Top SQL books recommended by experts

At MentorCruise, we are all about making the most out of the experience of others. As part of that, we've connected and asked dozens of experts and professionals about their favourite SQL books – and here are the answers.

Table of Contents

Fundamentals of SQL

Understanding the concepts of SQL starts with understanding the fundamentals. On your way to mastery, it's crucial for you to understand how certain concepts were derived, and why things work like they do. Starting with these resources is the best way to do so.

SQL All-in-One For Dummies (For Dummies (Computer/Tech))

SQL All-in-One For Dummies has everything you need to get started with the SQL programming language, and then to level up your skill with advanced applications. This relational database coding language is one of the most used languages in professional software development. And, as it becomes ever more important to take control of data, there’s no end in sight to the need for SQL know-how. You …

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The art of SQL

The Art of SQL offers best practices that teach experienced SQL users to focus on strategy rather than specifics. Faroult's approach takes a page from Sun Tzu's classic treatise by viewing database design as a military campaign. You need knowledge, skills, and talent.

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SQL for Data Scientists: A Beginner's Guide for Building Datasets for Analysis

SQL for Data Scientists: A Beginner's Guide for Building Datasets for Analysis is a resource that's dedicated to the Structured Query Language (SQL) and dataset design skills that data scientists use most.

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SQL Antipatterns: Avoiding the Pitfalls of Database Programming

Whatever platform or programming language you use, whether you're a junior programmer or a Ph. D., SQL Antipatterns will show you how to design and build databases, how to write better database queries, and how to integrate SQL programming with your application like an expert.

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SQL Queries for Mere Mortals: A Hands-on Guide to Data Manipulation in SQL

SQL Queries for Mere Mortals ® has earned worldwide praise as the clearest, simplest tutorial on writing effective SQL queries. The authors have updated this hands-on classic to reflect new SQL standards and database applications and teach valuable new techniques. Step by step, John L. Viescas and Michael J.

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SQL for Data Analytics: Harness the Power of SQL to Extract Insights from Data

Every day, businesses operate around the clock, and a huge amount of data is generated at a rapid pace. This book helps you analyze this data and identify key patterns and behaviors that can help you and your business understand your customers at a deep, fundamental level.

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Additional SQL Reading

These books are not required for you to learn SQL, but they are highly recommended for you to deepen your knowledge.

Learning SQL

SQL is used to create a database, define its structure, implement it, and perform various functions on the database. SQL is also used for accessing, maintaining, and manipulating already created databases. SQL is a well built language for entering data, modifying data, and extracting data in a database.

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Practical SQL, 2nd Edition: A Beginner's Guide to Storytelling with Data

Practical SQL is an approachable and fast-paced guide to SQL (Structured Query Language), the standard programming language for defining, organizing, and exploring data in relational databases. The book focuses on using SQL to find the story your data tells, with the popular open-source database PostgreSQL and the pgAdmin interface as its primary tools. You’ll first cover the fundamentals of d…

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SQL Performance Explained: Everything Developers Need to Know about SQL Performance

SQL Performance Explained helps developers to improve database performance. The focus is on SQL—it covers all major SQL databases without getting lost in the details of any one specific product.

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SQL QuickStart Guide: The Simplified Beginner's Guide to Managing, Analyzing, and Manipulating Data With SQL (Coding & Programming - QuickStart Guides)

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Practical SQL: A Beginner's Guide to Storytelling with Data

Practical SQL is an approachable and fast-paced guide to SQL (Structured Query Language), the standard programming language for defining, organizing, and exploring data in relational databases.

Recommended by the experts and mentors at MentorCruise

SQL Programming QuickStudy Laminated Reference Guide

Essential Structured Query Language (ANSI SQL-99) six page laminated guide with core commands, statements, syntax and terms for support of beginners who are learning, and experts as a handy quick reference. Author Robin Nixon worked with computers in the 80s and started developing websites in the 90s becoming an expert and writing over 40 programming books and over 500 articles for top compute…

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Specializations and Deeper SQL Knowledge

You've got your basics in order – time to move on to some advanced and specialized concepts. SQL is evolving every day, these books can help you master it.

SQL Practice Problems: 57 Beginning, Intermediate, and Advanced Challenges for You to Solve Using a "learn-by-doing" Approach

The ability to write SQL is one of the most in-demand job skills. Are you prepared? It's easy to find basic SQL syntax information online. What's hard to find is challenging, well-designed, real-world problems—the type of problems that come up when you're dealing with data. Learning how to solve these problems will give you the skill and confidence to step up in your career.

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Python Programming and SQL: 5 books in 1 - The #1 Coding Course from Beginner to Advanced. Learn it Well & Fast (2024) (Computer Programming)

Python Programming and SQL: 5 Books in 1, isn't just a book. It's a career booster ✅ Whether you're aiming for a new job, freelancing, or developing your own software, this guide has everything you need. Suitable for all levels, you will find practical advice and skills to propel your career, set you apart from your peers, and make you an invaluable asset to any organization. Boost your perfor…

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Joe Celko's SQL for Smarties: Advanced SQL Programming

Joe Celkos SQL for Smarties: Advanced SQL Programming offers tips and techniques in advanced programming. This book is the fourth edition and it consists of 39 chapters, starting with a comparison between databases and file systems.

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