# How to Take Smart Notes by Sönke Ahrens

3 Hacker News commenters recommended How to Take Smart Notes by Sönke Ahrens and 2 criticized it, November 2025 to November 2026. It was recommended in 3 of 13 months.

**Verdict:** Recommended for showing how writing drives thinking and learning, and for a Zettelkasten reading approach. Critics say it is vague and defines too many note types.

## Why people recommend it

- Shows how writing drives thinking (2 comments): "it gets into how important writing is as a part of the process of thinking and learning" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46484681)) "until you write about something, your thinking will be incomplete" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46235873))
- Zettelkasten method makes reading thorough (1 comments): "using the Zettelkasten method to make reading a very diligent and thorough process" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49337246))

## What people warn about

- Vague, defines too many note kinds (1 comments): "it's not specific or clear enough, and it defines too many different kinds of notes" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46489932))
- Too much about Zettelkasten (1 comments): "The book was more about how good and lifechanging it is to use Zettelkasten" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47727672))
- Credits Luhmann's method to Ahrens (1 comments): "Please don't credit Niklas Luhmann for what Sönke Ahrens did" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46738463))

## Alternatives hackers recommend

- [The Cuckoo's Egg by Cliff Stoll](https://hackerapproved.com/p/cuckoo-s-egg.md): 40 recommend
- [Amusing Ourselves to Death by Neil Postman](https://hackerapproved.com/p/amusing-ourselves-to-death.md): 36 recommend
- [The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt](https://hackerapproved.com/p/anxious-generation.md): 24 recommend
- [Bullshit Jobs by David Graeber](https://hackerapproved.com/p/bullshit-jobs.md): 20 recommend
- [Enshittification by Cory Doctorow](https://hackerapproved.com/p/enshittification.md): 19 recommend

## Where to get it

- [See price on Amazon](https://www.amazon.com/dp/1542866502?tag=hackerapprove-20) (affiliate link)
- [Bookshop.org](https://bookshop.org/a/130825/9781542866507) (affiliate link)

## Cite as

Hacker Approved, "How to Take Smart Notes by Sönke Ahrens", https://hackerapproved.com/p/how-to-take-smart-notes/ (counts from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026).