# Hocus Pocus by Kurt Vonnegut

3 Hacker News commenters recommended Hocus Pocus by Kurt Vonnegut and 1 criticized it, November 2025 to November 2026. It was recommended in 2 of 13 months.

**Verdict:** Readers call it Vonnegut's best and a favorite; one critic objects to its last page's rape and pillaging remorse.

## Why people recommend it

- Considered Vonnegut's best work (1 comments): "I think "Hocus Pocus" is his best" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46394099))
- Named as a personal favorite (1 comments): "my favorite is Hocus Pocus" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46397696))

## What people warn about

- Ending's rape and pillaging remorse (1 comments): "what the calculation on the last page of HP resulted in: survivor's remorse of rape & pillaging" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46402836))

## 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/0099877104?tag=hackerapprove-20) (affiliate link)
- [Bookshop.org](https://bookshop.org/a/130825/9780099877103) (affiliate link)

## Cite as

Hacker Approved, "Hocus Pocus by Kurt Vonnegut", https://hackerapproved.com/p/hocus-pocus/ (counts from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026).