That Hideous Strength
That Hideous Strength by C. S. Lewisby C. S. Lewis
Shares rank 108 of 179 science fiction novels by recommenders
Recommended because its criticism of today's trends still feels relevant and farsighted. Caveat: a slow start before it gets going.
Recommended because its criticism of today's trends still feels relevant and farsighted. Caveat: a slow start before it gets going.
4 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 4
- criticize it
- 0
- approval share
- 100%
Recommended in 4 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: recommended
- May 2026: recommended
- June 2026: 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
- 4 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, not met.
- Nobody criticizes itNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 4 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, 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
Feels relevant to today's trends
“That Hideous Strength despite being written probably 60 years ago seems dead on as a criticism of many of the things being pushed today.”
Comment from 26 Jun 2026 in “What Would C. S. Lewis Have Thought of AI?” “The Space Trilogy is one of the best series I've ever read. That Hideous Strength reminds me a LOT of what's happening these days.”
Comment from 21 May 2026 in “Not alive, but not dead: disembodied human brains used for drug testing” “it feels very relevant and farsighted to me now”
Comment from 3 Apr 2026 in “The Joy of Numbered Streets” Part of a strong trilogy
“The Space Trilogy is one of the best series I've ever read. That Hideous Strength reminds me a LOT of what's happening these days.”
Comment from 21 May 2026 in “Not alive, but not dead: disembodied human brains used for drug testing” Rewards patience once underway
“The novel is honestly a bit of a slog until it gets going, but I appreciated it more”
Comment from 6 Feb 2026 in “The time I didn't meet Jeffrey Epstein”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Slow start before it gets going
“The novel is honestly a bit of a slog until it gets going, but I appreciated it more”
Comment from 6 Feb 2026 in “The time I didn't meet Jeffrey Epstein”
Other science fiction novels people recommend
The four most recommended other science fiction novels, 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Project Hail Maryby Andy Weir | 117 | 24 | 83% | 12 | — | Approved |
| There Is No Antimemetics Divisionby qntm | 98 | 34 | 74% | 9 | 1.5 yrs6 owners | Approved |
| Blindsightby Peter Watts | 96 | 27 | 78% | 12 | — | Approved |
| Duneby Frank Herbert | 82 | 25 | 77% | 12 | — | Approved |
| That Hideous Strengthby C. S. LewisThis page | 4 | 0 | 100% | 4 | — | — |
What people said
All 4 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“That Hideous Strength despite being written probably 60 years ago seems dead on as a criticism of many of the things being pushed today.”
“The Space Trilogy is one of the best series I've ever read. That Hideous Strength reminds me a LOT of what's happening these days.”
“it feels very relevant and farsighted to me now”
“The novel is honestly a bit of a slog until it gets going, but I appreciated it more”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.