affiliate link)
- [Bookshop.org](https://bookshop.org/a/130825/9780804172295) (affiliate link)

## Cite as

Hacker Approved, "The Circle by Dave Eggers", https://hackerapproved.com/p/circle/ (counts from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026).