Normal Accidents
Normal Accidents by Charles Perrowby Charles Perrow
Hacker ApprovedShares rank 22 of 152 nonfiction books by recommenders
Recommended for its clear analysis of how tightly coupled, complex technologies fail, with examples from medicine, maritime and other fields. One critic says it is less enjoyable on rereading.
Recommended for its clear analysis of how tightly coupled, complex technologies fail, with examples from medicine, maritime and other fields. One critic says it is less enjoyable on rereading.
11 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 10
- criticize it
- 1
- approval share
- 91%
Recommended in 4 of 13 months
- November 2025: recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: not recommended
- July 2026: not recommended
- August 2026: recommended
- September 2026: recommended
- October 2026: not recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it carries the badge
- 10 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, met.
- 10 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 4 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
Applies to medicine and maritime safety
“"Normal Accidents" is a profound, mind-bending book. I lectured on it during Anesthesiology Grand Rounds”
Comment from 30 Sep 2026 in “Ask HN: What are you reading?” “I was struck by how relevant his points of failure were to the practice of anesthesiology”
Comment from 2 Apr 2026 in “Artemis II is not safe to fly” “Another case study to add to the maritime chapter of this timeless classic”
Comment from 20 Nov 2025 in “Loose wire leads to blackout, contact with Francis Scott Key bridge” Profound and engaging page-turner
“"Normal Accidents" is a profound, mind-bending book. I lectured on it during Anesthesiology Grand Rounds”
Comment from 30 Sep 2026 in “Ask HN: What are you reading?” “The book is fascinating and a good page turner, hard to put down.”
Comment from 1 Apr 2026 in “Artemis II is not safe to fly” Clear case studies of failure
“Another case study to add to the maritime chapter of this timeless classic”
Comment from 20 Nov 2025 in “Loose wire leads to blackout, contact with Francis Scott Key bridge” “illustrated well in the book”
Comment from 20 Nov 2025 in “Loose wire leads to blackout, contact with Francis Scott Key bridge”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Less enjoyable on rereading
“which is a book that I enjoy less now than the first time I read it”
Comment from 26 Aug 2026 in “Taylor Farms: How One Company's Reach Became a National Risk”
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 | — | — |
| Normal Accidentsby Charles PerrowThis page | 10 | 1 | 91% | 4 | — | Approved |
What people said
11 of the 12 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“"Normal Accidents" is a profound, mind-bending book. I lectured on it during Anesthesiology Grand Rounds”
“which is a book that I enjoy less now than the first time I read it”
“The definitive work on this topic is Normal Accidents”
“design the system such that it does not permit life-threatening errors”
“I was struck by how relevant his points of failure were to the practice of anesthesiology”
“The book is fascinating and a good page turner, hard to put down.”
“Perrow turned out to be wrong about aviation (got much safer over time)”
“push back on this assumptions”
“illustrated well in the book”
“Another case study to add to the maritime chapter of this timeless classic”
“I either want to buy them a copy of Normal Accidents or hit them over the head with mine.”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.