Python is a language I like very much, and it is also hot right now. In this post, I will list some Python books for beginners and experienced programmers who are interested in Python.

Let’s start from beginner to expert levels.

Python Crash Course

This book is a good introduction to Python. It will teach you the basic syntax, such as variables, lists, classes, control flows, etc. All the chapter contains some handy exercises for readers. In the second half part, we will practice Python with several small projects, play with some handy libraries.

It’s well written and easy to understand. If you are a fresh new sailor, start your Python journey with it!

Fluent Python: Clear, Concise, and Effective Programming

This is the strongly recommended one for those who have got some Python programming experiences.

Fluent Python skips over the basics, instead, this book will focus on those specific features which rarely presented in other programming languages, it also provides enough details about implementations. It felt like a treasure box to me.

I spent about one month to read it. I read it slowly, a few pages every night. It’s a pleasure.

Never has a Python book gave me such an interesting experience. It’s so detailed and informative, the author is really good at writing and teaching.

If you looking to upgrade your Python skills, this is THE book. I promise you no regrets for the time you spend on this book.

Python Essential Reference

This book explains in detail the most important parts of the core Python language and the Python library. It covers types and objects, operators and expressions, programming structures and control flows, input and output, testing, debugging, and more, as well as some advanced topics not covered in the official Python documentation or other references.

Although this kind of book looks a bit boring, it’s definitely beneficial for a Python programmer to read. Or, at least, go through the topics interested you and treat it as a reference book.

The Hacker’s Guide To Python

This book contains more advanced topics. The horizon is no longer on the language details. The author is a Python expert and had led some super large Python projects. There are many thoughts on software engineering, which will benefit to all software engineers, not just Python programmers.

High-Performance Python: Practical Performant Programming for Humans

Python is a programming language with a high level of abstraction, and one of its great strengths is the efficiency of the development, with the cost of default performance.

This book is for those who have already started with Python and want to tune the performance of Python code. It’s mainly focused on performance optimization related topics.

A major goal of this book is to introduce packages and principles that will enable rapid Python development while avoiding many performance limitations, reducing development and maintenance costs, and regain the benefits of system efficiency.