A History of Lisp
Ranked 4 of 9 computer history books by recommenders
Readers recommend it as a readable intro to Lisp history, with personal memories of John McCarthy; critics say it is too short with too few references.
Readers recommend it as a readable intro to Lisp history, with personal memories of John McCarthy; critics say it is too short with too few references.
14 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 11
- criticize it
- 3
- approval share
- 79%
Recommended in 1 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: not 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
- 11 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, met.
- 3.7 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 1 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
Attractive cover design and elegance
“I would say that your choice of cover design as a whole denotes elegance and taste.”
Comment from 17 Feb 2026 in “Show HN: I wrote a technical history book on Lisp” “I do like the design of the book cover with the elegant white background.”
Comment from 18 Feb 2026 in “Show HN: I wrote a technical history book on Lisp” Readers plan to buy or read it
“I skimmed the index but… no Clojure? ... I'd love to read the book - definitely interesting.”
Comment from 17 Feb 2026 in “Show HN: I wrote a technical history book on Lisp” “Great book, I will definitely buy it, thanks for your work!”
Comment from 17 Feb 2026 in “Show HN: I wrote a technical history book on Lisp” “Great work. I've put it on my to read list for this year.”
Comment from 18 Feb 2026 in “Show HN: I wrote a technical history book on Lisp”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Too short with too few references
“Yes, the book doesn't do Lisp justice, it is too short.”
Comment from 17 Feb 2026 in “Show HN: I wrote a technical history book on Lisp” “It seems too short with too few references!”
Comment from 17 Feb 2026 in “Show HN: I wrote a technical history book on Lisp” “this book might be ok for a cross-section of Lisp history but I'd like to see something much more thorough”
Comment from 18 Feb 2026 in “Show HN: I wrote a technical history book on Lisp” - Comment from 17 Feb 2026 in “Show HN: I wrote a technical history book on Lisp”
Other computer history books people recommend
The four most recommended other computer history 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 Soul of a New Machineby Tracy Kidder | 59 | 0 | 100% | 8 | 28 yrs3 owners | Approved |
| The Old New Thingby Raymond Chen | 31 | 1 | 97% | 12 | — | Approved |
| Accidental Empiresby Robert X. Cringely | 15 | 0 | 100% | 2 | — | — |
| A History of LispThis page | 11 | 3 | 79% | 1 | — | — |
| Turing's Cathedralby George Dyson | 10 | 0 | 100% | 3 | — | — |
What people said
18 of the 21 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“that webpage only seems to provide a PDF containing the beginning of the book”
“the surprising result that (Hewitt-style) actors - which are not completely like Erlang processes - and Scheme's closures were the same”
“Great work. I've put it on my to read list for this year.”
“I do like the design of the book cover with the elegant white background.”
“there seems to be quite a lot of what amounts to implementation tutorials”
“this book might be ok for a cross-section of Lisp history but I'd like to see something much more thorough”
“Overall the book looks readable as an intro to Lisp and Lisp implementation”
“I like the wide variety of code snippets mixed with background and history.”
“we went for a very short bibliography containing works that were directly quoted”
“Yes, the book doesn't do Lisp justice, it is too short.”
“It wasn't, so I'm going to pass on ordering the book's first edition.”
“really nice that this is available in Rakuten Kobo”
“It seems too short with too few references!”
“Having some personal memories about John McCarthy included in the book is amazing.”
“Great book, I will definitely buy it, thanks for your work!”
“I would say that your choice of cover design as a whole denotes elegance and taste.”
“it definitely looks like a self-help book or something rather than a technical monograph”
“I skimmed the index but… no Clojure? ... I'd love to read the book - definitely interesting.”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.