"Programming the Z80" by Rodnay Zaks. I read it when it was first published, and it was the first real programming book I'd ever read.<p>I'd written programs before this, inventing my own language and hardware, then emulating the hardware to have it do things like playing tic-tac-toe and Conway's Game of Life. It was slow, but served me in good stead when I built my first real computer from NAND gates, and then subsequently working in safety critical hard-realtime embedded systems.
"The Applesoft Basic Programmer's Reference Manual"<p>I was around 10 and my parents bought a used Apple II and this book came with it. I thought it was the coolest thing to make a program, even if it was super basic. I wish I would have kept the book, my parents ended up throwing out the book and the computer a few years later.
"C++ in 24 hours"<p>My mother took a course on programming, she was the best in her class. That was the first time I ever saw someone sit at a computer and program.<p><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Sams-Teach-Yourself-Hours-Edition/dp/0672333317" rel="nofollow">http://www.amazon.com/Sams-Teach-Yourself-Hours-Edition/dp/0...</a>
"All About Computers" by Helen Davies & Graham Round:
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/All-About-Computers-Helen-Davies/dp/0860208001/" rel="nofollow">http://www.amazon.com/All-About-Computers-Helen-Davies/dp/08...</a><p>My parents got it for me when I was very young, and (if memory serves correctly) it had some program listings in BASIC in the back of the book. I must've typed them into our Apple IIe computer and started to learn programming by modifying the code.<p>[As for being introduced to C, the book "Using C" by Clint Hicks from Que Publishing is what helped me get started and get my head around the concept of pointers. I have tons of programming books now, but that one has a very distinct crack down the spine from regular use.]
BBC Micro Model B User Guide<p>Absolutely amazing as a 10 year old who'd just got his first computer. I soaked it all in, and in return it gave me a career.<p>PDF: <a href="http://bbc.nvg.org/doc/BBCUserGuide-1.00.pdf" rel="nofollow">http://bbc.nvg.org/doc/BBCUserGuide-1.00.pdf</a><p>Info: <a href="http://www.retro-kit.co.uk/page.cfm/content/BBC-Microcomputer-User-Guide/" rel="nofollow">http://www.retro-kit.co.uk/page.cfm/content/BBC-Microcompute...</a>
The first book I can remember was "Basic Computer Games"<p><a href="http://www.atariarchives.org/basicgames/" rel="nofollow">http://www.atariarchives.org/basicgames/</a>. Esp. the star trek games brings back so many nice memories