Reading notes · No paywall

The library

The books that shaped me as a developer, distilled into honest notes: the ideas that stick, a rating out of 10, and what I really think.

FR EN
Cover of Clean Code: A Handbook of Agile Software Craftsmanship Clean Code Robert C. Martin · 2008 The book that taught a generation of developers that code is read ten times more often than it is written. 8/10
Cover of Eloquent JavaScript: A Modern Introduction to Programming Eloquent JavaScript Marijn Haverbeke · 2024 The most honest JavaScript introduction, freely available online. Updated for ES2024. 9/10
Cover of Pro Git Pro Git Scott Chacon, Ben Straub · 2014 The official Git reference, free and translated. From first commits to the guts of .git. 9/10
Cover of Fluent Python: Clear, Concise, and Effective Programming Fluent Python Luciano Ramalho · 2022 The book that turns a dev who writes Python into a dev who thinks in Python. 8/10
Cover of Designing Data-Intensive Applications: The Big Ideas Behind Reliable, Scalable, and Maintainable Systems Designing Data-Intensive Applications Martin Kleppmann · 2017 The complete map of data systems: SQL, NoSQL, replication, streaming. The absolute must-read. 9/10
Cover of Effective TypeScript: 83 Specific Ways to Improve Your TypeScript Effective TypeScript Dan Vanderkam · 2024 83 concrete items to go from "it compiles" to "I master the type system". 8/10
Cover of Learning Go: An Idiomatic Approach to Real-World Go Programming Learning Go Jon Bodner · 2024 Modern idiomatic Go, generics included: thinking in Go instead of translating from another language. 8/10
Cover of The Phoenix Project: A Novel About IT, DevOps, and Helping Your Business Win The Phoenix Project Gene Kim, Kevin Behr, George Spafford · 2013 The novel that converted a generation to DevOps: a sinking IT project, and how to save it. 8/10
Cover of Head First Design Patterns Head First Design Patterns Eric Freeman, Elisabeth Robson · 2021 The 23 GoF patterns made digestible: illustrations, humor, and examples that finally stick. Notes coming soon
Cover of PHP 8 Objects, Patterns, and Practice PHP 8 Objects, Patterns, and Practice Matt Zandstra · 2021 The only complete OOP + design patterns reference for PHP, updated for PHP 8. Notes coming soon
Cover of Web Application Security: Exploitation and Countermeasures Web Application Security Andrew Hoffman · 2024 Recon, offense, defense: web security told from both sides of the firewall. Notes coming soon
Cover of AI Engineering: Building Applications with Foundation Models AI Engineering Chip Huyen · 2025 Building applications on LLMs: RAG, agents, evaluation. The emerging canon of AI engineering. Notes coming soon
Cover of Accelerate: The Science of Lean Software and DevOps Accelerate Nicole Forsgren, Jez Humble, Gene Kim · 2018 Four years of research proving which practices make teams perform. Data, not opinions. Notes coming soon
Cover of A Philosophy of Software Design A Philosophy of Software Design John Ousterhout · 2021 The counterweight to Clean Code: deep modules, simple interfaces, by a Stanford professor. Notes coming soon
Cover of CSS in Depth, Second Edition CSS in Depth, Second Edition Keith J. Grant · 2024 Understanding CSS instead of fighting it: cascade, custom properties, Grid and modern layouts. Notes coming soon
Cover of Test-Driven Development: By Example Test-Driven Development Kent Beck · 2002 The founding TDD text by its inventor: 240 pages of hypnotic red-green-refactor rhythm. Notes coming soon
Cover of Python Crash Course: A Hands-On, Project-Based Introduction Python Crash Course Eric Matthes · 2023 The world's best-selling Python introduction: the basics, then three real projects (game, data viz, web). Notes coming soon
Cover of The Design of Web APIs The Design of Web APIs Arnaud Lauret · 2019 Designing an API for the people who consume it, not the one who writes it. By a French author. Notes coming soon
Cover of Team Topologies: Organizing Business and Technology Teams for Fast Flow Team Topologies Matthew Skelton, Manuel Pais · 2019 Four team types, three interaction modes: organization design that follows Conway's law. Notes coming soon
Cover of Web Accessibility Cookbook Web Accessibility Cookbook Manuel Matuzović · 2024 Ready-to-use accessible components: the most recent and practical a11y book. Notes coming soon
Cover of The Mythical Man-Month: Essays on Software Engineering The Mythical Man-Month Frederick P. Brooks Jr. · 1995 1975, and still true: adding developers to a late project makes it later. Notes coming soon
Cover of The Pragmatic Programmer: Your Journey to Mastery (20th Anniversary Edition) The Pragmatic Programmer David Thomas, Andrew Hunt · 2019 The pragmatic dev's road companion, rewritten for its 20th anniversary. Home of the broken windows metaphor. Notes coming soon
Cover of Refactoring: Improving the Design of Existing Code Refactoring Martin Fowler · 2018 The catalog of transformations that improve code without changing its behavior. Notes coming soon

One book at a time, starting with the classics. The goal isn't to replace reading, but to extract the marrow, and help you decide which books deserve your hours.