Top 10 Amazing Books I Read in 2013 & Recommend

Here’s my top ten list of the books I managed to read in 2013.

1. Don’t Make Me Think by Steve Krug – One of the best UI/UX design books I have ever read. Short, to the point, easy to read with lots of examples. While an excellent book, it first came out in 2001 and then in 2005, so some web design suggestions may be dated. It’s not about how to add pizzazz to your site by applying lipstick but how to make websites that are usable and doesn’t force users to think. 

2. Endurance – Shackleton’s Incredible Voyage by Alfred Lansing – A compelling account of Shackleton’s incredible, but doomed voyage from England to the southern Antarctica. Heartwarming story of Shackleton’s courageous leadership skills that allowed his lost crew to survive bitter cold, darkness, constant danger for months. Highly recommended for anyone aspiring to be a leader.

3. The Snowball: Warren Buffett and the Business of Life by Alice Schroeder – I picked this up at local Chapters without knowing what to expect. Turned out to be a very good find. From an early account of Buffet’s life in Omaha, his childhood, influences, and decisions that made him the best investor in the world that he is. My only complain is that the book is huge!

4. Peopleware by Tom DeMarco – Amazing, fantastic, mind blowing guide on managing Software teams. Non-conventional, no non-sense approach to management. Couldn’t recommend it more for anyone who is a Manager or aspiring to be a Manager. In fact, it should be made compulsory for all managers to read this book every quarter.

5. Salem’s Lot by Stephen King – Not a big fan of horror fiction, but this was a great story. Spoiler Alert: Dracula in a small, sleepy New England town.

6. The Five Dysfunctions of a Team: A Leadership Fable by Patrick M. Lencioni – An excellent leadership book written as easy to read story about a dysfunctional team in an imaginary Tech company in the Valley. Short and sweet: could be read in two or three sittings.

7. Hadoop: The Definitive Guide, 3rd Edition by Tom White – An excellent resource for anyone wanting to learn Apache Hadoop. Hard to read cover to cover, the first few chapters are an excellent introduction to Hadoop. Staying on my reference shelf.

8. How to Win Friends & Influence People by Dale Carnegie – I’ve been meaning to read this book for years now. Reading about it in “The SnowBall” and that Warren Buffet went as far as enrolling in Carnegie’s seminars convinced me to finally buy it. I’ve not much to say other than it is a good book.

9. Programming in Scala by Martin Odersky – I’m into functional programming and like Scala. This is the best book on Scala written by the same homely genius who created Scala. He also runs a free online course on Scala on Coursera which I also highly recommend.

10. Enterprise Integration Patterns by Gregor Hohpe – Patterns on integrating enterprise applications using messaging and asynchronous communications. Kind of old, but very good book for understanding and building solid concepts.

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