SICP shows up every few months on HN, and I upvote enthusiastically every single time!
I am a self-taught programmer, and survived a long time on C/C++/Java etc. I was smugly confident in my confined space.
Then I came across SICP. I discovered a world of closures, streams, object-orientation done using closures, infinite series using streams, lazy evaluation, functional programming, and so much more. It was such a sharp pivot that I registered for a PhD because I just had to know what else I took for granted. I was 42 when I registered (graduated at 48)!
I am a self-taught programmer, and survived a long time on C/C++/Java etc. I was smugly confident in my confined space.
Then I came across SICP. I discovered a world of closures, streams, object-orientation done using closures, infinite series using streams, lazy evaluation, functional programming, and so much more. It was such a sharp pivot that I registered for a PhD because I just had to know what else I took for granted. I was 42 when I registered (graduated at 48)!