There is a lot of depth to C# that most of the .net developers I've met have never seen (and even when they've seen it, they do not fully understand). The .net

There is a lot of depth to C# that most of the .net developers I've met have never seen (and even when they've seen it, they do not fully understand). The .net framework comes with tons of classes built-in that can be arranged to do most anything that you've seen elsewhere with very little work; so it's understandable that with so much done for you beginning and intermediate programmers might skip learning how to build components from scratch, how to optimize, and how to create complex algorithms that solve novel business needs; however understanding of these topics is expected of senior developers everywhere I have worked. I can see the point in suggesting one doesn't start with c#. I can also see the need for books that give you a proper ground-up understanding of what's going on. C# 5 Unleashed is an excellent example. I don't think learning C# immediately is a mistake, but I do think it gives you an easy excuse not to learn the fundamentals that should be very important to you. It's up to you as to whether or not you skip important bits and risk your career; but it will catch up to you someday.