9/6/2018 c++ faq - The Definitive C++ Book Guide and List - Stack Overflow

The Definitive C++ Book Guide and Ask Question

List

This question attempts to

collect the few pearls
among the dozens of bad
C++ books that are
published every year.

Unlike many other

programming languages,
which are often picked up
on the go from tutorials
found on the Internet, few
are able to quickly pick up
C++ without studying a well-
written C++ book. It is way
too big and complex for
doing this. In fact, it is so
big and complex, that there
are very many very bad
C++ books out there. And
we are not talking about
bad style, but things like
sporting glaringly obvious
factual errors and promoting
abysmally bad
programming styles.

Please edit the accepted

answer to provide quality
books and an approximate
skill level — preferably after
discussing your addition in
the C++ chat room. (The
regulars might mercilessly
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about each book that you

have personally
read/benefited from. Feel
free to debate quality,
headings, etc. Books that
meet the criteria will be
added to the list. Books that
have reviews by the
Association of C and C++
Users (ACCU) have links to
the review.

*Note: FAQs and other resources

can be found in the C++ tag info
and under c++-faq .

c++ c++-faq

edited Apr 5 at 5:35

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'14 at 11:46
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1 Answer

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Beginner

Introductory, no
previous programming
experience

C++ Primer * (Stanley

Lippman, Josée Lajoie,
and Barbara E. Moo)
(updated for C++11)
Coming at 1k pages,
this is a very thorough
introduction into C++
that covers just about
everything in the
language in a very
accessible format and
in great detail. The fifth
edition (released
August 16, 2012)
covers C++11.
[Review]
Programming:
Principles and Practice
Using C++ (Bjarne
Stroustrup, 2nd Edition
- May 25, 2014)
(updated for
C++11/C++14) An
introduction to
programming using
C++ by the creator of
the language. A good
read, that assumes no
previous programming
experience, but is not
only for beginners.

* Not to be confused with C++

Primer Plus (Stephen Prata), with
a significantly less favorable
review.

Introductory, with
previous
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and terms. A Tour of C++ (Bjarne
Stroustrup) (2nd
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edition for C++17) The

“tour” is a quick (about
180 pages and 14
chapters) tutorial
overview of all of
standard C++
(language and
standard library, and
using C++11) at a
moderately high level
for people who already
know C++ or at least
are experienced
programmers. This
book is an extended
version of the material
that constitutes
Chapters 2-5 of The
C++ Programming
Language, 4th edition.
Accelerated C++
(Andrew Koenig and
Barbara Moo, 1st
Edition - August 24,
2000) This basically
covers the same
ground as the C++
Primer, but does so on
a fourth of its space.
This is largely because
it does not attempt to
be an introduction to
programming, but an
introduction to C++ for
people who've
previously programmed
in some other
language. It has a
steeper learning curve,
but, for those who can
cope with this, it is a
very compact
introduction to the
language. (Historically,
it broke new ground by
being the first
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teaches is purely
C++98. [Review]

Best practices

Effective C++ (Scott

Meyers, 3rd Edition -
May 22, 2005) This
was written with the
aim of being the best
second book C++
programmers should
read, and it succeeded.
Earlier editions were
aimed at programmers
coming from C, the
third edition changes
this and targets
programmers coming
from languages like
Java. It presents ~50
easy-to-remember
rules of thumb along
with their rationale in a
very accessible (and
enjoyable) style. For
C++11 and C++14 the
examples and a few
issues are outdated
and Effective Modern
C++ should be
preferred. [Review]
Effective Modern C++
(Scott Meyers) This is
basically the new
version of Effective
C++, aimed at C++
programmers making
the transition from
C++03 to C++11 and
C++14.
Effective STL (Scott
Meyers) This aims to
do the same to the part
of the standard library
coming from the STL
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of thumb along with

their rationale. [Review]

Intermediate

More Effective C++

(Scott Meyers) Even
more rules of thumb
than Effective C++. Not
as important as the
ones in the first book,
but still good to know.
Exceptional C++ (Herb
Sutter) Presented as a
set of puzzles, this has
one of the best and
thorough discussions of
the proper resource
management and
exception safety in C++
through Resource
Acquisition is
Initialization (RAII) in
addition to in-depth
coverage of a variety of
other topics including
the pimpl idiom, name
lookup, good class
design, and the C++
memory model.
[Review]
More Exceptional C++
(Herb Sutter) Covers
additional exception
safety topics not
covered in Exceptional
C++, in addition to
discussion of effective
object-oriented
programming in C++
and correct use of the
STL. [Review]
Exceptional C++ Style
(Herb Sutter)
Discusses
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excellent exposition of
how to write modular
code in C++ by using
non-member functions
and the single
responsibility principle.
[Review]
C++ Coding Standards
(Herb Sutter and
Andrei Alexandrescu)
“Coding standards”
here doesn't mean
“how many spaces
should I indent my
code?” This book
contains 101 best
practices, idioms, and
common pitfalls that
can help you to write
correct,
understandable, and
efficient C++ code.
[Review]
C++ Templates: The
Complete Guide (David
Vandevoorde and
Nicolai M. Josuttis)
This is the book about
templates as they
existed before C++11.
It covers everything
from the very basics to
some of the most
advanced template
metaprogramming and
explains every detail of
how templates work
(both conceptually and
at how they are
implemented) and
discusses many
common pitfalls. Has
excellent summaries of
the One Definition Rule
(ODR) and overload
resolution in the
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been already published

. [Review]

Advanced

Modern C++ Design

(Andrei Alexandrescu)
A groundbreaking book
on advanced generic
programming
techniques. Introduces
policy-based design,
type lists, and
fundamental generic
programming idioms
then explains how
many useful design
patterns (including
small object allocators,
functors, factories,
visitors, and multi-
methods) can be
implemented efficiently,
modularly, and cleanly
using generic
programming. [Review]
C++ Template
Metaprogramming
(David Abrahams and
Aleksey Gurtovoy)
C++ Concurrency In
Action (Anthony
Williams) A book
covering C++11
concurrency support
including the thread
library, the atomics
library, the C++
memory model, locks
and mutexes, as well
as issues of designing
and debugging
multithreaded
applications.
Advanced
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focused more on
practice than theory.
There are a ton of
snippets in this book,
some of which are
made obsolete by type
traits, but the
techniques, are
nonetheless useful to
know. If you can put up
with the quirky
formatting/editing, it is
easier to read than
Alexandrescu, and
arguably, more
rewarding. For more
experienced
developers, there is a
good chance that you
may pick up something
about a dark corner of
C++ (a quirk) that
usually only comes
about through
extensive experience.

Reference Style - All

Levels

The C++ Programming

Language (Bjarne
Stroustrup) (updated
for C++11) The classic
introduction to C++ by
its creator. Written to
parallel the classic
K&R, this indeed reads
very much like it and
covers just about
everything from the
core language to the
standard library, to
programming
paradigms to the
language's philosophy.
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I find the current C++

standard.
C++ Standard Library
Tutorial and Reference
(Nicolai Josuttis)
(updated for C++11)
The introduction and
reference for the C++
Standard Library. The
second edition
(released on April 9,
2012) covers C++11.
[Review]
The C++ IO Streams
and Locales (Angelika
Langer and Klaus
Kreft) There's very little
to say about this book
except that, if you want
to know anything about
streams and locales,
then this is the one
place to find definitive
answers. [Review]

C++11/14 References:

The C++ Standard

(INCITS/ISO/IEC
14882-2011) This, of
course, is the final
arbiter of all that is or
isn't C++. Be aware,
however, that it is
intended purely as a
reference for
experienced users
willing to devote
considerable time and
effort to its
understanding. As
usual, the first release
was quite expensive
($300+ US), but it has
now been released in
electronic form for
$60US.
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economical form –
directly from the ISO it
costs 198 Swiss Francs
(about $200 US). For
most people, the final
draft before
standardization is more
than adequate (and
free). Many will prefer
an even newer draft,
documenting new
features that are likely
to be included in
C++17.
Overview of the New
C++ (C++11/14) (PDF
only) (Scott Meyers)
(updated for
C++1y/C++14) These
are the presentation
materials (slides and
some lecture notes) of
a three-day training
course offered by Scott
Meyers, who's a highly
respected author on
C++. Even though the
list of items is short, the
quality is high.
The C++ Core
Guidelines
(C++11/14/17/…)
(edited by Bjarne
Stroustrup and Herb
Sutter) is an evolving
online document
consisting of a set of
guidelines for using
modern C++ well. The
guidelines are focused
on relatively higher-
level issues, such as
interfaces, resource
management, memory
management and
concurrency affecting
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Bjarne Stroustrup and

others and welcomes
contributions from the
community. Most
guidelines are
supplemented with a
rationale and examples
as well as discussions
of possible tool
support. Many rules are
designed specifically to
be automatically
checkable by static
analysis tools.
The C++ Super-FAQ
(Marshall Cline, Bjarne
Stroustrup and others)
is an effort by the
Standard C++
Foundation to unify the
C++ FAQs previously
maintained individually
by Marshall Cline and
Bjarne Stroustrup and
also incorporating new
contributions. The
items mostly address
issues at an
intermediate level and
are often written with a
humorous tone. Not all
items might be fully up
to date with the latest
edition of the C++
standard yet.
cppreference.com
(C++03/11/14/17/…)
(initiated by Nate Kohl)
is a wiki that
summarizes the basic
core-language features
and has extensive
documentation of the
C++ standard library.
The documentation is
very precise but is
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its wiki nature. The

project documents all
versions of the C++
standard and the site
allows filtering the
display for a specific
version. The project
was presented by Nate
Kohl at CppCon'14.

Classics / Older

Note: Some information

contained within these
books may not be up-to-
date or no longer
considered best practice.

The Design and

Evolution of C++
(Bjarne Stroustrup) If
you want to know why
the language is the way
it is, this book is where
you find answers. This
covers everything
before the
standardization of C++.
Ruminations on C++ -
(Andrew Koenig and
Barbara Moo) [Review]
Advanced C++
Programming Styles
and Idioms (James
Coplien) A predecessor
of the pattern
movement, it describes
many C++-specific
“idioms”. It's certainly a
very good book and
might still be worth a
read if you can spare
the time, but quite old
and not up-to-date with
current C++.
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very big C++ software

projects. Certainly, a
good read, if it only was
up to date. It was
written long before C++
98 and misses on
many features (e.g.
namespaces) important
for large-scale projects.
If you need to work in a
big C++ software
project, you might want
to read it, although you
need to take more than
a grain of salt with it.
The first volume of a
new edition is expected
in 2018.
Inside the C++ Object
Model (Stanley
Lippman) If you want to
know how virtual
member functions are
commonly
implemented and how
base objects are
commonly laid out in
memory in a multi-
inheritance scenario,
and how all this affects
performance, this is
where you will find
thorough discussions of
such topics.
The Annotated C++
Reference Manual
(Bjarne Stroustrup,
Margaret A. Ellis) This
book is quite outdated
in the fact that it
explores the 1989 C++
2.0 version -
Templates, exceptions,
namespaces and new
casts were not yet
introduced. Saying that
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rationale, the possible

implementations, and
features of the
language. This is not a
book to learn
programming principles
and patterns on C++,
but to understand every
aspect of the C++
language.
Thinking in C++ (Bruce
Eckel, 2nd Edition,
2000). Two volumes; is
a tutorial style free set
of intro level books.
Downloads: vol 1, vol
2. Unfortunately they’re
marred by a number of
trivial errors (e.g.
maintaining that
temporaries are
automatically const ),
with no official errata
list. A partial 3rd party
errata list is available at
(http://www.computersc
iencelab.com/Eckel.ht
m), but it’s apparently
not maintained.
Scientific and
Engineering C++: An
Introduction to
Advanced Techniques
and Examples (John
Barton and Lee
Nackman) It is a
comprehensive and
very detailed book that
tried to explain and
make use of all the
features available in
C++, in the context of
numerical methods. It
introduced at the time
several new
techniques, such as the
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It pioneered several
techniques such as
dimensional analysis
and automatic
differentiation. It came
with a lot of compilable
and useful code,
ranging from an
expression parser to a
Lapack wrapper. The
code is still available
here:
http://www.informit.com
/store/scientific-and-
engineering-c-plus-
plus-an-introduction-
9780201533934.
Unfortunately, the
books have become
somewhat outdated in
the style and C++
features, however, it
was an incredible tour-
de-force at the time
(1994, pre-STL). The
chapters on dynamics
inheritance are a bit
complicated to
understand and not
very useful. An updated
version of this classic
book that includes
move semantics and
the lessons learned
from the STL would be
very nice.

edited Aug 14 at 17:39

community wiki
68 revs, 54 users 24%
George Stocker

495 Is there a list of, perhaps,

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NOT be read? –
acknowledge that you have read and understand our , , and our . Your
G.Rassovsky Oct 21 '14
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300 @G Rassovsky: All

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books which promise to
teach X in Y hours. For
example Learn C++ in 24
hours. I believe all such
books are better avoided.
– i_am_zero Dec 29 '14
at 4:47

96 I hate to step on
anybody's shoes, but I do
not recommend Bruce
Eckel's "Thinking in C++"
even though I respect the
author for publishing his
materials online for free.
The book's perspective
suggests relatively poor
or ineffective use of C++
and "object oriented"
programming, akin to
poor application of the
GoF Design Patterns. I
found it an interesting
introductory book to
programming in general,
but as someone
becomes more
familiarized with
programming and
(especially) computer
science as a whole, I find
books which think purely
in "classic" OOP terms
detrimental to education.
– Alexander Pritchard
Jan 16 '15 at 5:55

56 Accelerated C++ is from

2000. Should I worry that
it's out of date? –
AutonomousApps Apr 23
'16 at 15:58

34 I think it would be good to

put the dates published
for the edition (with the
edition number where
applicable). –
Aaron Hall ♦ Jun 26 '17
at 17:48

protected by
Robertour
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