Distill any book into an executable Claude Code skill pack
Overview
Distill any book into an executable Claude Code skill pack. Evaluates skillability, generates structured skills with modules/templates/examples, and supports multi-book synthesis. A meta-skill — it doesn't teach you a book's content, it converts a book's methods into Claude Code skills you can actually use. Feed it a title, it scores the book's "skillability," then generates a complete skill pack: SKILL.md files, modules, templates, decision frameworks, and guardrails. - One or more book titles (required) - --lang — output language: en (English), zh (Chinese), ja (Japanese). Auto-detected from title if omitted - --notes — path to highlights/excerpts/notes file (optional) - --output — output directory (optional, defaults to cwd) Supports English, Chinese, and Japanese — not as translation, but as native generation: - language from book title, or set explicitly with --lang - : methods, examples, templates, guardrails, README - : workplace examples reflect local norms (e.g.
README
book-distill
Distill any book into an executable Claude Code skill pack. Evaluates skillability, generates structured skills with modules/templates/examples, and supports multi-book synthesis.
What This Is
A meta-skill — it doesn’t teach you a book’s content, it converts a book’s methods into Claude Code skills you can actually use. Feed it a title, it scores the book’s “skillability,” then generates a complete skill pack: SKILL.md files, modules, templates, decision frameworks, and guardrails.
Installation
In Claude Code:
/install gh:michaelpersonal/book-distill
Usage
/book-distill "Never Split the Difference"
/book-distill "Radical Candor" "Crucial Conversations"
/book-distill "The Manager's Path" --notes ~/highlights/managers-path.md
/book-distill "人性的弱点" --lang zh
/book-distill "嫌われる勇気" --lang ja
/book-distill "影响力" "Never Split the Difference" --lang en
Arguments:
- One or more book titles (required)
--lang— output language:en(English),zh(Chinese),ja(Japanese). Auto-detected from title if omitted--notes— path to highlights/excerpts/notes file (optional)--output— output directory (optional, defaults to cwd)
Language Support
Supports English, Chinese, and Japanese — not as translation, but as native generation:
- Auto-detects language from book title, or set explicitly with
--lang - Localizes all content: methods, examples, templates, guardrails, README
- Culturally adapts: workplace examples reflect local norms (e.g., 面子 dynamics in Chinese, 根回し/報連相 in Japanese)
- Preserves original terms: key concepts show the source language term alongside the output language
- File names stay English:
SKILL.md,prepare.mdetc. for CLI compatibility - Cross-language synthesis: can merge books from different languages into one skill pack
How It Works
flowchart LR
A(["📖 Book Title(s)"])
B["Evaluate\nskillability"]
C["Synthesize\noverlaps"]
D["Choose\nstructure"]
E["Generate\nskill pack"]
F(["✅ Done"])
A --> B --> C --> D --> E --> F
| Phase | What happens | You do |
|---|---|---|
| Evaluate | AI scores the book on 5 dimensions (max 25) | Validate, correct, go/no-go |
| Synthesize | Overlap analysis across books (if 2+) | Confirm which modules to merge |
| Structure | Router+modules or standalone skills? | Override if you prefer |
| Generate | Skill files built section by section | Review each section |
| Finalize | Files written, README generated, git commit | Ship it |
Skillability Score
Books are scored on 5 dimensions (1-5 each, max 25):
| Dimension | What it measures |
|---|---|
| Actionability | Methods vs. narrative |
| Modularity | Separable techniques vs. one big idea |
| Situational Triggers | Clear “use when X” vs. general wisdom |
| Concreteness | Scripts/templates vs. abstract principles |
| Scope Clarity | Tight domain vs. covers everything |
| Score | Verdict |
|---|---|
| 20-25 | Excellent — full skill pack |
| 14-19 | Good — solid with some thin areas |
| 8-13 | Marginal — extract strongest parts only |
| 5-7 | Poor fit — better as reference doc |
Multi-Book Synthesis
When given multiple books, the skill analyzes overlap:
- Unique concepts stay in each book’s pack
- Complementary concepts get synthesized into unified modules (stronger than either source)
- Redundant concepts use the stronger treatment
The output includes a shared router that maps situations to the right skill regardless of source book.
Skill Structure
book-distill/
├── skills/
│ └── book-distill/
│ ├── SKILL.md # The meta-skill
│ └── modules/
│ ├── evaluate.md # Skillability scoring
│ ├── generate.md # Skill pack generation
│ ├── synthesize.md # Multi-book overlap & merging
│ └── templates.md # Output format templates
└── README.md
Examples Built With This Pattern
- negotiate-skills — Never Split the Difference (router+modules)
- radical-candor-skills — Radical Candor (standalone skills)
Recommended Tools
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Install
npx skillfish add michaelpersonal/book-distill