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[Ask HN] Good book about functional programming?

• mbrubeck 17y ago
  They're both designed to teach specific languages, but I found both Real World Haskell and Programming Erlang conveyed a lot about practical functional programming. You can read RWH for free online (but it seems to be down as I type this): http://book.realworldhaskell.org/ http://book.realworldhaskell.org/
  • 10ren 17y ago
    I also found Armstrong's Erlang book excellent for an intro to functional programming (but it's not particularly advanced). I got the pdf-only version, which is a bit cheaper. The obvious recommendation for fp (functional programming) on HN is SICP (Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programs). The full text is free online http://mitpress.mit.edu/sicp/ http://mitpress.mit.edu/sicp/ Everyone raves about SICP, from top to bottom of the fp world. However, some objections: 1. it purports to be an introduction to programming, but it assumes a lot of background knowledge (so that's fine if you have the background, but the inconsistency irritates my inner pedant). 2. the authors don't use it themselves anymore in their programming course (they switched to python, for variously debated reasons).
    • ananthrk 17y ago
      it assumes a lot of background knowledge What kind of background knowledge is required?
      • 10ren 17y ago
        Some examples from chapter one: the concept of local variables (used but not explained); the conventional meaning of recursion (when they argue that TCO only applies to iteration despite having the form of recursion); and (and IIRC) approaches to mathematical proofs that it argues against (there are also some mathematical examples, like implementing Newtons method, but I think that's OK). There's also a bit of imagery that only makes sense if you already know what it means. As someone who's taught at Uni, I think that's pretty poor in an "introductory textbook". However, the simple truth is that it isn't an introductory textbook at all, but something more advanced and arcane.
        • ananthrk 17y ago
          Thanks for the response. So, what would be a good book before SICP?
          • dasil003 17y ago
            I think you just need a couple years of programming under your belt. Books won't really help with the proper grokage.
          • 10ren 17y ago
            Are you asking about fp, or programming books in general? One approach I took was to go to the (University) library, and find the section on the programming topic of interest. Then grab a few books, and read a paragraph at random. Then borrow (or read there) the one that appeals to you - the writing style that makes sense to you, that addresses the issues that come to you as you read, that communicates to you. You can do the same at Borders, but the books are more vocational and less textbooky. If some particular part is unclear, you can compare it with other books - you now have a resource. Every book has something to offer. The biggest factor is what you put into it. Therefore, it's more important to pick a book that you like rather than the "best" one. Otherwise, you can get into a kind of McCarthyism where there are good books and bad books, instead of each book having strengths and weaknesses. To put this in perspective, I personally really liked "Java in a Nutshell", because Flanagan's writing is brilliant. It's very succinct, yet covers all the cases, has a joie de vivre about it, and yet is so transparent it's easy to not notice it (Douglas Adam's prose also has this quality). Revealingly, Flanagan loves writing; and is very well read himself. Most writers of programming books are not. Now, to me, being well-written is very pleasing; but I can imagine it not mattering at all to the next programmer.
• dasil003 17y ago
  Maybe it's too obvious but someone's got to mention Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programs (aka SICP). It's not strictly about functional programming, but it starts with functional programming and then discusses the implications of adding mutable state. I think it's a good idea to get that under your belt before diving into Haskell where it's already taken as a foregone conclusion that the negatives of mutable state outweigh the benefits. http://mitpress.mit.edu/sicp/ http://mitpress.mit.edu/sicp/
• jlouis 17y ago
  Larry C. Paulson - "ML for the working programmer" will have you thinking for years to come. It is meant for people who do know a programming language, but none of those an FP-lang. It covers Standard ML, but you will find that the ideas of FP are easy to move around from language to language.
• jonjacky 17y ago
  Bird and Wadler, Introduction to Functional Programming is a classic. They have a more recent book, Introduction to Functional Programming in Haskell, which I haven't seen.