Liftoff
Liftoff by Eric Bergerby Eric Berger
Shares rank 36 of 152 nonfiction books by recommenders
People recommend Liftoff for explaining the early history of SpaceX and the reasons behind its decisions, often read alongside its sequel Reentry. No critical comments were recorded.
People recommend Liftoff for explaining the early history of SpaceX and the reasons behind its decisions, often read alongside its sequel Reentry. No critical comments were recorded.
6 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 6
- criticize it
- 0
- approval share
- 100%
Recommended in 6 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: not recommended
- July 2026: recommended
- August 2026: recommended
- September 2026: recommended
- October 2026: recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 6 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, not met.
- Nobody criticizes itNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 6 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, 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
Explains the reasons behind SpaceX decisions
“If you want to know the why’s I suggest reading Eric Berger’s two books Liftoff and Reentry.”
Comment from 8 Jul 2026 in “The space bit of SpaceX is worth $8 a share, says Morgan Stanley” Read together with sequel Reentry
“If you want to know the why’s I suggest reading Eric Berger’s two books Liftoff and Reentry.”
Comment from 8 Jul 2026 in “The space bit of SpaceX is worth $8 a share, says Morgan Stanley” “you can also read liftoff and re-entry by eric berger”
Comment from 19 Sep 2026 in “How SpaceX streamlined the Raptor engine”
Other nonfiction books people recommend
The four most recommended other nonfiction books, 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.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Cuckoo's Eggby Clifford Stoll | 40 | 0 | 100% | 8 | — | Approved |
| Amusing Ourselves to Deathby Neil Postman | 36 | 0 | 100% | 9 | 1 yr3 owners | Approved |
| The Anxious Generationby Jonathan Haidt | 24 | 12 | 67% | 10 | — | Approved |
| Bullshit Jobsby David Graeber | 20 | 12 | 63% | 8 | — | — |
| Liftoffby Eric BergerThis page | 6 | 0 | 100% | 6 | — | — |
What people said
4 of the 6 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“you can get some flying skills before you actually control something irl”
“you can also read liftoff and re-entry by eric berger”
“which has translated pretty well to the actual drone”
“If you want to know the why’s I suggest reading Eric Berger’s two books Liftoff and Reentry.”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.