# The Soul of a New Machine by Tracy Kidder

59 Hacker News commenters recommended The Soul of a New Machine by Tracy Kidder and 0 criticized it, November 2025 to November 2026. It was recommended in 8 of 13 months; owners who said how long report a median of 28 years (3 owners). It meets the Hacker Approved badge rule.

**Verdict:** Engineers recommend it as a vivid, honest account of a hardware project's pressures and ingenuity that shaped many careers. Some note it glorifies death-march schedules.

## Why people recommend it

- Inspired engineering careers (5 comments): "Reading it as a teen probably contributed substantially to the direction of my career" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47521488)) "when I read this book in 1982 or so it changed the trajectory of my life and career" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47736227)) "influenced my entire career as an electrical engineer and software developer" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47526028))
- Vivid portrayal of real people (5 comments): "it's an amazing book for folks to understand the joy and shortcommings and pressures a project can put on you" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47520386)) "Soul of a new machine was a wonderful journey that was full of real people and real experiences" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47063559)) "the general pace and pressure of the story are still relatable" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47525004))
- Memorable pinball analogy for engineering (3 comments): "really enjoyed the analogy of "pinball" -- that's probably the best analogy I could find for engineers" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47532082)) "I really like the analogy of “pinball” from _The Soul of a New Machine_." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49560138)) "I'm very into the idea of "pinball" talked about in the book." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49908446))
- Strong narrative style (2 comments): "Tracy Kidder wrote with a unique style that (to me) really drives the narrative forward" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47521041)) "Soul of a New machine is a great read, never slow or self-gratifying" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47735467))

## What people warn about

- Glorifies punishing death-march schedules (1 comments): "I love the book. ... the book helped normalize death-marches in the industry" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47523093))
- Lower regard than others (1 comments): "I don't hold the book in nearly the same high regard as others" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47063611))

## Alternatives hackers recommend

- [The Old New Thing by Raymond Chen](https://hackerapproved.com/p/old-new-thing.md): 31 recommend
- [Accidental Empires by Bob Cringely](https://hackerapproved.com/p/accidental-empires.md): 15 recommend
- [A History of Lisp](https://hackerapproved.com/p/technical-history-book-on-lisp.md): 11 recommend
- [Turing's Cathedral by George Dyson](https://hackerapproved.com/p/turing-s-cathedral.md): 10 recommend
- [The Friendly Orange Glow by Brian Dear](https://hackerapproved.com/p/friendly-orange-glow.md): 7 recommend

## Where to get it

- [See price on Amazon](https://www.amazon.com/dp/0316491705?tag=hackerapprove-20) (affiliate link)
- [Bookshop.org](https://bookshop.org/a/130825/9780316491709) (affiliate link)

## Cite as

Hacker Approved, "The Soul of a New Machine by Tracy Kidder", https://hackerapproved.com/p/soul-of-a-new-machine/ (counts from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026).