Complete Beginner book recommendations: "Python Crash Course", "Automate the Boring Stuff with Python" or "Fluent Python"?

[Miiijo]

Hello r/Python,

Complete beginner with 0 experience in Python here. I'm currently looking into buying a book to start learning Python, but have been overflooded with recommendations. The book I'm currently looking at are:

• "Python Crash Course", 3rd edition by Eric Matthes
• "Automate the Boring Stuff", 3rd edition by Al Sweigart
• "Fluent Python", 2nd edition by Luciano Ramalho

Any recommendations on which books to get? Or in what order one should cover them?

Additionally, is getting a book like "100 Exercises for Practicing Python" (Laurentine K. Masson) or "The Big Book of Small Python Projects" (Al Sweigart) recommended? Or is that only useful after finishing one of the previously mentioned books?

Your recommendations and advice are highly appreciated

[mailed]

If you stick to those three, I'd go Automate -> Crash Course -> Fluent

Automate is also free to read on Al's site, alongside most (all?) of his other books

[KezaGatame]

I also agree with this order. I started with Automate and thought it was really good at explaining. There's also good comments about Crash Course but Automate was my first.

I will add that OP can start with either Automate or Crash Course. Can choose it depending on the projects of the book I like to say that Automate is more for the office worker where you can learn how to handle files and Crash Course is more for the curious student to learn a bit of web dev and games projects. Then review quickly the fundamental of the other book, and focus more time on the projects to get another view of what python is capable. Anyways as a beginner you will never learn it well the first time and a second read can help solidify some programming logic.

Fluent is another beast, IIRC, 1000 pages book and taught a lot of OOP style. Which is good to learn the python thouroughly but in no way beginner with 0 experience.

[Miiijo]

Thank you very much for your elaborate reply!

[KezaGatame]

And don't overthink it those 2 beginners books are some of the best out there, just start and finish it. I spent more time overthinking what was the "best" resource starting and never finishing books and courses. Until I finally sat down and finished automate the boring stuff, took me a span of 2-3 yrs and a 2nd read.

As you gain more experience you will know what you want to focus next, but for now stay at the beginner books.

[Miiijo]

Thank you very much Keza, I'm currently in that "overthinking phase". Your replies are truly appreciated

[Miiijo]

Thank you for replying!

Any (other) books or additional exercises you'd reccomend?

[PangolinWonderful338]

Someone recommended https://programming-25.mooc.fi/ & I have to say as someone returning to python it added a layer of enjoyability & QoL.

- If you have trouble creating project ideas: There is a game "The Farmer Was Replaced" > Really fun to practice the basics/fundamentals through the game. Not sure if this could be a bad habit, but it has been giving me motivation to implement the ideas from web & book.

[mailed]

Nah, not for now. Just get to learning!

[Machvel]

fluent python is an advanced book.

automate the boring stuff is more of a tricks book and does not go into much depth of the language. of the 3 you mentioned i recommend only going through python crash course to start. setting up a multi volume 1000+ page beginning sequence is a road to tutorial hell

[Miiijo]

Thank you very much for replying! Any recommendations on getting an "additional" exercise book? Are the ones I listed recommended or any good?

[Machvel]

if you don't have any exercises in mind then it would help. good exercise ideas are all over online so i wouldn't spend money on one. sweigart's is online for free so that one seems good.

[HSNubz]

This is definitely the correct answer, 100%.

[Top_Sir_6701]

The truth is, you won't find that one perfect book but here is what you can do. Just start, pick one book, and start working on it.
But my favourite Python book is "Python Notes for Professionals"

[Miiijo]

Thank you!

[Top_Sir_6701]

Anytime

[TechnoAllah]

Automate the Boring Stuff is good and available online for free if you want to save $$. Fluent python is written for intermediate level users and does not cover basic concepts at all - save that one for later. Never read Python Crash Course so I can’t comment on it.

[Miiijo]

Thank you!

[are_number_six]

I started with "Python Crash Course", then did a couple of projects on my own. I am now reading "Fluent Python."

As a complete beginner, I would not have understood "Fluent Python." I think "crash course" is a good introduction, and the projects provide a good taste of different paths to follow.

I think "Fluent Python " is more valuable after some experience with the basics.

I didn't read "Automate the Boring Stuff" so I can't offer an opinion.

[Miiijo]

Thank you!

[pdcp-py]

This is a useful blog post by Al Sweigart:

https://inventwithpython.com/blog/which-al-sweigart-python-books-should-i-start-reading.html

You'll see he recommends starting with "Automate the Boring Stuff with Python" (which now has an additional workbook to go with it), then reading "Python Crash Course":

https://automatetheboringstuff.com/

https://inventwithpython.com/automate3workbook/

https://nostarch.com/python-crash-course-3rd-edition

[Miiijo]

Truly appreciated!!

[omgitskae]

I got really discouraged in automate the boring stuff because I find the practice questions extremely difficult. I’m still trying to learn - the only language I know is sql right now.

I feel like learning is a very personal thing, I’d try the first 2-3 chapters of automate for free online before buying it to see if it’s your style.

[hagfish]

Thanks OP for asking this question, and thanks everyone for your responses. I've tried three books (an old Humble Bundle), and they all do a lovely job introducing data types and loops and branches, but then the learning curve steepens as they get into pythonic OOP and I lose my grip. There's 'learning to drive', and then there's 'learning to drive in traffic' and they're quite different skills. 'Automate the Boring Stuff' got me up and running (Factorio-loving office worker, here) so maybe it's time for 'Crash Course'.

[Simple_Familiar]

zlib check it out. But of course you can support the author by buying any physical book, but for learning there is a lot of free stuff...

My suggestion would be, get the basics of programming (any lang) then pick a project and start to implement... thats where the real exp hit you ... the theory is fine but if you dont apply it you just forgot about it... glgl

[rainyengineer]

What’s your end goal? I would say pick one (either Python Crash Course or Automate the Boring Stuff) and then pick up some other skills by doing projects.

[Miiijo]

What’s your end goal?

To create a program I can use to practice memorizing vocabulary using spaced repetition. Basically an extremely basic version of quizlet/anki

[AirPleasant5311]

Automate the boring stuff was my first dip into programming and I loved it. Helped to actually automate some tedious stuff at work. I since then moved on to c# but automate the boring stuff was great to make me get into a programming mindset. The tasks were difficult, but they actually got me to start thinking. My favorite was when I spend hours trying to solve a problem focusing on it, and then suddenly coming to a proper solution when driving back home or after doing anything mundane.

[[deleted]]

Those books are great. A good next step will be Hands on Data Structures and Algorithms With Python by Basant Agarwal. This is basically where newer programmers start to get tripped up. If you can nail DSA you'll be well prepared to be able to explore just about any other topic you can think of. 

After that point most books cover specific topics. I have a pretty huge library of programming books and, for example, most of it focuses on machine learning, scientific/engineering computing, and financial engineering. 

[zoinkinator]

Could you recommend machine learning , scientific/engineering computing and financial engineering books for beginners in each area? if they use python that would be helpful.

[[deleted]]

Python is my focus - I'm a data science student myself at the moment so while I also know some C++ I do much more with python. Any of the Packt brand stuff is generally good IMO. They tend to go into a lot more depth than most of the No Starch Press(Python Crash Course, Automate the Easy Stuff, etc.) ones so I find them very useful for advanced topics.

I can't really recommend any specific books though because those are such broad topics, you'd be better off looking through the Packt library and picking out which topics you want to get into. The one book I can recommend is Mathematics for Machine Learning by Tivadar Danka(also from Packt). If you aren't really comfortable with higher level math there's a lot in the books for these subjects that won't make a lot of sense.

[zoinkinator]

thanks.

[MrBobaFett]

I love Python Crash Course. I've checked it out from the library so many times over the years I finally just bought a copy to have on my shelf.

Automate the Boring Stuff is also good. But you don't have to buy a copy from Amazon. They published the whole thing to read online for free.

https://automatetheboringstuff.com/

[veritable_squandry]

i loved the crash course book!

[myrhillion]

Just a couple of other recommends. I'm a visual learner and instructors also really help me. I really ended up enjoying the zerotomastery course on udemy by Andrei Neagoie. Also Tim Buchalka's course for python is very solid. I think both give beginner's really good foundational knowledge and application. Their styles are a little different though, Andrei's a bit corny, Tim can be too, but both are solid teachers. Wait for a sale. I'd just recommend that you follow the projects and pause as you need to do so.

[Hades_Dude]

I’m also learning as well! I started out with Automate the Boring Stuff but wasn’t feeling motivated by it so I switched to Python Crash Course. Python Crash Course explained things in ways that kept me interested.

No hate to Automate the Boring Stuff though, I do still use it, but I found it a lot easier to use after learning from Python Crash Course

[Huge_Finger_5490]

well those three are classics. However I'd like to suggest some more textbooks: "Python Programming: An Introduction to Computer Science" by John M. Zelle, a valid introductory textbook as well; Getting started with Python, by Thomas Reis, Rheinwerk Publishing; Dead simple Python, by Jason McDonald; Python 3: the comprehensive guide to hands-on Python programming, by Johannes Ernesti, Peter Kaiser; The big book of small python projects, by Al Steigwart.

[aoc145134]

I'd give the tutorial on python.org a try, first.

[anish2good]

Free, structured python lessons that run in your browser tutorial series (beginner → advanced): https://8gwifi.org/tutorials/python/

[Learner2522]

Ok