Reading list of the MENA Devs Community

Disclaimer: Some of the books listed below are linked to a MENA Devs affiliation account with a book purchasing and delivery service. All purchases made through these links will provide MENA Devs with necessary funds to maintain its servers and open source projects.

Fiction

1984
- Description: A classic political/sociological book, 1984 was written in 1949 by George Orwell who also wrote different books on politics and society such as Animal Farm. 1984 is highly influenced by the socialist movement along with the dicatorship that came with it. In this book, George Orwell mentions the political structure of the world as three giant states (Oceania, Eurasia, and Eastasia) and discusses the ways language is simplified (Newspeak) to destroy the ability to think freely. An important concept introduced by the book is the concept of doublethink or the ability to believe in the truth of two incompatible statements simulatenously. Strategies employed by the state in the book are often very harsh and have been critised by Aldous Huxley as too difficult to implement and too inefficient for controlling whole states for the long-term. Recently, jokes have been made about 1984 turning from fiction to non-fiction. A movie has also been made based on the book.
- Author(s): George Orwell
- Recommended by: jadissa-mystic
- Review: This is a book like no other diserving classification as a 'classic' in the least. Although targeted toward socialism (INGSOC,) it actually describes all types of goverments and extends to all types of power. The techniques employed by the state meantioned, although possibly exagerating the state of affairs, still give a huge insight on politics, power and ways of control. Also useful as an introduction to Orwell's other books especially Animal Farm which can be thought as an investigation into the origins of the system explained in 1984 as well as Aldous Huxley's book Brave New World which could be thought of as an advanced, futuristic and more effective version of 1984. "War is peace, freedom is slavery, ignorance is strength."
- Rating: 4/5
Burning Chrome (short story collection)
- Description: A collection of classic cyberpunk sci-fi short stories by William Gibson.
- Author(s): William Gibson
- Recommended by: JMCQ87
- Review: Good entry point for reading other books by William Gibson, as you can read to one short story quickly.
- Rating: 4/5
The Science of Interstellar
- Description: (from amazon.com) [a] journey through the otherworldly science behind Christopher Nolan’s highly anticipated film, Interstellar, from executive producer and theoretical physicist Kip Thorne.
- Author(s): Kip Thorne
- Recommended by: Mysterious
- Rating: N/A
Kafka on the Shore
- Description: Kafka on the Shore follows the fortunes of two remarkable characters. Kafka Tamura runs away from home at fifteen, under the shadow of his father's dark prophesy. The aging Nakata, tracker of lost cats, who never recovered from a bizarre childhood affliction, finds his pleasantly simplified life suddenly turned upside down. Their parallel odysseys are enriched throughout by vivid accomplices and mesmerising dramas. Cats converse with people; fish tumble from the sky; a ghostlike pimp deploys a Hegel-spouting girl of the night; a forest harbours soldiers apparently un-aged since WWII. There is a savage killing, but the identity of both victim and killer is a riddle. Murakami's novel is at once a classic quest, but it is also a bold exploration of mythic and contemporary taboos, of patricide, of mother-love, of sister-love. Above all it is a bewitching and wildly inventive novel from a master stylist.
- Author(s): Haruki Murakami
- Recommended by: Link-
- Review: Super fun and mind expanding light read. Murakami has a very unique style of writing albeit quite expansive. A highly recommended read as an change from technical and/or dry books.
- Rating: 4/5

Non-Fiction

Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programs
- Description: also called The Wizard Book (the rest is from the Jargon File) an excellent computer science text used in introductory courses at MIT. So called because of the wizard on the jacket. One of the bibles of the LISP/Scheme world. Also, less commonly, known as the Purple Book.
- Author(s): Hal Abelson, Jerry Sussman and Julie Sussman.
- Recommended by: jadissa-mystic
- Rating: N/A
Where Wizards Stay Up Late: The Origins Of The Internet
- Description: (from amazon.com) Twenty five years ago, it didn't exist. Today, twenty million people worldwide are surfing the Net. Where Wizards Stay Up Late is the exciting story of the pioneers responsible for creating the most talked about, most influential, and most far-reaching communications breakthrough since the invention of the telephone.
- Author(s): Katie Hafner and Matthew Lyon
- Recommended by: hassankanj
- Rating: N/A
Countdown to Zero Day: Stuxnet and the Launch of the World's First Digital Weapon
- Description: Top cybersecurity journalist Kim Zetter tells the story behind the virus that sabotaged Iran’s nuclear efforts and shows how its existence has ushered in a new age of warfare—one in which a digital attack can have the same destructive capability as a megaton bomb.
- Author(s): Kim Zetter
- Recommended by: Link-
- Rating: 4/5
Man’s Search for Meaning
- Description: Viktor Frankl is a psychiatrist who was able to find meaning to his life in the most hard times during his imprisonment in the Nazi's death camps. He shows that suffering is inevitable but we can choose how to cope with it by giving it meaning. In his book he explains his theory, Logotherapy, based on his own experience and his patients stories.
- Author(s): Viktor E. Frankl.
- Recommended by: Nagham Al Halabi
- Review: The fact that this book was written in 9 days and in such a good way is extremely surprising. I loved how the first part was an autobiography followed by a psychological analysis in the second part. It was the first time I hear the word "Logotherapy" and I was glad to know about it. This book left me with more questions than answers. Some of the questions: What if men found their search for meaning in death? What if being a Martyr is idolized in so many societies because it gives more meaning to death than actual life? How can people who suffered so much still stand still and participate in oppressing others?
- Rating: 4/5
Turn the Ship Around!
- Description: Turn the Ship Around! is the true story of how the Santa Fe skyrocketed from worst to first in the fleet by challenging the U.S. Navy's traditional leader-follower approach. Struggling against his own instincts to take control, he instead achieved the vastly more powerful model of giving control. Before long, each member of Marquet's crew became a leader and assumed responsibility for everything he did, from clerical tasks to crucial combat decisions. The crew became fully engaged, contributing their full intellectual capacity every day, and the Santa Fe started winning awards and promoting a highly disproportionate number of officers to submarine command.
- Recommended by: Link-
- Review: A great starter on the leader-leader management style as opposed to the traditional top-down style. Highly recommended for everyone planning on or taking a management position in any industry vertical. The author relies on story telling to keep the readers engaged and summarizes key concepts / practices towards the end of each chapter.
- Rating: N/A
Release It!
- Description: In Release It!, Michael T. Nygard shows you how to design and architect your application for the harsh realities it will face. You'll learn how to design your application for maximum uptime, performance, and return on investment. Mike explains that many problems with systems today start with the design.
- Recommended by: Link-
- Review: Good reference on building scalable, resilient and highly available modern applications. The author goes over common pitfalls and architectural anti-patterns that caused great loss in time, money and business value then moves on to discuss better design decisions to prevent similar problems in the future.
- Rating: N/A

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