The Song of the Cell
The Song of the Cell by Siddhartha Mukherjeeby Siddhartha Mukherjee
Shares rank 33 of 50 popular science books by recommenders
People recommend it as an accessible starting point on cell biology and describe it as an enjoyable read. No recurring criticism appeared.
People recommend it as an accessible starting point on cell biology and describe it as an enjoyable read. No recurring criticism appeared.
3 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 3
- criticize it
- 0
- approval share
- 100%
Recommended in 2 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: 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: not recommended
- September 2026: not recommended
- October 2026: not recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 3 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, not met.
- Nobody criticizes itNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 2 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, not 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
Good starting point on cells
“I can recommend "The song of the cell" as a starting point.”
Comment from 30 Apr 2026 in “Biology is a Burrito: A text- and visual-based journey through a living cell” Enjoyable, readable journey
“as a reader it was a very enjoyable journey”
Comment from 30 Apr 2026 in “Biology is a Burrito: A text- and visual-based journey through a living cell” Author's other books also recommended
“Check out his other books”
Comment from 27 Dec 2025 in “Ask HN: What did you read in 2025?”
Other popular science books people recommend
The four most recommended other popular science 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gödel, Escher, Bachby Douglas Hofstadter | 47 | 10 | 82% | 10 | — | Approved |
| Thinking, Fast and Slowby Daniel Kahneman | 17 | 13 | 57% | 9 | — | — |
| Thinking in Systemsby Donella Meadows | 17 | 0 | 100% | 8 | — | Approved |
| The Selfish Geneby Richard Dawkins | 14 | 5 | 74% | 8 | — | Approved |
| The Song of the Cellby Siddhartha MukherjeeThis page | 3 | 0 | 100% | 2 | — | — |
What people said
All 3 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“as a reader it was a very enjoyable journey”
“I can recommend "The song of the cell" as a starting point.”
“Check out his other books”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.