#8 in the ranking · technical · 1968
The Art of Computer Programming
The Art of Computer Programming, by Donald Knuth, published in 1968, is cited by 282 people in conversations on Hacker News, Stack Exchange and TabNews. It shows up in 19 of the 20 years, from 2008 to 2026, with the most mentions in 2016. People who cite it also cite Introduction to Algorithms, Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programs and The C Programming Language.
Year by year
Peak: 38 mentions in 2016
Mentions per year: 2007: 0; 2008: 11; 2009: 7; 2010: 33; 2011: 22; 2012: 19; 2013: 11; 2014: 14; 2015: 22; 2016: 38; 2017: 18; 2018: 14; 2019: 26; 2020: 10; 2021: 24; 2022: 26; 2023: 34; 2024: 12; 2025: 11; 2026: 2.
Where it’s cited
What people write
From a text search; it doesn’t yet tell recommending apart from just mentioning.
But if you want an HNish book recommendation?…The Art of Computer Programming is well worth trying to read because it will be challenging for as long as you keep at it.
Hacker News · 2025 · in “Ask HN: What books have been worth your time?” · see comment ↗
The best book I've ever read has been The Art of Computer Programming, Volumes 1 thru 7.
Hacker News · 2024 · in “Ask HN: What's the "best" book you've ever read?” · see comment ↗
I read them because I enjoy their content: beautiful books like SICP, TAOCP, Stevens' books, etc.; I can recommend them to anyone.
Hacker News · 2022 · in “How many technical books do you read per year?” · see comment ↗
Try reading some classic books about programming like The Art of Computer Programming by Donald Knuth.
Stack Exchange · 2010 · in “Which will serve a budding programmer better: A classic book in scheme or a modern language like python?” · by gruszczy · CC BY-SA 2.5 · see comment ↗
While I agree that many of the books above are must-reads (Pragmatic Programmer, Mythical Man-Month, Art of Computer Programming, and SICP come to mind immediately), I'd like to go in a slightly different direction and recommend…
Stack Exchange · 2008 · in “What is the single most influential book every programmer should read?” · by joel.neely · CC BY-SA 2.5 · see comment ↗
The Art of Computer Programming, Volumes 1-4A Boxed Set.
Stack Exchange · 2021 · in “A beginner book on algorithms” · by Brian Tompsett - 汤莱恩 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · see comment ↗
Gostei das recomendações, eu adicionaria os 8 volumes de Donald Knuth nominado "The art of Computer Programming" pois também são livros de algoritmos muito sólidos.
TabNews · 2025 · in “✨ 7 Livros Para Sair da Mediocridade na Programação” · see comment ↗
Já comentei sobre o TAOCP aqui várias vezes, e sem dúvida é um dos livros mais importantes sobre computação.
TabNews · 2023 · in “📚💡Melhores livros de programação - Parte 3” · see comment ↗
Em questão de preços, na Amazon o box de todos os "The Art of Computer Programming" está 1.3k, que é um preço bem comprável pra quem já está na área há algum tempo (apesar de ser bem salgado de uma forma geral).
TabNews · 2023 · in “[DÚVIDA] Quais livros todo programador deve ler?” · see comment ↗