Ask HN: Best books under 200 pages for developers?

Article summary

The article asks for book recommendations under 200 pages for software developers, providing a link to a list of non-tech books under 200 pages. The goal is to find books that can be started and finished in a weekend. A Philosophy of Software Design is mentioned as a well-written and valuable book that can be finished in a weekend. The book provides principles that explain why design patterns are used.

Main themes

• book recommendations
• software design
• programming paradigms
• reading habits
• learning strategies
• book retention

What commenters say

• A Philosophy of Software Design is a highly recommended book for software developers due to its well-written and valuable content.
• Some commenters disagree with the book's dismissal of small classes and methods, arguing that they can be beneficial for testing and reasoning.
• The book's focus on object-oriented programming is seen as a limitation by some, who argue that it does not consider functional programming or other paradigms.
• The use of small classes and methods is a matter of context and personal preference, with some arguing that it can lead to complexity and others seeing it as a way to improve modularity.
• Reading habits and strategies vary among developers, with some able to finish books quickly and others taking more time, and some preferring to take notes and others not.
• The retention of information from books is an important consideration, with some arguing that taking breaks and notes is essential to truly understanding the material.
• Audiobooks and speed reading can be useful tools for developers who want to learn quickly, but may not be suitable for everyone.
• Other book recommendations include Refactoring UI, Grokking Algorithms, and Professor Frisby's Mostly Adequate Guide to Functional Programming.