Books are a great source of knowledge and wisdom. but unfortunately, there are very few people reading books today. a programmer who reads books is an even rarer occurrence, and more often than not relies on internet search results for answers.
Technology is advancing at a faster rate than at any other time in human history. there are new programming languages and tools every few months, which aspire to be the silver bullet for all the shortcomings of existing languages, tools and methodologies.
You are reading: Books every programmer should read
The truth is that many great minds of old have already encountered the same problems and discovered the best ways to solve them. the tactics for approaching and solving problems have been captured in some wonderful books.
here is a selected subset of these excellent books that developers in the industry should read.
the pragmatic programmer
a gem of a book! This is not your regular programming book with code, code, and more code. in fact, it’s not about any programming language in particular: the wisdom of this book applies to all programming languages.
The ideas in this book cover a number of interesting areas, such as “tracer bullets”, a variety of exploratory programming, writing code that writes code, separating views from models, expensive tools that don’t produce better designs, building a great team , manage expectations, avoid duplication of knowledge, etc.
This book will not only change your coding habits, but it will also change your personality as a programmer. it’s packed with practical tips for getting the best out of you and your code.
A booklet summarizing tips and checklists is also included.
the mythical man-month: essays on software engineering
a classic, considered the bible by many in the software industry. was first published in the 1970s, but probably every word rings truer today than ever!
I had heard this before. it all came from this book!
“all programmers are optimists: everything will be fine.”
“adding manpower to a late software project slows it down.”
“The gestation of a child takes nine months, no matter how many women are assigned.”
“an omelette, promised in two minutes, when it is not ready in two minutes, the customer has two options: wait or eat it half cooked. software clients also have the same options.”
It is unfortunate that we are making the same mistakes in software development year after year. A must read for every project manager and developer.
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As the title says, it is a collection of essays. a very good one at it. the only drawback of the book is the references to technologies from 25 years ago. but that doesn’t take anything away from the meat of the book.
clean code: an agile software craftsmanship manual
ever looked at someone’s code and said, “gosh, what is this?” rest assured someone hasn’t read the clean code.
an epic book on the craft of software. The book not only tells you how to write good code, but also an effective way to build and approach software development. It will surely change the way you see work.
The book describes the principles, patterns, and practices for writing clean code. various code cleanup case studies are valuable lessons for any developer.
Note that all examples in this book are in Java, although the tutorials can be applied to any programming language.
Among the books listed in this post, this is a relatively new entrant and may resonate more with younger developers.
the clean coder: a code of conduct for professional programmers
the second rob martin book on this list. we recommend that you read this book after “clean code”. while “clean code” is about the code, it’s about the “coder”.
The book explores topics that programmers often ignore.
- what does it mean to be a professional programmer?
- how to behave like a true software craftsman
- deal with conflicts and busy schedules
- how manage your time? how can you expand your skills?
- when to say “no”
- avoid burnout
You may not always agree with the author, but it provides some good food for thought. it may not be what you expect, but it may be just what you need.
refactoring: improving the layout of existing code
no matter how hard you try, the code you deliver will not be the most optimal unless improvements are made to it. the refactoring should be done even if it works as expected.
The book starts with the general principles of refactoring: why and when to refactor, how to approach refactoring management, etc. then the book takes you through a tour of how improvements are made.
- what are the indicators of bad smells in the code?
- how to structure classes, methods and other logical pieces?
- unit tests for your code
- how to move functions from one object to another?
- refactoring tools
a must-read book on how to improve your existing code. Note that all code examples are in java, but that shouldn’t stop you from grabbing a copy today!
work effectively with legacy code
we all have to work on something we hate; for most, it’s working with legacy code. nothing is more real in any job than legacy code.
how to modify legacy code? how to identify parts of the code to refactor? how to break dependencies between the code you want to refactor? how to make sure the new code is doing what is expected? how do you take small steps at a time to refactor legacy code?
Are just some of the key questions answered in this brilliant book. if I had to sum up the gist of the book in one line, it would be “write unit tests, refactor the code, make sure the tests are passing.”
complete code: a practical manual for building software
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a gargantuan work, a must read for anyone who wants to read all about programming constructs and best practices. truly an encyclopedic book – 960 pages at most recent revision! don’t let the length of the book put you off, you can consume it at your own pace. by the end, you’ll be glad you read the book.
All aspects of software development are covered in the book. practical tips on everything from code structure, code format, variable. naming of methods and classes, to the management of a team.
A wealth of additional references and materials covering specific topics are provided and are also well worth reading.
Only a small percentage of software developers would have read this book, so you will surely have an advantage if you read this one. you can gain many years of experience just by reading this book.
design patterns first
The least technical programming book! each page contains doodles, pictures and other eye-catching things. that might give the impression that it’s light reading, but the fact is that it’s discussing a pretty central topic in programming (design patterns) and does a great job of covering it.
The book does not try to cover all the patterns that exist in the world, but instead covers all the patterns you might need to solve real-world problems. will help you create functional, elegant, reusable and flexible software. compensation for each pattern has been clearly outlined. most design pattern books talk about how to implement the pattern, but the authors of this book also explain why and how.
the latest edition of the book now includes updates for java 8, mainly lambda.
peopleware: productive projects and teams
impressive work. This is not a book about programming. this is a book on how to manage and motivate programmers. should also be read by developers. Many times, developers, especially inexperienced ones, don’t understand the management thought process.
software development is a creative process. but most managers treat it like an assembly line process. developers are seen as interchangeable cogs in the machine. Managers generally see setting tight deadlines as the only way to increase motivation. they don’t care about the work developers do and unfortunately they don’t try to understand developers or their https://dzone.com/articles/8-books-every-junior-developer-should-reade.
if you are a manager who wants quality and not just quantity, read this book now!
The authors explain how managers can sustainably enable their software teams to realize their potential.
soft skills: the software developer’s manual for life
again, this is not a book about programming. but every programmer should read this.
a great book on managing the “other” aspects of developer life. it’s about everything that could be in your life: it’s about your career, life, body, mind and, believe it or not, your soul as well.
The author himself has followed these techniques and is quite successful at it. his website says that he was able to quit his day job at the age of 30. The author has wrapped up his life experiences in carefully divided short chapters on career, personal marketing, learning, productivity, finances, fitness, and spirit. each chapter is short enough to read over a coffee break, making for a fairly light read.
You will be a much more satisfied and happy person if you follow the suggestions in this book, not only as a programmer, but as yourself.
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