# Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman! by Richard Feynman

11 Hacker News commenters recommended Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman! by Richard Feynman and 7 criticized it, November 2025 to November 2026. It was recommended in 6 of 13 months.

**Verdict:** Entertaining, playful memoir of Feynman's adventures that people recommend for its stories and curiosity. Critics say the stories portray sexist, mean-spirited behavior and may be edited or made up.

## Why people recommend it

- Wild adventures and encounters (2 comments): "really absorb the part where he explains how he had so many crazy adventures and encounters" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46642105)) "the stories in Feynman's autobiographical books" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46979491))
- Fun that encourages curiosity (2 comments): "Completely unrelated books about curiosity not people skills, but still lots of fun." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48018443)) "If not, I suggest to read just for fun of it" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48164970))
- Practical social advice on nightlife (2 comments): "explained perfectly (to me) how to treat women at clubs in order to be respected and have attention from the gals. WORKS LIKE A CHARM" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46971959)) "He addressed the problem of females who simply eat and drink for free EXPLOITING stupid dudes" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46973861))

## What people warn about

- Sexist and misogynistic content (5 comments): "It seems a legitimate criticism that this book held up as an example of a good role model in physics doesn't try to avoid perpetuating bad stereotypes." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46970837)) "criticizing misogynistic behaviors celebrated in those books that has left a negative impact on the culture of physics" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46969613)) "The stories in "Surely you are joking Mr. Feynman" portray Feynman in a mean-spirited, sometimes sexist light." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46971408))
- Stories refined, selected or made up (3 comments): "That chapter wasn't the only thing I ended up skipping or heavily editing." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46980089)) "it does seem clear that these stories were refined and selected for inclusion" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46984067)) "I remember when I read that 20 years ago, it felt a bit made up." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46971740))
- Mean-spirited tone toward groups (2 comments): "The stories in "Surely you are joking Mr. Feynman" portray Feynman in a mean-spirited, sometimes sexist light." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46971408)) "it is generalizing an entire group and justifying contempt toward them" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46974317))

## Alternatives hackers recommend

- [Careless People by Sarah Wynn-Williams](https://hackerapproved.com/p/careless-people.md): 106 recommend
- [Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl](https://hackerapproved.com/p/man-s-search-for-meaning.md): 13 recommend
- [Down and Out in Paris and London by George Orwell](https://hackerapproved.com/p/down-and-out-in-paris-and-london.md): 9 recommend
- [Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain](https://hackerapproved.com/p/kitchen-confidential.md): 9 recommend
- [Mein Kampf by Adolf Hitler](https://hackerapproved.com/p/mein-kampf.md): 8 recommend

## Where to get it

- [See price on Amazon](https://www.amazon.com/dp/0393355624?tag=hackerapprove-20) (affiliate link)
- [Bookshop.org](https://bookshop.org/a/130825/9780393355628) (affiliate link)

## Cite as

Hacker Approved, "Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman! by Richard Feynman", https://hackerapproved.com/p/surely-you-re-joking-mr-feynman/ (counts from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026).