# Mein Kampf by Adolf Hitler

8 Hacker News commenters recommended Mein Kampf by Adolf Hitler and 6 criticized it, November 2025 to November 2026. It was recommended in 4 of 13 months.

**Verdict:** People recommend it to see how an extremist thinks and plans, and to read its passages in context. Critics say the writing is poor, dull and hard to get through.

## Why people recommend it

- Shows how extremists think and plan (2 comments): "we should read an example of a how a guy writes down exactly what hes going to do" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=50328202)) "so you can understand how people like that think" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46346529))
- Interesting to read in context (2 comments): "I am not sure one can stomach the whole thing but it's interesting to read quotes of it in context." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46364169)) ""Mein Kampf" is actually a very interesting lecture for any critical mind" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48553416))
- Lessons for critical thinking (2 comments): ""Mein Kampf" is actually a very interesting lecture for any critical mind" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48553416)) "There's probably a bunch of good lessons to take from reading Mein Kampf" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=50330140))

## What people warn about

- Poorly written, overexcited style (3 comments): "you can see the writing style (not very good, overexcited, and that would appeal to people who look for it)" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46373564)) "Mein Kampf is absolutely terrible piece of literature not by it's message but by it's quality" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45842969)) "It's a brick! And poorly written at that." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48817736))
- Boring and painful to read (2 comments): "It is AWFUL and PAINFUL to read due to the horrible styling" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48550839)) "Read it and shown how boring and stupid it is." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48819187))

## Alternatives hackers recommend

- [Careless People by Sarah Wynn-Williams](https://hackerapproved.com/p/careless-people.md): 106 recommend
- [Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl](https://hackerapproved.com/p/man-s-search-for-meaning.md): 13 recommend
- [Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman! by Richard Feynman](https://hackerapproved.com/p/surely-you-re-joking-mr-feynman.md): 11 recommend
- [Down and Out in Paris and London by George Orwell](https://hackerapproved.com/p/down-and-out-in-paris-and-london.md): 9 recommend
- [Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain](https://hackerapproved.com/p/kitchen-confidential.md): 9 recommend

## Where to get it

- [See price on Amazon](https://www.amazon.com/dp/0547559259?tag=hackerapprove-20) (affiliate link)
- [Bookshop.org](https://bookshop.org/a/130825/9780547559254) (affiliate link)

## Cite as

Hacker Approved, "Mein Kampf by Adolf Hitler", https://hackerapproved.com/p/mein-kampf/ (counts from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026).