Ask HN: Books you should have read when you start a career in SE / CS?

This is the most influential book I have read in my SE career. It's not a LISP book. It's a book about programming fundamentals.

Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programs

as SICP is while learning in University

How to Win Friends and Influence People

Thinking fast and slow - a great introduction to biases that will affect your thinking in any project.

"The C Programming Language" is a good read if you intend to write a book.

The C Programming Language, also called K&R after the authors

K & R C

The Pragmatic Programmer

"The pragmatic programmer" is quite good start on it.

Definitely check out "The Pragmatic Programmer"! There's definitely some good nuggets in there that helped me.

good recommendations if you're looking for something to read

The Pragmatic Programmer

3) The Pragmatic Programmer

Helped me understand a bit more about databases and systems. The book is also very approachable and has the perfect blend of application and theory at a high level that anyone approaching the industry for the first time stands to gain a lot from reading it.

Kleppman's book is genuinely and outstandingly useful for understanding the various components involved in modern backend architectures.

As far as a technical book, Data Intensive Applications by Martin Kleppman.

Code Complete

If you lack technical background and have problems with structure because you have not worked through university/school in structured way then "Code complete", "Clean code".

I read through Code Complete 2 cover to cover my first year and I agree with parent it's more useful early on than later.

The Pragmatic Programmer and Code Complete. These are, in my opinion, good recommendations

I found Code Complete to be as eye opening for day to day work as SICP is while learning in University.

3) Code Complete.

The Design of Everyday Things by Don Norman

I really like the concepts of making interfaces that require minimal thought to use and empathizing with your users.

I'm also tempted to recommend "Siddhartha" by Herman Hesse

The Soul of a New Machine is a wonderful book.

I think is a brilliant case study on how engineers work together

recommend "The Mythical Man Month" But be prepared to come away very depressed

I too, like many others in this thread, recommend "The Mythical Man Month".

Mythical Man Month - obvious reasons

The Mythical Man Month. Quite old, but still a classic.

1) The Mythical Man month

I sort of wish my CS grad school had just been studying those books

I recently finished reading the first three, and have started on the fourth

1) The Art of Computer Programming