# In the Swarm by Byung-Chul Han

2 Hacker News commenters recommended In the Swarm by Byung-Chul Han and 0 criticized it, November 2025 to November 2026. It was recommended in 3 of 13 months.

**Verdict:** People recommend it as a primer on Byung-Chul Han's ideas, with a sharp take on online shitstorms and digital crowd behavior.

## Why people recommend it

- Good primer for Han's ideas (1 comments): "I recommend you to read In the Swarm by Byung-Chul Han as a primer." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49976212))
- Insightful on online shitstorms (1 comments): "Byung-Chul Han hit the right spot when talking about "shitstorms" on "In The Swarm"" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49726578))
- Pairs well with his other essays (1 comments): "I recommend reading "In the Swarm" by Byung-Chul Han, and also his "The Crisis of Narration"" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46145931))
- Worth adding to reading list (1 comments): "Thanks for the book suggestion; adding this to my queue." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49977627))

## Alternatives hackers recommend

- [Tao Te Ching by Laozi](https://hackerapproved.com/p/tao-te-ching-translated.md): 32 recommend
- [Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert Pirsig](https://hackerapproved.com/p/zen-and-the-art-of-motorcycle-maintenance.md): 24 recommend
- [Meditations by Marcus Aurelius](https://hackerapproved.com/p/meditations.md): 17 recommend
- [I Am a Strange Loop by Douglas Hofstadter](https://hackerapproved.com/p/i-am-a-strange-loop.md): 16 recommend
- [Simulacra and Simulation by Jean Baudrillard](https://hackerapproved.com/p/simulacra-and-simulation.md): 12 recommend

## Where to get it

- [See price on Amazon](https://www.amazon.com/dp/0262533367?tag=hackerapprove-20) (affiliate link)
- [Bookshop.org](https://bookshop.org/a/130825/9780262533362) (affiliate link)

## Cite as

Hacker Approved, "In the Swarm by Byung-Chul Han", https://hackerapproved.com/p/in-the-swarm/ (counts from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026).