This is the kick-off book of the "eXtreme Programming" series. It's a short book, and an easy read. The impression I got as I read it was, "Aha!" Details and expansion of points in this book stream out of the other books in this series, but for a readable, understandable why & how, this is excellence.
The book reminds me of Kernighan & Ritchie's The C Programming Language in its terse style, illustrating points with examples, and complete coverage in an amazingly short package. Few books have managed to say so much with so little noise, and this is one of them.
I feel a little odd reviewing Kent Beck's work with him as a member of this site. Still I must point out this no-nonsense writing is a target worth aiming for.
Recommended.
--BobLee April, 2003 (Read it in October, 2001)
I'd thought I picked up all of the principles by proxy from c2 and elsewhere, and was really reading it to be able to say formally that I had. But I definitely had a few "Aha!" moments with how the pieces fit together. Also, I never really "got" pair programming until 1) seeing the QualityIsFree references and 2) comparing notes with when we've chucked the tests on existing projects and seeing that it works well as a social hack to keep people on track.
Programming Life-Changer! The clarity of thought is reflected in his writing... The book is 200 odd pages instead of the tomes that are the norm nowadays. Eye opener. Definite Recommendation. Buy it and stay in touch with it.
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