Best Django Books to checkout

Best Django Books to checkout
Best Django Books to checkout

Django creators have described it as “a high-level Python web framework that encourages rapid development and clean, pragmatic design. It takes care of the hassle of web development, enabling you to focus on writing your application” And we couldn’t help but agree with them. Often, many of us are confounded how this massive web framework comes with so many batteries but still manages to work together in harmony.

Let’s talk about not reinventing the wheel. If you want something to be done with Django, the chances are that someone has already done it and you can implement it into your project. That’s an edge the framework has over other web frameworks since it was developed in the year 2005. But we’re not here to talk about the glory of this framework or its powerful features. We’re here to get you started with a set of books that will speak about Django’s excellence by itself. Let’s get going with it.

The life and soul of the party
The Definitive Guide to Django: Web Development Done Right by Adrian Holovaty and Jacob Kaplan-Moss

As the name suggests, this book serves as a definitive and comprehensive guide for beginners starting and intermediates looking to explore Django. This book is broken into three parts: The first part introduces Django fundamentals, the second part delves into the more sophisticated features of this Python framework, that includes outputting non HTML content and the final part functions like a detailed reference to Django’s many configuration options and commands. Apart from that, it also covers how to build web applications that use Django, including the basics of dynamic web pages, the templating system interacting with databases and web forms.


Jack-of-all-trades
Django Unleashed by Andrew Pinkham
Although this book is intended for beginners, it serves as a great reference book for Django programmers with about 4-5 years wanting to learn more. It has explanations for various ways of solving the same problem and then explains which one is better too. It consists of three parts through which the author slowly takes you from the basics of its core concepts to complex topics. Some advanced items may be hard to follow initially, once you practice them, you’ll get the hang of it. When you dive into complex issues like Generic views, creating custom users and managers, you will undoubtedly appreciate the effort the author has put to explain them.

The Whizzkid
Mastering Django by Nigel George

If you’re an intermediate programmer looking to take it up a notch with web development, give Mastering Django a try. As it is written for someone with programming knowledge, it assumes you have a basic understanding of the Internet and experience with Python or Django. Readers of this book would be able to build fast, secure, scalable, and maintainable web applications by making you a Django expert. Highly regarded as a programmer’s manual, it provides complete coverage of the current Long Term Support (LTS) version of Django. For developers creating business-critical applications, Mastering Django book will be a goldmine of information.

Big fish in a small pond
Lightweight Django by Elman and Mark Lavin

Are you someone who’s got all your basics covered and want to savour the entire content offers? Then you’re in for a treat with Lightweight Django. Through this book, experienced Django developers can learn how to use REST APIs, WebSockets, and client-side MVC frameworks like Backbone.js. It answers many questions about where the framework fits in a Web in which more applications are built with substantial client-side interactions and real-time components and paired with native mobile apps. In the last few chapters, you’ll find explanations of real-time updates across websites using Tornado along with Django security, scalability. The bottom line is that if you’re someone who does not find writing Python and JavaScript pleasurable, this book is most likely not for you.

Dark Horse
Build a Website with Django 3 by Nigel George

This book is written for developers wanting to learn Django 3 and Python 3.8 as it lays out the what, why and how of using the latest versions of Django and Python. It covers all the core concepts of it to get you up and running fast. Instead of boring theory, you’ll be building a fully functioning website as you learn Django along with how to deploy your website to the Internet for free. As you progress through each chapter of the book, you’ll find it easy to understand the teaching as it also explains each line of code as you go. When you finish the book, you will know all of the basics needed to build an excellent Django website along with a fully functioning website ready for deployment.

Cooking to tickle your knowledge buds
Django 2 Web Development Cookbook by Aidas Bendoraitis and Jake Kronika

Next on the list, we have the fabled Cookbook version of the framework. Through this cookbook, you’ll be able to learn how to write reusable pieces of code for your models and manage database changes. You’ll also have a chance to work with forms and views along with exposure to practical examples using templates and JavaScript together for the optimum user experience. Integration with Django CMS, the accessible content management suite will also be covered in this book. By the end of the book, you would’ve learned programming and debugging tricks and discovered how to collect data from different sources and provide it to others. Along with this, you’ll also gain knowledge on how to test and deploy projects to a remote dedicated server and scale your application.

In the blink of an eye
Django in 8 Hours by Ray Yao

Yes, you read that right. Learning it in a few hours is possible, provided you put in the effort and have the “Django in 8 Hours” book handy. It covers all essential Django knowledge that you need to have to develop your first Django website fast and quickly. Despite promising a fast grasp on the Django concepts, it does not entirely consist of theory but also includes more than 60 practical examples. As an added benefit, readers can access tests & answers for the college exam, the engineer certification exam, and the job interview exam. With this book, you also get source code for download that is used throughout this book for
better study.

Golden Boy
Django for Beginners: Build websites with Python and Django by William S. Vincent

If you’re looking for the most natural starting book to learn Django, then this book is the one for you. With fast-paced writing, the author makes sure that you never feel like reading a boring technical textbook. At the beginning of the book, you’ll cover easy concepts and slowly switch to more complex concepts smoothly.
This book assumes that you don’t have much knowledge in Python, and you will be able to follow the ideas of this book well with a little help from external resources. Starting from a simple hello world app till complex websites you’ll build in the later stages will follow an engaging structure and leaves you seeking more.

Horse of a different colour
Two Scoops of Django 1.11: Best Practices for the Django Web Framework by Audrey Roy

Greenfeld and Daniel Roy Greenfeld
Next up is a book not meant for absolute beginners but for someone who has worked on a Django project before and wants to learn the framework properly. The author has written the book, keeping in mind both intermediate and advanced level professionals. The book is equipped with plenty of witty diagrams that keep you hooked on the book. Throughout the book, the author maintains a friendly tone for writing, so you never have to worry about being bored. The main takeaway of the book is that you can skip chapters and read
them as you like as each section is independent of others.

A mover and a shaker
Designing Microservices with Django: An Overview of Tools and Practices by Akos Hochrein

To end the list, Designing Microservices Django is a book that examines what microservices are, how they talk to each other, and how they are developed using the Python and the Django web framework. After having the basic understanding of what the key differences are between microservices and monolithic architectures, you will dive deep into how microservices are built and what are the many standard models that have emerged. You’ll also take a long look into communication and ownership patterns, and the many examine methodologies available to speed up your architecture evolution. When you complete the book, we’re sure that you will have a solid understanding of microservices architectures.

Conclusion
Django is an excellent addition to your projects if it needs to handle large volumes of content or has heavy traffic. Django is also a good option to deal with complex functions or technology like machine learning. Many websites are developed using the Django framework, including Instagram, BitBucket, Mozilla, etc. As of 2020, according to Naukri.com, there are almost 22,000 job openings for Django. If you’re Armed with a comprehensive and stable toolset, you can fill one of these job openings among many more opportunities.
Django as a framework is highly customizable, and everyone has their way of stitching together a Django project. The way I’ve written it out here isn’t necessarily the exact way that a Django project needs to be set up; it’s just a) what I’m familiar with, and b) what leverages Django’s management system.

Django projects grow in complexity as you separate concepts into their little silos. You do that, so it’s easier for multiple people to contribute to the overall project without stepping on each other’s toes. The vast map of files that is a Django project, however, doesn’t make it more performant or naturally predisposed to a microservice architecture. On the contrary, it can very quickly become a confusing monolith. That may still be useful for your project. It may also make it harder for your project to be manageable, especially as it grows.
Consider your options carefully and use the right tool for the right job. For a simple project like this, Django likely isn’t the right tool.

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