Django is the most popular Python web framework. Among all the Python frameworks, it has the highest number of stars on GitHub. Django allows python developers to write backend logic and create a dynamic and secure web application. Books are one of the best ways to learn Django.
It works on the Don’t Repeat Yourself (DRY) principle and reduces reliance on the concept of reinventing the wheel. Django supports the motto "Why to write code from scratch that has already been written," and to back this statement, Django comes with batteries included.
Also, Django officials offer well-written and well-explained documentation, which is the best resource for learning the popular Python framework. However, there are many great Django books written by experienced Django developers that can help you learn the web framework in the right way.
Here, in this article, we will detail the best Django books for beginners and experienced Django developers. Before jumping to the best Django books, let’s look at a brief introduction of the popular Python framework and what Django is used for?
What is Django? What is it Used For?
Django is defined as a high-level Python web framework that allows Python developers to build web applications that can run on any web browser. With the popular Python framework, the developer can focus more on the application's logic and little on indulging in the hassle of web development.
This web framework is also defined as a full-stack web framework, which means it can render front-end templates and manage back-end logic and database. With the Python web framework, we can build any type of web application, ranging from content management systems like WordPress and Drupal to eCommerce sites like Amazon and Flipkart.
Best Django Books
The current version of Django is Django 3.2 with Long Term Support, released in 2021. Some of the Django books we have mentioned here are written for older versions of the web framework, but the basic concepts are applicable to all the newer versions.
With each update, Django introduces something new and eliminates some old features, but you won’t be finding any big, abrupt changes between the latest and recent versions of Django. So, let's start with the best Django books:
1. Django for Beginners: Built websites with Python & Django
Author: William S. Vincent
Those who want to learn Django 3.1 by building some beginner-level projects can pick this book. It is a project-based Django book written by William S. Vincent using Django3.1. This Django book is written for complete beginners who have just completed Python and want to move into web development using the popular Python framework.
The best part of this book is that it covers the recently latest version of Django (i.e., 3.1), which will help readers easily digest the Python framework's latest syntax and functionalities. Moreover, the Django book provides you with 5 website projects that help you understand how to use Django to build a full-fledged website.
In the projects, the author tries to tackle important topics like best practices for security, how to write test cases, and integrating user authentication.
About the Author
William S. Vincent is a board member of the Django Software Foundation. Also, he is the author of three best-selling Django books and writes the Django newsletter weekly.
Publisher:
WelcomeToCode
Paperback Print Length:
314 pages
Get the book here .
2. Django for APIs: Build websites with Python & Django
Author: William S. Vincent
As its name suggests, “Django for API” is a project-based Django book for building APIs. This book will teach you how to use the Python web framework and Django Rest Framework to create REST APIs.
The Django book is suitable for every level of Django developer who wants to create REST APIs using Django. In this book, the author William S. Vincent has built 3 Django projects and their APIs from scratch.
This book covers the backend and teaches you how to connect the Django backend with the popular JavaScript framework React.
About the Author
William S. Vincent is a board member of the Django Software Foundation. He has written three popular Django books. Also, he writes the Django newsletter weekly and runs LearnDjango.com.
Publisher:
WelcomeToCode
Paperback Print Length:
222 pages
Get the book here .
3. Django for Professionals: Production websites with Python & Django
Author: William S. Vincent
This is yet another great Django Book by William S. Vincent, but this is for intermediate to advanced Django learners. Most of the popular Django books are based on old versions of the Python framework, and some of them are totally irrelevant to the latest Django trends. But this book is written using the latest version of Django, so you would not be missing any new updates and features.
Django for Professionals is an extension of Django for Beginners and Django for APIs books. These 3 books will help you become a hero from zero in using the leading web development framework.
In this Django book, you will be learning how to build an advanced bookstore website using Django 3.1. Not only that, but you will also be using Docker and PostgreSQL. This book will also walk you through Django's advanced features, including writing comprehensive tests, advanced searches, file/image uploads, and advanced user registration with email.
About the Author
William S. Vincent is a popular author of three Django books and a Django Software Foundation board member.
Publisher:
Lightning Source
Paperback Print Length:
290 pages
Get the book here .
4. Mastering Django
Author: Nigel George
If you are looking for the latest Django book covering Django 2 and 3, then Mastering Django by Nigel George is your go-to book. This book is the latest edition of Mastering Django: Core, which was written for Django 1.8.
The Django book is highly recommended for Django intermediate developers who want to push their Django skills to advanced. This book will learn how to build fast, secure, scalable, and maintainable web applications using the latest Django 2 and 3 Long Term Support versions.
Mastering Django provides you with step-by-step guidance on all the web development concepts related to the popular Python framework for web development. This book is a goldmine for those who want to learn Django for commercial web application development and business-critical deployment.
About the Author
Nigel George is a life-long tech nerd. His interests are in software development, teaching, electronics, writing, and computers. Also, he is the author of five books and many online courses on technology.
Publisher:
Gnw Independent Publishing
Paperback Print Length:
638 pages
Get the book here .
5. Two Scoops of Django 1.11: Best Practices for the Django Web Framework
Author: Daniel Roy Greenfeld
Whether you are a Django beginner or an advanced learner, you will learn something new with this book. It is like a swiss knife for every Django developer and covers various features of the Python web framework.
The author has kept the writing style beginner-friendly so that even a newcomer can understand the concepts without any hassle. Although this Django book covers only Django 1.11, you won’t find any difficulty in applying all those concepts in the latest versions of the Python web framework. If any of the features mentioned in this book do not work, you can visit Django's official documentation and follow the latest syntax.
Two Scoops of Django 1.11 contains many examples with code snippets, and tricks, along with informative diagrams. Moreover, every chapter is independent of others, so you can skip the chapters you are uncomfortable with and learn from others.
About the Author
Daniel Roy Greenfeld is an experienced software professional and fiction writer since 2014. Also, he has delivered numerous speeches at Python and Django conferences. He worked at NASA as a senior software engineer.
Publisher:
Two Scoops Press
Paperback Print Length:
555 pages
Get the book here .
6. Lightweight Django
Author: Julia Elman and Mark Lavin
This book is for you if you are done with Django basics and want to move further with Rest APIs and other integrations. With this Django book, you will learn how to deal with REST APIs, and WebSocket, along with Backbone.js, which is one of the popular frontend frameworks .
The first two chapters of this book cover the basics of Django, and the next 6 chapters will teach you how to build static site Generators, REST APIs, client-side with Backbone.js (JavaScript Framework), single-page web applications, and so on.
This Django book will find well-explained examples with appropriate diagrams and code snippets. The best part of the book is that it also deals with front-end technologies like Backbone.js and jQuery, which help you create a fully-featured web application.
In this book, the author also explains important topics like Django security and scalability for web applications.
About the Author
Julia Elman is a designer, developer, and tech education advocate. She has also worked as a junior designer/developer at World Online in Lawrence, Kansas.
Mark Lavin is a lead Python and Django developer at Caktus Consulting Group in Carrboro. He also runs a small homebrewing website. Moreover, he maintains several open-source Django projects at Caktus.
Publisher:
O'Reilly
Paperback Print Length:
246 pages
Get the book here .
7. Django Unleashed
Author: Andrew Pinkham
Django Unleashed is a beginner- and intermediate-level Django book written by Andrew Pinkham. This book is a step-by-step guide to Django's basic components and provides in-depth information on the same. With this book, you will learn how to create a fully-fledged web application from scratch.
The Django book covers all the inbuilt libraries of the full-stack Python web framework that you need to know while creating a web application. Also, this book starts with easy challenges and pushes you to solve advanced problems with every new step. Apart from the in-depth Django basics, Andrew Pinkham has also covered some advanced Django features in this book.
In the Advanced section, you will learn how to create custom users using custom managers and query sets, add RSS and sitemaps, deploy an app on Heroku, build REST APIs, optimize web app performance, and many other things.
About the Author
Andrew Pinkham is a software engineer and the owner of JamBon Software. This software offers Python and Django training. Also, it specializes in web and mobile products.
Publisher:
Sams Publishing
Paperback Print Length:
840 pages
Get the book here .
8. Django 3 By Example: Build powerful and reliable Python web applications from scratch, 3rd Edition
Author: Antonio Mele
Django 3 By Example is a beginner- and intermediate-level, project-based Django Book. This book teaches you how to create a website using the Python web framework and front-end technologies like HTML, CSS, and JS from scratch. It focuses mostly on building the project, so if you are looking for a book that provides you with in-depth detail of every step, this book is for you.
The book uses Django’s latest version, Django 3, so you won’t be missing Django's latest trends and easily implement the project yourself. The author has built 4 projects in this book; blog applications, social image bookmarking websites, an online shop, and an e-learning platform. And using these projects, the author covers major concepts like how to solve common web development problems, implement best practices, and deploy a Django project successfully.
About the Author
Antonio Mele is the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) at a London-based company, Nucoro. Also, he has been developing Django projects since 2006 for various clients across different industries. He holds M.Sc. in computer science from the Universidad Pontificia Comillas.
Publisher:
Packt Publishing Limited
Paperback Print Length:
568 pages
Get the book here .
9. Django Design Patterns and Best Practices - Second Edition: Industry-standard web development techniques and solutions using
Author: Arun Ravindran
This book is all about using different Django coding patterns to build a maintainable and elegant website. Django Design Patterns and Best Practices covers some of the most important Django code concepts that you won’t find in many other Django books.
In this book, you will learn the basics of the Python web framework and the nuances of web development and data designing. This book is for intermediate Django developers who want to learn more about Django and web development. The Django book will walk you through a Django project (superhero) and teach you all about the Django model, view, templates, and code reusability techniques.
About the Author
Arun Ravindran is a speaker and blogger. Since 2007, he has been developing Django projects, covering internet applications to social networks. Also, he is an open-source enthusiast and Python developer.
Publisher:
Ingram short title
Paperback Print Length:
282 pages
Get the book here .
10. The Definitive Guide to Django: Web Development Done Right
Author: Adrian Holovaty and Jacob Kaplan-Moss
This is a beginner- and intermediate-level Django book that focuses on the basic components of the popular web framework, from installation to deployment of the web application. This book will walk you through the complete features and libraries in Django 1.1.
Some of the topics mentioned in this book are completely irrelevant and not applicable for Django 2 and 3 versions. Nonetheless, most of the topics will help you understand the core workings of Django.
About the Author
Adrian Holovaty is one of the core creators of Django. He is also a web developer and journalist. He works at WashingtonPost.com, where he develops database web applications and does "journalism as computer programming."
Jacob Kaplan-Moss is also one of the core creators of Django. He is a software developer and engineering leader.
Publisher:
Apress
Paperback Print Length:
536 pages
Get the book here .
Conclusion
As mentioned in the introduction, Django documentation is the best resource for learning the popular Python framework. However, the Django books we have mentioned here can be your best assets in learning the leading web framework.
Django is a huge framework, and learning it, is a never-ending process. Each update brings something new to the table that makes the full-stack web development framework even better. Nonetheless, it does not affect the core structure of Django.
In the above list of Django books, you can see that most of the books are written for older Django versions. This is because Django releases 2 updated versions every year. So, instead of searching only for Django books, developers choose to also learn Django from its official documentation.
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