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Table of Contents
What is Test Driven Development?
Test Driven Development (TDD) is the process of converting software requirements to test cases before software is fully developed. It then tracks software development by testing software against all test cases.
This way you:
- only write code that’s needed
- have code that’s easier to maintain and refactor
- have less debugging to worry about
And beyond.
Having TDD skills as a software developer not only makes you a better job candidate, but makes your job a helluva lot easier.
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TLDR: Best Test Driven Development Books
🔥 Best Overall 🔥
Test Driven Development: By Example
💸 Best Value 💸
Modern C++ Programming with Test-Driven Development
Best Test Driven Development Books
1. Test Driven Development: By Example
Test Driven Development By Example is one of the overall best test driven development books.
↘️ Ideal for: programming teams, software developers
↘️ Topics covered: communication, testing, refactoring
Test-Driven Development By Example by Kent Beck is brought to you by the same publisher who brought you the all-time cult classic Refactoring by Martin Fowler and this guy. With this banger, you’ll learn how to:
- write automated tests
- dramatically increase code quality
- use patterns to decide what tests to write
And much more.
➡️ Test-Driven Development by Example was written by the same guy who helped write Refactoring… Do the math.
🔥 Geena’s Hot Take
Now we know Test-Driven Development by Example is an older book, but don’t let that scare you. It’s still one of the best test driven development books out there.
But don’t take my word for it:
When you do TDD as described in this book, you will get the results you expect from TDD. Nothing in this book needs to be updated.
– Joel Palmer, a Test Driven Developer
🏁 Test Driven Development Courses: If courses are more your speed, check out Test-Driven Development with React on Educative.io.
2. Modern C++ Programming with Test-Driven Development
Modern C++ Programming with Test-Driven Development is one of those test driven development books with a price that can’t be beat.
↘️ Ideal for: C++ developers
↘️ Topics covered: system dependencies, testing tools
Modern C++ Programming with Test-Driven Development uses hands-on lessons, code examples and challenges to teach test driven development in C++.
Some of what you’ll learn includes how to:
- use TDD to improve legacy systems
- work with problematic system dependencies
- use dependency injection
- use testing tools
And much more.
➡️ Modern C++ Programming with Test-Driven Development is for both TDD novices and experienced testers.
🏁 Test Driven Development Courses: Learn more about TDD with the course Test-Driven Development Overview on Coursera.
3. The Clean Coder: A Code of Conduct for Professional Programmers
↘️ Ideal for: professional programmers
↘️ Topics covered: testing, refactoring, coding, estimating
Touting itself as a code of conduct for professional programmers, The Clean Coder by Robert “Uncle Bob” Martin is a fully-immersive book tackling:
- testing
- coding
- estimating
- refactoring
So in addition to learning some key pointers in test driven development, you’ll learn how to:
- get into the flow of coding
- avoid burnout
- manage your time
- thrive in a productive environment
➡️ The Clean Coder is a one-stop shop to learn test driven development alongside other important skills and best practices.
What TDD readers are saying about The Clean Coder
I’m now recommending this book to all engineers who are struggling with communication, estimation and best practices.
– Ahmad Abu Khalil
🏁 Test Driven Development Courses: For a general overview of TDD, check out the course Test-driven Development: The Big Picture on Pluralsight.
4. Architecture Patterns with Python
Architecture Patterns with Python is one of the best test driven development books that also covers domain-driven design and event-driven microservices.
↘️ Ideal for: Python programmers
↘️ Topics covered: test driven development, domain driven design, event driven microservices
Architecture Patterns with Python presents architectural design patterns to manage application complexities. In addition to test driven development, you’ll examine domain driven development (DDD) and event driven microservices.
You’ll explore:
- dependency inversion
- persistent storage
- command-query responsibility segregation (CQRS)
- reactive microservices
And beyond.
➡️ Architecture Patterns with Python covers test driven development, domain driven development, and event driven microservices.
5. Test-Driven Development with Python
Test-Driven Development with Python is one of the few test driven development books that covers Django, Selenium and more.
↘️ Ideal for: versatile Python developers
↘️ Topics covered: TDD, Django, Selenium
With Test-Driven Development with Python, you’ll learn how to run tests before building your application. That way you can develop the minimum amount of code you’ll need to pass those tests, resulting in working, clean code.
In addition, you’ll discover:
- the TDD workflow
- unit testing
- testing and automating deployments
- applying tests to third-party plugins
- using a continuous integration environment for automatic testing
And much more.
In addition to learning test driven development in Python, you’ll learn the fundamentals of testing in Git, Selenium, Django, jQuery and more.
6. Unit Testing Principles, Practices, and Patterns
↘️ Ideal for: readers who understand unit testing basics
↘️ Topics covered: unit testing principles, practices, patterns
Unit testing is a component of TDD where you write tests after you write your code, not before.
In Unit Testing Principles, Practices and Patterns, you’ll discover:
- new testing styles
- patterns
- reliable automation
With this results-driven approach to unit testing, you’ll learn best practices alongside universal guidelines to assist your tests.
Examples are written in C#.
➡️ Unit Testing Principles, Practices and Patterns is for developers familiar with the basics of unit testing.
7. Test-Driven Python Development
↘️ Ideal for: Python developers
↘️ Topics covered: TDD, unit testing
Test-Driven Python Development examines how TDD takes a non-traditional approach to writing code. Over the course of the book you’ll build an application while discovering TDD fundamentals such as:
- add features to existing code bases
- resolve problems with code and design
- use mock and patch functionality to test complex interactions
- integrate unit testing into software delivery process
And beyond.
➡️ Test-Driven Python Development uses the principles of test driven development to develop maintainable Python applications.
8. Crafting Test-Driven Software with Python
↘️ Ideal for: Python developers
↘️ Topics covered: TDD, behavior driven development
Crafting Test-Driven Software with Python teaches both TDD and behavior driven development (BDD).
You’ll start by learning about mocks and built-in unit tests. Then you’ll discover frameworks like pytest and libraries such as WebTest and Robot Framework.
You’ll also learn how to design and balance tests using a hands-on approach. And with step-by-step explanations, you’ll learn TDD best practices.
➡️ By the end of Crafting Test-Driven Software with Python, you should be able to write test suites in Python using an array of testing and development libraries.
9. Mastering React Test-Driven Development
Mastering React Test-Driven Development is the only test driven development book on our list covering React, Redux and GraphQL.
↘️ Ideal for: JavaScript developers, React programmers
↘️ Topics covered: React, Redux, GraphQL
Mastering React Test-Driven Development teaches you how to implement TDD for your React applications using:
In addition to building test driven applications, you’ll:
- design complete web applications
- test drive library integrations
- apply TDD shortcuts
And much more.
You’ll also learn BDD using CucumberJS and Puppeteer.
➡️ With Mastering React Test-Driven Development, you’ll learn TDD best practices using React applications.
Best Test Driven Development Books: Conclusion
Today we looked at the best test driven development books including:
🔥 Best Overall 🔥
Test Driven Development: By Example
💸 Best Value 💸
Modern C++ Programming with Test-Driven Development
So whether you’re looking for the best of the best or something a little more budget friendly, we think these are the best test driven development books out there.
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What is test driven development?
Test Driven Development (TDD) is the process of converting software requirements to test cases before software is fully developed. It then tracks software development by testing software against all test cases. You can learn more about test driven development in today’s article.
What are the best test driven development books?
Overall, we really liked Test Driven Development: By Example. And for value, we chose Modern C++ Programming with Test-Driven Development. But there are more quality TDD books you can find in today’s post.
Is Crafting Test-Driven Software with Python worth it?
Yes we think Crafting Test-Driven Software with Python is worth it. It teaches both TDD and behavior driven development (BDD). You’ll start by learning about mocks and built-in unit tests. Then you’ll discover frameworks like pytest and libraries such as WebTest and Robot Framework.
What is pytest?
pytest is a Python framework used to build simple and scalable tests for databases, APIs and more. It can run multiple tests at once, reducing the execution time of the test suite. There are many ways you can run tests such as in a module, directory or by keyword expressions.
Is Test Driven Development: By Example worth it?
Test-Driven Development By Example takes a fear-based approach to test driven development. Fear invokes grumpiness and unwillingness to work with other developers. But when teams dive into test driven development, the results are usually positive. By eliminating that fear, test driven development encourages communication.
Are there any test driven development courses?
You can find some of the best test driven development courses on Educative.io, Pluralsight and Coursera. You can find each of these courses in today’s post. In addition, you’ll discover 9 of the best test driven development books we could find.