Fans pick 51 books like R For Dummies

By Andrie De Vries, Joris Meys,

Here are 51 books that R For Dummies fans have personally recommended if you like R For Dummies. Shepherd is a community of 12,000+ authors and super readers sharing their favorite books with the world.

When you buy books, we may earn a commission that helps keep our lights on (or join the rebellion as a member).

Book cover of R for Data Science: Import, Tidy, Transform, Visualize, and Model Data

Tilman M. Davies Author Of The Book of R: A First Course in Programming and Statistics

From my list on intro to programming and data science with R.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’m an applied statistician and academic researcher/lecturer at New Zealand’s oldest university – the University of Otago. R facilitates everything I do – research, academic publication, and teaching. It’s the latter part of my job that motivated my own book on R. From first-year statistics students who have never seen R to my own Ph.D. students using R to implement novel and highly complex statistical methods and models, my experience is that all ultimately love the ease with which the R language permits exploration, visualisation, analysis, and inference of one’s data. The ever-growing need in today’s society for skilled statisticians and data scientists means there's never been a better time to learn this essential language.

Tilman's book list on intro to programming and data science with R

Tilman M. Davies Why did Tilman love this book?

For those intending to use R with an eye on the popular 'Tidyverse' suite of packages – which facilitate the handling, manipulation, and visualisation of data setsit's hard to go past this book. From the founding contributors of the RStudio/Tidyverse worlds, this is a great way to learn about this dialect of R against the overarching backdrop of statistical data analysis and data science.

By Hadley Wickham, Garrett Grolemund,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked R for Data Science as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Learn how to use R to turn raw data into insight, knowledge, and understanding. This book introduces you to R, RStudio, and the tidyverse, a collection of R packages designed to work together to make data science fast, fluent, and fun. Suitable for readers with no previous programming experience, R for Data Science is designed to get you doing data science as quickly as possible. Authors Hadley Wickham and Garrett Grolemund guide you through the steps of importing, wrangling, exploring, and modeling your data and communicating the results. You'll get a complete, big-picture understanding of the data science cycle, along…


Book cover of R in Action: Data Analysis and Graphics with R

Tilman M. Davies Author Of The Book of R: A First Course in Programming and Statistics

From my list on intro to programming and data science with R.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’m an applied statistician and academic researcher/lecturer at New Zealand’s oldest university – the University of Otago. R facilitates everything I do – research, academic publication, and teaching. It’s the latter part of my job that motivated my own book on R. From first-year statistics students who have never seen R to my own Ph.D. students using R to implement novel and highly complex statistical methods and models, my experience is that all ultimately love the ease with which the R language permits exploration, visualisation, analysis, and inference of one’s data. The ever-growing need in today’s society for skilled statisticians and data scientists means there's never been a better time to learn this essential language.

Tilman's book list on intro to programming and data science with R

Tilman M. Davies Why did Tilman love this book?

This provides a superb balance between technical aspects of R coding and the statistical methods that motivate its use. It's rare to find a book on topics like this that are written with Kabacoff's easygoing yet precise style, which makes it ideal for beginners. From my own experience, it is obvious the author has spent many years teaching this type of content, knowing where things deserve extra explanation up front and where other more technical details can be relegated to more advanced texts.

By Robert I. Kabacoff,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked R in Action as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

DESCRIPTION

R is a powerful language for statistical computing and graphics that can handle virtually any data-crunching task. It runs on all important platforms and provides thousands of useful specialized modules and utilities. This makes R a great way to get meaningful information from mountains of raw data.



R in Action, Second Edition is language tutorial focused on practical problems. Written by a research methodologist, it takes a direct and modular approach to quickly give readers the information they need to produce useful results. Focusing on realistic data analyses and a comprehensive integration of graphics, it follows the steps that…


Book cover of The R Book

Tilman M. Davies Author Of The Book of R: A First Course in Programming and Statistics

From my list on intro to programming and data science with R.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’m an applied statistician and academic researcher/lecturer at New Zealand’s oldest university – the University of Otago. R facilitates everything I do – research, academic publication, and teaching. It’s the latter part of my job that motivated my own book on R. From first-year statistics students who have never seen R to my own Ph.D. students using R to implement novel and highly complex statistical methods and models, my experience is that all ultimately love the ease with which the R language permits exploration, visualisation, analysis, and inference of one’s data. The ever-growing need in today’s society for skilled statisticians and data scientists means there's never been a better time to learn this essential language.

Tilman's book list on intro to programming and data science with R

Tilman M. Davies Why did Tilman love this book?

An authoritative tome on R. This book is the ultimate reference guide, heavy on statistical methods from the simple to the advanced. Of the 29 chapters, only the first five chapters or so have R syntactical and programming skills as their main focus; the remaining content highlights the many and varied statistical techniques R is capable of. I think this is a fantastic book to have on the shelf for people who are likely to need R and its contributed packages for a variety of different statistical analyses, but might not know where to initially start for any given statistical method.

By Michael J. Crawley,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The R Book as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Hugely successful and popular text presenting an extensive and comprehensive guide for all R users The R language is recognized as one of the most powerful and flexible statistical software packages, enabling users to apply many statistical techniques that would be impossible without such software to help implement such large data sets. R has become an essential tool for understanding and carrying out research. This edition: * Features full colour text and extensive graphics throughout. * Introduces a clear structure with numbered section headings to help readers locate information more efficiently. * Looks at the evolution of R over the…


Book cover of A First Course in Statistical Programming with R

Tilman M. Davies Author Of The Book of R: A First Course in Programming and Statistics

From my list on intro to programming and data science with R.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’m an applied statistician and academic researcher/lecturer at New Zealand’s oldest university – the University of Otago. R facilitates everything I do – research, academic publication, and teaching. It’s the latter part of my job that motivated my own book on R. From first-year statistics students who have never seen R to my own Ph.D. students using R to implement novel and highly complex statistical methods and models, my experience is that all ultimately love the ease with which the R language permits exploration, visualisation, analysis, and inference of one’s data. The ever-growing need in today’s society for skilled statisticians and data scientists means there's never been a better time to learn this essential language.

Tilman's book list on intro to programming and data science with R

Tilman M. Davies Why did Tilman love this book?

From well-known authorities in the R-sphere (including a former R Core Team member), this is a long-standing text whose first edition was one of the early books intended to teach R to beginners. It provides concise instructions and examples on how R is used as a programming language before focusing on 'number-crunching' statistical methods that are typically seen as computationally intensive. One of the notable features of this book is the statistical methods at hand are not just illustrated using 'black-box' code--the reader is provided with the necessary mathematical detail to understand what's going on behind the scenes for those that are so inclined.

By W. John Braun, Duncan J. Murdoch,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked A First Course in Statistical Programming with R as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

This third edition of Braun and Murdoch's bestselling textbook now includes discussion of the use and design principles of the tidyverse packages in R, including expanded coverage of ggplot2, and R Markdown. The expanded simulation chapter introduces the Box-Muller and Metropolis-Hastings algorithms. New examples and exercises have been added throughout. This is the only introduction you'll need to start programming in R, the computing standard for analyzing data. This book comes with real R code that teaches the standards of the language. Unlike other introductory books on the R system, this book emphasizes portable programming skills that apply to most…


Book cover of Domain Modeling Made Functional: Tackle Software Complexity with Domain-Driven Design and F#

Enrico Buonanno Author Of Functional Programming in C#

From my list on to learn to think like a functional programmer.

Why am I passionate about this?

I'm a programmer with a desire to constantly learn and improve. I have many years of experience in writing mission-critical software in highly event-driven areas such as FinTech and online auctions. Through interesting and challenging projects, I've always been fascinated by trying to generalize and abstract what it is that makes good code; so things like design patterns and best practices were just up my street. As I expanded this personal research, I found that functional programming provided many interesting techniques, but that many professionals in the industry were unaware of them. This is why I decided to show these techniques and their benefits to a wider audience through my book Functional Programming in C#.

Enrico's book list on to learn to think like a functional programmer

Enrico Buonanno Why did Enrico love this book?

Many functional programming books concentrate on the detail of functional techniques (things like recursion or higher-order functions), often leaving open the gap between these techniques and their concrete application to solve everyday programming tasks.

This was one of the reasons I wrote my book, and one source of inspiration for me was the work of F# evangelist Scott Wlashin.

For many years, Scott has been showing how he applies functional thinking in his daily practice centered around e-commerce, through blog posts on his popular site and his talks at programming conferences. At popular request, he's organized these ideas into his book Domain Modelling Made Functional.

The examples are practical enough that every business application programmer will be able to relate to them, and his explanation of functional programming techniques and ideas is clear and rigorous. Although Scott encourages the adoption of F# (the functional-first language of the .NET family), these…

By Scott Wlaschin,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked Domain Modeling Made Functional as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

You want increased customer satisfaction, faster development cycles, and less wasted work. Domain-driven design (DDD) combined with functional programming is the innovative combo that will get you there. In this pragmatic, down-to-earth guide, you'll see how applying the core principles of functional programming can result in software designs that model real-world requirements both elegantly and concisely - often more so than an object-oriented approach. Practical examples in the open-source F# functional language, and examples from familiar business domains, show you how to apply these techniques to build software that is business-focused, flexible, and high quality. Domain-driven design is a well-established…


Book cover of Domain-Specific Languages

Alexander Granin Author Of Functional Design and Architecture

From my list on domain modeling.

Why am I passionate about this?

If someone had told me during my early professional years that I would become a strong advocate for functional programming and the author of a fundamental book on functional software engineering, I would have found it hard to believe. Was functional programming truly worth dedicating my life to? However, once I experienced the sheer beauty of functional programming, there was no turning back. I delved deep into Haskell and functional C++, and began writing articles, giving talks, and developing various technologies. I realized that I possessed a truly unique perspective on approaching software engineering in functional languages, and that there was a significant knowledge gap that needed to be filled for the benefit of all.

Alexander's book list on domain modeling

Alexander Granin Why did Alexander love this book?

It was a wonderful time when I first embarked on my programming journey.

I felt an immense sense of power over computers and had countless ideas on how programming could improve my life and the lives of others. Everything seemed within reach, and I approached the world of programming with great enthusiasm in the early 2000s.

However, reality hit me like a cold shower when I started delving into actual software development. I quickly realized that it was far more challenging than just writing code.

Each programming language and technology had its hidden complexities and treacherous pitfalls. Every domain was rife with intricate nuances that had to be understood before attempting to develop software within it. I soon discovered that there was no such thing as a "perfect solution" that could be universally applied.

As I ventured into working with real-world domains, I confronted the daunting task of addressing the…

By Martin Fowler,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Domain-Specific Languages as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

When carefully selected and used, Domain-Specific Languages (DSLs) may simplify complex code, promote effective communication with customers, improve productivity, and unclog development bottlenecks. In Domain-Specific Languages, noted software development expert Martin Fowler first provides the information software professionals need to decide if and when to utilize DSLs. Then, where DSLs prove suitable, Fowler presents effective techniques for building them, and guides software engineers in choosing the right approaches for their applications.

This book's techniques may be utilized with most modern object-oriented languages; the author provides numerous examples in Java and C#, as well as selected examples in Ruby. Wherever possible,…


Book cover of ClojureScript: Up and Running: Functional Programming for the Web

Dmitri Sotnikov Author Of Web Development with Clojure: Build Large, Maintainable Web Applications Interactively

From my list on essential Clojure resources.

Why am I passionate about this?

With over a decade of experience in web development using Clojure and active involvement in the Clojure open source community, I have gathered invaluable insights into effective use of the language. I am eager to share some of the experience and knowledge I have acquired with those new to the language.

Dmitri's book list on essential Clojure resources

Dmitri Sotnikov Why did Dmitri love this book?

This book introduces developers to ClojureScript which is a dialect of Clojure that targets JavaScript runtimes.

It's a great choice for web developers who are considering building full-stack Clojure applications. The book will help developers learn about the differences between Clojure and ClojureScript, and to make effective use of both language dialects for building applications that span both the front-end and the backend.

By Stuart Sierra, Luke Vanderhart,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked ClojureScript as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Learn how to build complete client-side applications with ClojureScript, the Clojure language variant that compiles to optimized JavaScript. This hands-on introduction shows you how ClojureScript not only has similarities to JavaScript - without the flaws - but also supports the full semantics of its parent language. You'll delve into ClojureScript's immutable data structures, lazy sequences, first-class functions, macros, and support for JavaScript libraries. No previous experience with Clojure or ClojureScript is necessary. If you're familiar with JavaScript, HTML, CSS, and the DOM, you'll quickly discover that ClojureScript has the same reach as JavaScript, but with more power.
Start writing ClojureScript…


Book cover of People Skills for Analytical Thinkers

Jeremy Adamson Author Of Minding the Machines: Building and Leading Data Science and Analytics Teams

From my list on for data science and analytics leaders.

Why am I passionate about this?

I am a leader in analytics and AI strategy, and have a broad range of experience in aviation, energy, financial services, and the public sector.  I have worked with several major organizations to help them establish a leadership position in data science and to unlock real business value using advanced analytics. 

Jeremy's book list on for data science and analytics leaders

Jeremy Adamson Why did Jeremy love this book?

Since data science is, at its core, people helping people make decisions, it is essential that we can establish productive relationships with our stakeholders. This is a skill that needs to be given the same level of effort as we give to coding or statistics. Gilbert’s book is a great resource to help technically oriented people to advance their people skills.

By Gilbert Eijkelenboom,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked People Skills for Analytical Thinkers as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

"For the engineer, scientist, or technology professional seeking to communicate better in the business world, this is the book you've been craving your entire career!" ”
— Douglas Laney, Innovation Fellow, West Monroe, and best-selling author of "Infonomics"

Your analytical skills are incredibly valuable. However, rational thinking alone isn’t enough.

Have you ever: Presented an idea, but then no one seemed to care? Explained your analysis, only to leave your colleague confused? Struggled to work with people who are less analytical and more emotional?

In these situations, people skills make the difference, and research shows these skills are becoming increasingly…


Book cover of The Golem: What You Should Know about Science

Aubrey Clayton Author Of Bernoulli's Fallacy: Statistical Illogic and the Crisis of Modern Science

From my list on for data scientists trying to be ethical people.

Why am I passionate about this?

I studied statistics and data science for years before anyone ever suggested to me that these topics might have an ethical dimension, or that my numerical tools were products of human beings with motivations specific to their time and place. I’ve since written about the history and philosophy of mathematical probability and statistics, and I’ve come to understand just how important that historical background is and how critically important it is that the next generation of data scientists understand where these ideas come from and their potential to do harm. I hope anyone who reads these books avoids getting blinkered by the ideas that data = objectivity and that science is morally neutral.

Aubrey's book list on for data scientists trying to be ethical people

Aubrey Clayton Why did Aubrey love this book?

The thing you should know about science is that it’s a human enterprise. As a result, it’s dependent on human factors like social consensus and prejudice. In this series of case studies of famously expensive and difficult-to-replicate experiments probing the limits of scientific understanding from biology to theoretical physics, Collins and Pinch show how scientific knowledge gathering is rarely straightforward because there are always alternative explanations available for the data. Was the phenomenon real or was the experiment set up badly? We can never know for sure, but we decide collectively what we believe. Scientists are experts participating in human culture, they argue, not mysterious clergy issuing declarations of absolute truth.

By Harry M. Collins, Trevor Pinch,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Golem as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Harry Collins and Trevor Pinch liken science to the Golem, a creature from Jewish mythology, powerful yet potentially dangerous, a gentle, helpful creature that may yet run amok at any moment. Through a series of intriguing case studies the authors debunk the traditional view that science is the straightforward result of competent theorisation, observation and experimentation. The very well-received first edition generated much debate, reflected in a substantial new Afterword in this second edition, which seeks to place the book in what have become known as 'the science wars'.


Book cover of Effective Pandas

Valliappa Lakshmanan Author Of Data Science on the Google Cloud Platform: Implementing End-To-End Real-Time Data Pipelines: From Ingest to Machine Learning

From my list on if you want to become a data scientist.

Why am I passionate about this?

I started my career as a research scientist building machine learning algorithms for weather forecasting. Twenty years later, I found myself at a precision agriculture startup creating models that provided guidance to farmers on when to plant, what to plant, etc. So, I am part of the movement from academia to industry. Now, at Google Cloud, my team builds cross-industry solutions and I see firsthand what our customers need in their data science teams. This set of books is what I suggest when a CTO asks how to upskill their workforce, or when a graduate student asks me how to break into the industry.

Valliappa's book list on if you want to become a data scientist

Valliappa Lakshmanan Why did Valliappa love this book?

Even if you are ultimately going to be working with terabytes of data, you’ll start out doing exploratory data analysis. The tool that you’ll use for that is most likely going to be Pandas. One of the best investments that you can make when becoming a data scientist is to become a Pandas expert, and there is no better book than Harrison’s to help you get there. Plus, many of the interview questions you will face during the hiring process will probably involve Pandas. Blow your interviewers out of the water by showing them corners of the Pandas library they didn’t even know!

By Matt Harrison,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Effective Pandas as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Best practices for manipulating data with Pandas. This book will arm you with years of knowledge and experience that are condensed into an easy to follow format. Rather than taking months reading blogs and websites and searching mailing lists and groups, this book will teach you how to write good Pandas code.

It covers: Series manipulation Creating columns Summary statistics Grouping, pivoting, and cross-tabulation Time series data Visualization Chaining Debugging code and more...


Book cover of R for Data Science: Import, Tidy, Transform, Visualize, and Model Data
Book cover of R in Action: Data Analysis and Graphics with R
Book cover of The R Book

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5 book lists we think you will like!

Interested in data science, data processing, and statistics?

Data Science 24 books
Data Processing 27 books
Statistics 30 books