The most recommended software development books

Who picked these books? Meet our 10 experts.

10 authors created a book list connected to software development, and here are their favorite software development books.
Shepherd is reader supported. When you buy books, we may earn an affiliate commission.

What type of software development book?

Loading...

Book cover of 201 Principles of Software Development

Karl Wiegers Author Of Software Development Pearls: Lessons from Fifty Years of Software Experience

From my list on lessons about software development.

Why am I passionate about this?

I first learned to program in college in 1970. Since then I’ve spent much time as a software developer, manager, tester, process improvement leader, consultant, trainer, author, and, of course, a user. I quickly learned that I didn’t have time to make all the mistakes that every software developer before me had already made. My training and writing career has involved sharing what I and others have learned with audiences to help them quickly become more effective software development team members, regardless of their project role. This book distills insights and observations both from my own experience and from what I’ve heard from thousands of students and consulting clients.

Karl's book list on lessons about software development

Karl Wiegers Why did Karl love this book?

Many of the most significant principles of effective software development are timeless. They’re independent of the development life cycle or model, programming language, application type, and so forth. Although this book is quite a few years old now, nearly all of its contents are still valid. The 201 principles cover the full spectrum of software engineering: general principles, requirements engineering, design, coding, testing, management, product assurance, and evolution. The descriptions of each principle are concise, whereas my 60 lessons in Software Development Pearls go into a great deal more detail and offer many practical techniques.

There’s an unfortunate tendency among young software people to disregard knowledge from the past as irrelevant to them. That’s not correct. This book can help close significant gaps in any practicing software developer’s knowledge.

By Alan M. Davis,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked 201 Principles of Software Development as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

This text defines governing principles for software development, assumptions that work regardless of tools used, to keep software projects from costing too much, taking too long and disappointing users.


Book cover of AntiPatterns: Refactoring Software, Architectures, and Projects in Crisis

Karl Wiegers Author Of Software Development Pearls: Lessons from Fifty Years of Software Experience

From my list on lessons about software development.

Why am I passionate about this?

I first learned to program in college in 1970. Since then I’ve spent much time as a software developer, manager, tester, process improvement leader, consultant, trainer, author, and, of course, a user. I quickly learned that I didn’t have time to make all the mistakes that every software developer before me had already made. My training and writing career has involved sharing what I and others have learned with audiences to help them quickly become more effective software development team members, regardless of their project role. This book distills insights and observations both from my own experience and from what I’ve heard from thousands of students and consulting clients.

Karl's book list on lessons about software development

Karl Wiegers Why did Karl love this book?

Most books about lessons learned and good practices tell you what you ought to be doing. AntiPatterns warns you about things you should not be doing. It points out a wide range of software project approaches that the authors believe are not advisable. The antipatterns have whimsical titles such as Poltergeists, Golden Hammer, Spaghetti Code, Stovepipe System, and Design by Committee. Each pattern describes the symptoms, causes, and consequences of that particular behavior, as well as offering a restructured approach that’s likely to yield better results. As with other lessons-learned books, this book lets you learn from the pain suffered by others to avoid stepping into the same traps on your own projects.

By William J. Brown, Raphael C. Malveau, Hays W. "Skip" McCormick III , Thomas J. Mowbray

Why should I read it?

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

What is this book about?

"The AntiPatterns authors have clearly been there and done that when it comes to managing software development efforts. I resonated with one insight after another, having witnessed too many wayward projects myself. The experience in this book is palpable." -John Vlissides, IBM Research "This book allows managers, architects, and developers to learn from the painful mistakes of others. The high-level AntiPatterns on software architecture are a particularly valuable contribution to software engineering. Highly recommended!" -Kyle Brown Author of The Design Patterns Smalltalk Companion "AntiPatterns continues the trend started in Design Patterns. The authors have discovered and named common problem situations…


Book cover of User Stories Applied: For Agile Software Development

Karl Wiegers Author Of Software Requirements

From my list on defining software requirements.

Why am I passionate about this?

Defining and managing the requirements for a software system is hard! I’ve been interested in improving how projects handle their requirements for more than 35 years. I realized how important this was when I saw how many projects—including my own—struggled and failed when they neglected to build a solid foundation of well-understood and clearly communicated requirements. I’ve personally used nearly all of the techniques described in my book Software Requirements, and I got always better results when I applied those techniques. My books, articles, training courses, presentations, and videos on requirements have been helpful to thousands of business analysts worldwide for many years.

Karl's book list on defining software requirements

Karl Wiegers Why did Karl love this book?

Many agile projects employ user stories as a way to represent requirements rather than a more traditional approach combining use cases and functional requirements. I favor the latter approach for several reasons. Nonetheless, user stories are well established in the agile development world, and if you wish to learn about them, there’s no better author to read than Mike Cohn. Cohn describes how to craft user stories well and how they fit into the agile development process.

By Mike Cohn,

Why should I read it?

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

What is this book about?

Thoroughly reviewed and eagerly anticipated by the agile community, User Stories Applied offers a requirements process that saves time, eliminates rework, and leads directly to better software.

The best way to build software that meets users' needs is to begin with "user stories": simple, clear, brief descriptions of functionality that will be valuable to real users. In User Stories Applied, Mike Cohn provides you with a front-to-back blueprint for writing these user stories and weaving them into your development lifecycle.

You'll learn what makes a great user story, and what makes a bad one. You'll discover practical ways to gather…


Book cover of Microsoft Secrets: How the World's Most Powerful Software Company Creates Technology, Shapes Markets and Manages People

Michael K. Levine Author Of People Over Process: Leadership for Agility

From my list on if you want to lead great software delivery teams.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’ve been doing large-scale software development at great US businesses from the introduction of the PC to the cloud explosion. From my earliest successes (online banking at US Bank in 1985!) to my biggest failures (Wells Fargo “Core” disaster in 2006), I’ve always sought better ways of doing things. These five books all were important to my learning and remain highly relevant, and I hope you find them useful as well. 

Michael's book list on if you want to lead great software delivery teams

Michael K. Levine Why did Michael love this book?

This book helped me set my initial approach to software development and I still periodically return to it for grounding.

An MIT project theorized that new-fangled PC software developers knew something mainframe and mini-computer makers didn’t. MIT’s research revealed something else entirely: Microsoft had uniquely effective ideas on how to build complex products in rapidly evolving competitive markets. Here is “agile” before it was put into the Manifesto in 2001, in a more complete form. Ever wonder where the idea of a team comprising functional specialists with overlapping roles, united by a common goal, came from? Or incremental feature evolution with periodic synchronization and constant testing? Early brilliance still of foundational relevance, in a coherent and engaging form.

By Michael A. Cusumano, Richard W. Selby,

Why should I read it?

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

What is this book about?

Drawing on observation, interviews, and confidential data, the authors reveal Microsoft's product development, marketing, and organizational strategies.


Book cover of Software Engineering at Google: Lessons Learned from Programming Over Time

Chris Zimmerman Author Of The Rules of Programming: How to Write Better Code

From my list on programming for people who want to be good at it.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’ve spent most of my life writing code—and too much of that life teaching new programmers how to write code like a professional. If it’s true that you only truly understand something after teaching it to someone else, then at this point I must really understand programming! Unfortunately, that understanding has not led to an endless stream of bug-free code, but it has led to some informed opinions on programming and books about programming.

Chris' book list on programming for people who want to be good at it

Chris Zimmerman Why did Chris love this book?

A thoroughly fascinating (and fascinatingly thorough) look at engineering practices at Google.

It’s an encyclopedia written by a bunch of authors, so some of the chapters are a little dry, but for those of us who aren’t on teams with 25,000 engineers it’s spell-binding to see what programming at that sort of scale looks like. Some of the chapters prompted us to think really hard about the way we do things at Sucker Punch.

By Titus Winters, Tom Manshreck, Hyrum Wright

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked Software Engineering at Google as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Today, software engineers need to know not only how to program effectively but also how to develop proper engineering practices to make their codebase sustainable and healthy. This book emphasizes this difference between programming and software engineering.

How can software engineers manage a living codebase that evolves and responds to changing requirements and demands over the length of its life? Based on their experience at Google, software engineers Titus Winters and Hyrum Wright, along with technical writer Tom Manshreck, present a candid and insightful look at how some of the world's leading practitioners construct and maintain software. This book covers…


Book cover of Facts and Fallacies of Software Engineering

Karl Wiegers Author Of Software Development Pearls: Lessons from Fifty Years of Software Experience

From my list on lessons about software development.

Why am I passionate about this?

I first learned to program in college in 1970. Since then I’ve spent much time as a software developer, manager, tester, process improvement leader, consultant, trainer, author, and, of course, a user. I quickly learned that I didn’t have time to make all the mistakes that every software developer before me had already made. My training and writing career has involved sharing what I and others have learned with audiences to help them quickly become more effective software development team members, regardless of their project role. This book distills insights and observations both from my own experience and from what I’ve heard from thousands of students and consulting clients.

Karl's book list on lessons about software development

Karl Wiegers Why did Karl love this book?

Robert Glass is one of the foundational leaders of the discipline of software engineering. He’s done it all and seen it all. This book includes 55 facts and 10 fallacies about many aspects of software engineering, grouped into the major categories of management, the life cycle, and quality. Based on my own experience, I can vouch for the validity of all the points Glass makes.

These timeless truths can help you avoid going down an ineffective path, wasting time only to rediscover the same facts on your own. There’s no need to retrace the missteps from the past. Books like this can keep your energies focused where they will provide the most value to your customers.

By Robert L. Glass,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Facts and Fallacies of Software Engineering as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The practice of building software is a "new kid on the block" technology. Though it may not seem this way for those who have been in the field for most of their careers, in the overall scheme of professions, software builders are relative "newbies."


In the short history of the software field, a lot of facts have been identified, and a lot of fallacies promulgated. Those facts and fallacies are what this book is about.

There's a problem with those facts-and, as you might imagine, those fallacies. Many of these fundamentally important facts are learned by a software engineer, but…


Book cover of Dynamics of Software Development

Eric Brechner Author Of Agile Project Management with Kanban

From my list on practical advice on software development.

Why am I passionate about this?

I've been in the software engineering profession for over 40 years, working at companies as diverse as Bank Leumi, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Graftek (a CAD startup), Silicon Graphics, Boeing, and Microsoft. As an architect, lead, manager, director, writer, and now career coach, I've been obsessed with finding practical ways to make my work easier, my staff and clients more productive, and our products more delightful. These five books (along with my book and blog) provide proven, time-tested techniques. Each is written clearly with real-life examples, so it is easy to reap the benefits. Smile as you learn to avoid the missteps made by those who coded before you.

Eric's book list on practical advice on software development

Eric Brechner Why did Eric love this book?

Not only does this book provide insight into the planning and development of one of the first visual IDEs, it’s overflowing with hilarious, profound, and pragmatic real-life lessons for how to manage a software team and deliver a complex project.

As a product of its time, the writing isn’t always politically correct. However, many of the lessons and memes are still part of our vernacular today: Don’t flip the bozo bit; If you build it, it will ship; and [Love] the customer.

Some of its lessons should be memes: Beware of [an engineer] in a room, Be an authority, not an authority figure, and Don’t trade a bad date for an equally bad date.

Some sections show their age in our current world of continuous delivery, but few current books have the humor and concise insight of this remarkable work.

By Jim McCarthy,

Why should I read it?

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

What is this book about?

Shipping great software can be done, insists McCarthy, and charts, in five sections, the progress from initial design to successful product. McCarthy is a software industry veteran and the director of the Microsoft Visual C++ development group.


Book cover of Clean Agile: Back to Basics

Jesse Liberty Author Of Git for Programmers: Master Git for effective implementation of version control for your programming projects

From my list on for creating great software.

Why am I passionate about this?

I have been coding for over 30 years. I’ve seen some miserable interfaces, and some large programs that collapse under their own weight. Software was, at one point, notorious for being late, over budget, and unreliable. These books have helped turn the corner on these failings, and I have found each of them very valuable in my day-to-day programming. While you can learn technique and even languages online, the kind of insight found in these books is rare and worth spending time and money on.

Jesse's book list on for creating great software

Jesse Liberty Why did Jesse love this book?

Many of us have fully embraced agile programming, but doing it well, really well, requires discipline. In Clean Agile a number of world-class programmers discuss what it takes to put Agile programming into practice with y our team. This book has made me a much more “agile” agile programmer, and the section on SCRUM is worth the price of the book.

By Robert C. Martin,

Why should I read it?

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

What is this book about?

Agile Values and Principles for a New Generation
"In the journey to all things Agile, Uncle Bob has been there, done that, and has the both the t-shirt and the scars to show for it. This delightful book is part history, part personal stories, and all wisdom. If you want to understand what Agile is and how it came to be, this is the book for you."
-Grady Booch
"Bob's frustration colors every sentence of Clean Agile, but it's a justified frustration. What is in the world of Agile development is nothing compared to what could be. This book is…


Book cover of Working in Public: The Making and Maintenance of Open Source Software

Mike McQuaid Author Of Git in Practice

From my list on becoming a great open source software engineer.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’ve been a professional software engineer and maintaining open-source software for 16 years. My work on open source has been heavily informed by industry best practises and my work on proprietary software has been heavily informed by open source best practises. Without these books, I’d be a worse engineer on many dimensions. Some of them may feel antiquated but all are still full of relevant wisdom for every open-source (and proprietary) software engineer today.

Mike's book list on becoming a great open source software engineer

Mike McQuaid Why did Mike love this book?

I was lucky enough to read an early draft of this book and it’s simply the best analysis of the open-source software ecosystem around today.

The writing style is friendly and not formal despite the academic-level research that went into this book. It made me think differently about the open-source projects I maintain and how I interact and chose those I use.

By Nadia Eghbal,

Why should I read it?

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

What is this book about?

An inside look at modern open source software development and its influence on our online social world.

Open source software, in which developers publish code that anyone can use, has long served as a bellwether for other online behavior. In the late 1990s, it provided an optimistic model for public collaboration, but in the last 20 years it’s shifted to solo operators who write and publish code that's consumed by millions.

In Working in Public, Nadia Eghbal takes an inside look at modern open source software development, its evolution over the last two decades, and its ramifications for an internet…


Book cover of Erlang Programming: A Concurrent Approach to Software Development

Philipp Fehre Author Of JavaScript Domain-Driven Design

From my list on learning from programming classics.

Why am I passionate about this?

Computers have fascinated me since my childhood, having fond memories of my dad's ZX81, but even so I played around I was never truly captured by the programming until I recognized it as a way of writing rather than raw engineering. Through my studies of media sciences I found my fascination with how language can shape perception, and through my work in developer advocacy, I found how communities are shaped as well. Now I am fascinated with how different programming languages can shape thinking, having had the opportunity to solve problems at large companies in nonmainstream languages.

Philipp's book list on learning from programming classics

Philipp Fehre Why did Philipp love this book?

Distributed systems are everywhere now, but long before there were telephony switches, and Erlang was built to make those work.

Reading this book gave me not only an understanding about Erlang, but the language and understanding to talk and think about systems which are distributed from the beginning, not as an afterthought. For me personally Erlang/OTP is the DSL for dystributed system and the patterns implemented have applications every time I think about distributed systems now.

By Francesco Cesarini, Simon Thompson,

Why should I read it?

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

What is this book about?

A Concurrent Approach to Software Development