Textbooks and Suggested Reading

 
Although Core Java 2. volume 1  is the listed textbook for the course, I recommend that you consider other books to augment your Java learning. The page is set up so that you can click on the book cover and go directly to amazon.com for ordering. 
 
 
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Textbook:

Core Java 2. Volume I Fundamentals Cay Horstmann & Gary Cornell Prentice Hall: ISBN 0-13-081933-6
One of my favorite intro textbooks. Thorough treatment of Java fundamentals. .
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Suggested Reading

The Java Programming Language. Second Edition. Ken Arnold & James Gosling. Addison Wesley. ISBN 0-201-31006-6 Very excellent introduction to the Java language. Good examples and very readable. 
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Suggested Reading

Java In A Nutshell. A Quick Desktop Reference. 3RD Eduition. David Flanagan. O'Reilly. ISBN 1-56592-4878 Contains an excellent overview of the language but the value of the book is the complete lisitng of all classes in the JDK with method descriptors. A must for any developer.

Java2 Link to Amazon

Suggested Reading

Java 2 Certification Study Guide 
                     by Simon Roberts, Philip Heller 
More Java questions than you'll ever want to see.

Suggested Reading

The Java Language Specification (Java Series) 
                     by James Gosling, Bill Joy, Guy L., Jr. Steele
The definitive text on the Java language. Not a how to book but the ultimate scoop on the semantics of the language.