Ask HN: What are the best books to (re)discover philosophy? | Hacker News Reader

Ask HN: What are the best books to (re)discover philosophy?

I loved philosophy when I was in high school (Italy, 20+ years ago). I'd love to rediscover it, but in a hopefully exciting way. In other words, I am not looking for a long, boring, heavy book on philosopher X, but rather something fresh and interesting... Ideally, a SINGLE book that covers philosophy in its entirety. Any good suggestions or ideas?

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Sophie's World

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sophie%27s_World

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0374530718/

An excellent entry point and no doubt also a way to rekindle your thinking.

Most academic philosophers (disclaimer: I am one of them) don't think of their field in terms of important figures of the past, but in terms of unsolved philosophical problems right here right now. [Tim Williamson's Tetralogue](https://global.oup.com/academic/product/tetralogue-978019872...) is a good intro to philosophy from this perspective.

Look no further! I would bet a year’s worth of pay this is the book you’re looking for:

The Story of Philosophy: The Lives and Opinions of the World's Greatest Philosophers https://www.amazon.com/dp/0671739166/

It’s by Will Durant, who wrote some of the most exceptional works of the 20th century regarding history, philosophy, and the meaning of human civilization.

Mortimer Adler's "How To Think About The Great Ideas"

I got a degree in philosophy and its the single best general book I've ever read.

The book is actually a transcription of a TV show he did and its in dialogue form.

The structure is broken up into a bunch of mini chapters that are "how to think about _______". Like how to think about love, how to think about government, etc.

I second this.

I'm a big fan of Mortimer Adler. His specialty seems to be piecing together all the other works of philosophy and making it easily accessible to the commoner.

The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged By Ayn Rand

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ayn_Rand

"Cracking Philosophy" 400 pages, 2/3 pages for each philosopher or philosophical idea, with illustrations.

Philosophical Investigations

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