# Recoding America by Jennifer Pahlka

4 Hacker News commenters recommended Recoding America by Jennifer Pahlka and 0 criticized it, November 2025 to November 2026. It was recommended in 4 of 13 months.

**Verdict:** People recommend it as a thorough look at why government technology projects fail and how institutions shape outcomes, with examples from the IRS and VA.

## Why people recommend it

- Thorough treatment of institutional technology behavior (1 comments): "gives an extremely thorough treatment to institutional behaviors re: technology and effectiveness" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46709211))
- Explains dysfunctions still hurting government tech (1 comments): "The challenges and fundamental dysfunctions it describes are still the primary headwinds to effective US government use of technology today" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49940925))
- Discusses IRS and VA IT systems (1 comments): "This book discusses the IT systems at the IRS and VA and shows the kind of push back you can expect from entrenched players." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46277687))
- Insightful author and analysis (1 comments): "Jennifer Pahlka's really insightful Recoding America" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48882596))

## Alternatives hackers recommend

- [The Cuckoo's Egg by Cliff Stoll](https://hackerapproved.com/p/cuckoo-s-egg.md): 40 recommend
- [Amusing Ourselves to Death by Neil Postman](https://hackerapproved.com/p/amusing-ourselves-to-death.md): 36 recommend
- [The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt](https://hackerapproved.com/p/anxious-generation.md): 24 recommend
- [Bullshit Jobs by David Graeber](https://hackerapproved.com/p/bullshit-jobs.md): 20 recommend
- [Enshittification by Cory Doctorow](https://hackerapproved.com/p/enshittification.md): 19 recommend

## Where to get it

- [See price on Amazon](https://www.amazon.com/dp/1250342732?tag=hackerapprove-20) (affiliate link)
- [Bookshop.org](https://bookshop.org/a/130825/9781250342737) (affiliate link)

## Cite as

Hacker Approved, "Recoding America by Jennifer Pahlka", https://hackerapproved.com/p/recoding-america/ (counts from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026).