I encourage everyone to read books. There are so many titles worth reading that entire lists have been created. Depending on the stage of your career you'll need books covering various topics. Here is a list I recommend every junior and mid-level software engineer should read.
Head First Design Patterns by Eric Freeman, Elisabeth Robson
Design patterns surround us everywhere. They are prevalent in every framework and most libraries we use. The "Head First Design Patterns" presents the most common design patterns in a succinct and easy to remember fashion. Before you'll finish the book, you'll already better understand the design choices behind libraries and frameworks that you use! The form of writing that the book uses is especially enjoyable. You'll not be bored by this one.
Clean Architecture by Robert C. Martin
Every book by "Uncle Bob" is worth reading. I've picked the "Clean Architecture" for the list as it provides a base and set of pillars with which you can create software services that are easier to reason about. The book describes many important rules. At its core, a high-level approach to application architecture is summarized in the author's blog post . Make no mistake though, you'll gain much more from reading the book end-to-end!
Continuous Delivery: Reliable Software Releases through Build, Test, and Deployment Automation by Jez Humbe and David Farley
The book was a hit when it was first published over 10 years ago. If you want to know more about Continuous Integration and Continuous Deployment this book is a must-read. It unfolds and explains multiple techniques and approaches to improve the delivery of software. You'll learn not only what to do to improve how you develop software. You'll also learn why some techniques work while others don't. Such knowledge helps immensely with managing the backlog of non-functional features.
Rework
The guidance provided by Jason Fried and David Hansson will help you understand a lot on how a company can and should work. In my opinion the advice helps in surprising ways. Not only in the context of work! Since pandemic started many of us switched to working from home. The book shares some tips on how a company and more importantly people can work remotely efficiently.
Release It!: Design and Deploy Production-Ready Software
Have you ever heard a dreadful story about a software system bringing a major enterprise to its knees? Have you ever wondered what it takes for software to be mature and reliable? If so you'll love this piece. With a mixture of technical insights and best practices coloured with production stories, this book reads like a novel. It explains in-depth multiple techniques that improve the resilience of software systems. Circuit breaker, bulkhead and redundancy will be your bread and butter after you get yourself familiar with what Michael T. Nygard describes.
What are the books that you think are worth reading? Please post comments with your recommendations!
By Piotr Mionskowski – Partner, Team Leader, Technology Evangelist
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