Why I Had To Rename My Book

I made a REALLY BIG mistake.

When I wrote the first draft of Advanced Python: A Not-For-Beginners Guide over a year ago, my purpose was to fill in a gap. There are many Python books for people brand-new to programming, and plenty for experienced programmers new to Python. But what could help you leap to your next level as a Python programmer, once you're past those starting points? You were mostly on your own. That's why I wrote, to fill in the gap.

But here's what I didn't expect: those needing this book the most thought they were not advanced enough to read it! I kept hearing things like: "Advanced Python? Wow, I'd love to be good enough to read a book like that. I'll keep learning, and maybe someday I'll be good enough at Python to read it."

Well... actually, the book is designed to help that very person. It exists to help them become advanced.

Whoops...

In my time as an author, I've learned that words can bring us together, or - dangerously, just as easily - push us apart. Changing a single word can completely change what's communicated... especially in a book title.

Well, today I have a book update - with an entirely new chapter on iterators and generators, of which I'm sincerely proud, and believe you'll find immensely valuable. And it's a great time to fix my earlier mistake. Allow me to introduce this updated book under its new name: Powerful Python.

Those of you who bought the previous title digitally can download your update now. In the past two years, hundreds of working software engineers around the world have taken my live workshops, and Powerful Python emphasizes those topics found most valuable and immediately beneficial in their work: iteration, generators, Python design patterns and object-oriented magic, writing decorators, functional programming, logging, and more.

So my question for you is... what do you think of the new title? Is "Powerful Python" an improvement, one that will speak to the people it can truly help the most? Or did I just make an even bigger mistake in changing it. Fingers crossed.