# The Nature of Code by Daniel Shiffman

6 Hacker News commenters recommended The Nature of Code by Daniel Shiffman and 0 criticized it, November 2025 to November 2026. It was recommended in 5 of 13 months.

**Verdict:** Recommended as a hands-on, simulation-based introduction to modeling natural systems in code, with a useful list of related reading.

## Why people recommend it

- Great for creative simulations (2 comments): "the book Nature Of Code is great for exploring this topic by creating simulations" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47707634)) "I can extremely highly recommend Daniel Shiffman's Nature of Code" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48554511))
- Fun to work through (2 comments): "this fun book I worked through years ago" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=50323981)) "Nature of Code is such a great book !" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49702080))

## Alternatives hackers recommend

- [Crafting Interpreters by Robert Nystrom](https://hackerapproved.com/p/crafting-interpreters.md): 60 recommend
- [Clean Code by Robert C. Martin](https://hackerapproved.com/p/clean-code.md): 31 recommend
- [The Pragmatic Programmer by Hunt and Thomas](https://hackerapproved.com/p/pragmatic-programmer.md): 28 recommend
- [How to Design Programs by Felleisen, Findler, Flatt and Krishnamurthi](https://hackerapproved.com/p/how-to-design-programs.md): 18 recommend
- [Mastering Emacs by Mickey Petersen](https://hackerapproved.com/p/mastering-emacs.md): 17 recommend

## Where to get it

- [See price on Amazon](https://www.amazon.com/dp/1718503709?tag=hackerapprove-20) (affiliate link)
- [Bookshop.org](https://bookshop.org/a/130825/9781718503700) (affiliate link)

## Cite as

Hacker Approved, "The Nature of Code by Daniel Shiffman", https://hackerapproved.com/p/nature-of-code/ (counts from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026).