I read one book this semester. I thought I'd be able to read three or four. I'll need to make more time for it. Summer's here now, so I made a last-minute effort to get it finished. I've been reading slowly, chapter-by-chapter, at the weekends.
The book, The Mythical Man-Month by Frederick P. Brooks, Jr., was recommended as reading material for one of my modules, but I'd heard the name mentioned before, and that's really why I chose that one. I decided to buy it from Amazon as I knew I'd never get it back to the library on time.
This book is really something peculiar, and in a way, spectacular. It's a product of a very specific time and place and aimed at a very specific selection of people, yet, like the timeless illustrations prepending each chapter, the final product seems to cut across the bounds of the place from which it emerged.
It's essentially a book about managing software development, structured around a small few central pillars or concepts. But it goes far beyond the managerial waffle you might see in other books on the topic. Each chapter starts with a quote and a central concept which is explored. The book gets you thinking, whether you have any interest in managing a team of developers or not. It's enjoyable to read, and a wry sense of humour permeates the deep thinking. I can imagine it being of interest to managers and engineers in any field.
I have the Anniversary Edition which adds some new content at the end, bringing it up to almost the world of modern computing. It's interesting, though, that these actually seem more dated and less timeless than the main meat of the book.
The book ends with a predictions that are by turns ominous and hopeful:
The tar pit of engineering will continue to be sticky for a long time to come.
Not only is the end not in sight, the pace is not slackening. We have many future joys.
For anyone doing anything slightly related, I'd recommend this as a weighty, intellectual read that's also really enjoyable.