Top 9 Rust Books for Beginners in 2024
Rust is not just what you find on nails or old fences. Rust is the name of a programming language worth learning.
Rust is an open-source systems programming language that focuses on speed, memory safety, and performance. Rust is meant for developers and projects where there is a need for a safe and stable execution environment.
Developers are using Rust to create a wide range of new software applications, such as game engines, operating systems, file systems, browser components, and simulation engines for virtual reality.
If you are looking for some useful books to learn Rust Programming language for beginners, then you have come to the right place. In this article, I am going to share some of the best books to learn Rust from scratch.
Why Learn Rust
Want to get started with programming? Here's why you should learn the Rust programming language.
Here are the reasons you should learn the Rust programming language:
Control without Compromise: Rust combines the speed and control of a lower-level language with the tools, safety, and debugging provided by a high-level language.
Speed: Rust is fast. The memory management rules mean that it requires no garbage collection. Also, Rust has no runtime checking. It can work with minimal runtime or even no runtime at all.
Safety without Performance Loss: With Rust, control and safety can be achieved together without losing performance.
Popularity: Many companies around the world are using Rust in production today for fast, low-resource, cross-platform solutions.
Community: An active community of volunteer coders maintains the Rust codebase and continues to add new enhancements.
Mozilla-sponsored: Mozilla sponsors the Rust open source project.
Career Demand: There is a good demand for programmers who knows Rust.
What Makes Best Rust Books?
There are a few parameters that you should look for when selecting the Rust book for beginners.
Should make you think and stimulate your mind.
Should have a logical and well-structured organization of content.
Should include hands-on exercises, practice problems, and questions for you to work on your own
Content must be relevant and up-to-date.
Use clear, precise, and easy-to-understand language.
Give it a thought and choose wisely!
Best Rust Books for Beginners
Here are the best Rest books for beginners:
1. Best Book for Software Engineers: Rust Under the Hood
Rust Under the Hood by Sandeep Ahluwalia and Deepa Ahluwalia delves into Rust's core mechanics by examining the assembly code generated by its compiler. The book offers unique insights into the generated code, memory management, and compiler optimizations.
The book uses a well-structured approach, building knowledge gradually with each chapter. It leverages pictorial diagrams (e.g., flow charts and sequence diagrams) crafted in painstaking detail to elucidate complex concepts. The book pairs insightful explanations with practical examples and exercises at the end of each chapter. Each chapter concludes with key takeaways, summarizing the main points.
It consists of seven parts, each focusing on different aspects of Rust's inner workings:
Introduction to Assembly and Basic Constructs: Start with the basics of assembly language and see how Rust translates simple functions into assembly code.
Control Structures and Enums in Assembly: Explore the assembly output of match and if-else expressions and understand the memory layout of enums.
Data Structures and Memory Management: Investigate the code generation nuances of various data structures and memory management techniques in Rust.
Iteration and Optimization: Compare traditional and functional iteration methods and learn how the Rust compiler optimizes array operations.
Strings, Dispatch, and Recursion: Dive into the inner workings of strings, dynamic dispatch, and recursive function optimization.
Closures and Async/Await: Understand the mechanics of closures and asynchronous functions and how Rust translates them into efficient state machines.
Transformations and Takeaways: Summarize key insights and transformations, providing a solid foundation for future Rust projects.
Every chapter focuses on the fundamentals of programming language for Rust and shares the aspects of performance at the assembly level through multiple code experiments. There are many detailed explanations and insights provided for both the Rust and assembly code that include numerous flowcharts. I highly recommend this book.
2. Best Book for Mastering Backend Development in Rust: Zero To Production In Rust
Zero To Production In Rust by Luca Palmieri teaches you how to implement and deploy a secure backend web API in Rust. You will learn by doing: you will build a fully functional email newsletter API, starting from scratch.
The 600-pages book is composed of eleven chapters. The content is very thorough, guiding the reader through every step needed to complete a successful Rust project.
The book is available both as a paperback and an ebook (PDF, ePUB, MOBI). If you choose to buy the ebook version, you will receive free updates (errata, new sections, etc.) for the lifetime of the book.
Here’s what you’ll learn from the book:
Navigate and leverage Rust's crates ecosystem
Structure your application to make it modular and extensible
Write tests, from single units to full-blown integration tests
Enforce your domain invariants using Rust's type system
Authenticate and authorize users of your API
Implement a robust error handling strategy
Observe the state of your application using structured logs
Set up an extensive continuous integration and continuous deployment pipeline for your Rust projects
The book doesn't just cover Rust, it also covers and reinforces system design with tips from the author's own experience in building scalable systems. If you have a basic knowledge of Rust and want to get to a production mindset and level, this is a great book to read. I highly recommend this book to anyone considering Rust for backend development.
3. Best Book for Quick Reference: Learn Rust in a Month of Lunches
Learn Rust in a Month of Lunches by David MacLeod teaches you to write super fast and super safe Rust code through lessons you can fit in your lunch break. The book includes crystal-clear explanations and focused, relevant examples, making it accessible to anyone.
After reading the book, you’ll be able to:
Build real software in Rust
Understand messages from the compiler and Clippy, Rust’s coding coach
Make informed decisions on the right types to use in any context
Make sense of the Rust standard library and its commonly used items
Use external Rust “crates” (libraries) for common tasks
Comment and build documentation for your Rust code
Work with crates that use async Rust
Write simple declarative macros
Explore test driven development in Rust
The examples are fun and easy to follow, so you’ll quickly progress from zero Rust knowledge to handling async and writing your own macros. You won’t even need to install Rust—the book’s code samples run in the browser-based Rust Playground.
The book is full of 24 easy-to-digest lessons that ease you into real Rust programming. These concise hands-on lessons are designed to be completed in an hour or less.
Lesson 1 Some basics
Lesson 2 Memory, variables, and ownership
Lesson 3 More complex types
Lesson 4 Building your own types
Lesson 5 Generics, option, and result
Lesson 6 More collections, more error handling
Lesson 7 Traits: Making different types do the same thing
Lesson 8 Iterators and closures
Lesson 9 Iterators and closures again!
Lesson 10 Lifetimes and interior mutability
Lesson 11 Multiple threads and a lot more
Lesson 12 More on closures, generics, and threads
Lesson 13 Box and Rust documentation
Lesson 14 Testing and building your code from tests
Lesson 15 Default, the builder pattern, and Deref
Lesson 16 Const, “unsafe” Rust, and external crates
Lesson 17 Rust’s most popular crates
Lesson 18 Rust on your computer
Lesson 19 More crates and async Rust
Lesson 20 A tour of the standard library
Lesson 21 Continuing the tour
Lesson 22 Writing your own macros
Lesson 23 Unfinished projects: Projects for you to finish
Lesson 24 Unfinished projects
No previous experience with Rust is required. It’s a great book to teach yourself how to program in Rust.
4. Best Book for Hands-on Learners: Rust Programming for Beginners
Rust Programming for Beginners by Nathan Metzle gives a comprehensive introduction to the Rust programming language for beginners. You will learn to harness the raw power of Rust and build high-performance, scalable and fault-tolerant applications.
The book shows you how to take advantage of Rust's powerful features from installing Rust on your computer and running your first code to creating scalable applications. Here’s what you’ll get from the book:
All you need to know about the Rust programming language as a beginner to help you get started on the right foot
Step-by-step instructions to install Rust on Windows, macOS, Linux, and FreeBSD with images
How to write, compile and execute your first piece of working code with Rust programming language
How to build and run projects in rust as well as identify and troubleshoot compile-time and runtime errors
A crash course to the basics of Rust language syntax and data types from statements and comments to integers and boolean
Programming examples in Rust designed to help you enhance your coding knowledge and sharpen your programming skill with the Rust language
The book is a good starting introduction to Rust.
5. Best Book for Serious Learners: Rust from Beginner to Professional (Coming Soon)
Rust from Beginner to Professional by Francesco Ciulla is a practical Rust guide to go from beginner to expert and become a proficient, qualified developer. The book covers core programming features, techniques, and principles, setting a solid foundation for advanced system and web programming.
This book not only enhances your coding skills but also prepares you to tackle complex challenges in software development. It provides practical examples of integrating Rust effectively into a variety of projects. Here’s what you’ll get from the book:
Thoroughly understand Rust's unique programming model and its advantages for software development
Implement advanced features like smart pointers, concurrency, and error handling to write efficient and secure code
Seamlessly incorporate Rust into your projects, enhancing both performance and scalability
Prepare for sophisticated development tasks in systems and web programming using Rust
Navigate Rust's ecosystem with the latest tools and frameworks to stay ahead in technology
The book is divided into thirteen chapters and includes the following topics:
Getting Started with Rust
Rust Syntax and Functions
Functions and Modules in Rust
Ownership, Borrowing, and Lifetimes
Composite Types
Error Handling in Rust
Object-Oriented Programming in Rust
Functional Language Features
Patterns and Matching
Smart Pointers and Memory Management
Managing System Resources
Rust's Concurrency and Parallelism
Rust for Web Development: Building Fullstack Applications
This book is ideal for readers with a foundational knowledge of Rust as well as experienced developers from other programming backgrounds. It”s your definitive toolkit for mastering advanced Rust programming techniques and writing high-quality code.
6. Best Book for Completionists: The Rust Programming Language
The Rust Programming Language written by Steve Klabnik and Carol Nichols is the official Rust book and known by the Rust community as “The Book.” It covers everything you could want to know about the language. This Rust programming book starts with a hands-on project to help understand the basics.
After reading this book, you will be able to:
Grasp important concepts unique to Rust, like ownership, borrowing, and lifetimes
Use Cargo, Rust’s built-in package manager, to build and maintain your code, including downloading and building dependencies
Effectively use Rust’s zero-cost abstractions and employ your own
You’ll begin with basics like creating functions, choosing data types, and binding variables, then move on to more advanced concepts, such as:
Ownership and borrowing, lifetimes, generics, traits, and trait objects to communicate your program’s constraints to the compiler
Smart pointers and multithreading, and how ownership interacts with them to enable fearless concurrency
How to use Cargo, Rust’s built-in package manager, to build, document your code, and manage dependencies
The best ways to test, handle errors, refactor, and take advantage of expressive pattern matching
You’ll learn to develop reliable code that’s speed and memory-efficient while avoiding the infamous and arcane programming pitfalls common at the systems level. This comprehensive book contains topics including pattern matching, iterators, and smart pointers. You will use examples and exercises, solidifying your theory into practice.
This book is well-written and easy to follow and should be your first book if you want to learn Rust programming language.
7. Best Book for Step-by-step Learners: Beginning Rust: Get Started with Rust
Beginning Rust: Get Started with Rust by Carlo Milanesi teaches you the basics and the best ways to learn Rust. The book has an easy, step-by-step approach and helps you build on the knowledge you gained in previous chapters and see what Rust has to offer. After reading this book, you will learn:
Get started programming with Rust
Understand heterogeneous data structures and data sequences
Define functions, generic functions, structs, and more
Work with closures, changeable strings, ranges, and slices
Use traits and learn about lifetimes
The contents in the book are divided into twenty-three chapters:
Chapter 1 covers Printing on the Terminal
Chapter 2 talks about Doing Arithmetic
Chapter 3 covers Naming Objects
Chapter 4 covers Controlling Execution Flow
Chapter 5 talks about Using Data Sequences
Chapter 6 talks about Using Primitive Types
Chapter 7 covers Enumerating Cases
Chapter 8 talks about Using Heterogeneous Data Structures
Chapter 9 covers Defining Functions
Chapter 10 guides you in Defining Generic Functions and Structs
Chapter 11 talks about Allocating Memory
Chapter 12 covers Data Implementation
Chapter 13 talks about Defining Closures
Chapter 14 talks about Using Changeable Strings
Chapter 15 covers Ranges and Slices
Chapter 16 talks about Using Iterators
Chapter 17 covers Input/Output and Error Handling
Chapter 18 talks about Data Encapsulation
Chapter 19 talks about Using Traits
Chapter 20 covers Object-Oriented Programming
Chapter 21 covers Standard Library Collections
Chapter 22 covers Ownerships, Moves, and Copies
Chapter 23 covers Borrowing and Lifetimes
Chapter 24 talks more about Lifetimes
This book is suitable for those who are new to Rust and who have at least some prior experience with programming in general.
8. Book for Hands-on Learners: Rust in Action
Rust in Action by TS McNamara has everything you need to know to get started programming effectively in Rust! It introduces the Rust programming language by exploring numerous systems programming concepts and techniques.
The book is written in an engaging style with crisp and easy-to-grasp examples that help readers get off the ground in no time. The book is divided into twelve chapters.
Chapter 1 covers an introduction to Rust
Chapter 2 covers language foundations
Chapter 3 talks about compound data types
Chapter 4 covers lifetimes, ownership, and borrowing
Chapter 5 covers data in depth
Chapter 6 covers memory
Chapter 7 covers files and storage
Chapter 8 covers networking
Chapter 9 covers time and timekeeping
Chapter 10 covers processes, threads, and containers
Chapter 11 covers kernel
Chapter 12 covers signals, interrupts, and exceptions
You'll be learning Rust by delving into how computers work under the hood.
More books you might like:
9. Best Book for Serious Learners: Programming Rust: Fast, Safe Systems Development
Programming Rust: Fast, Safe Systems Development by Jim Blandy & Jason Orendorff is a must-have for system programmers who are looking to learn Rust. You will get a broad overview of Rust’s concepts with plenty of good code examples.
Through this book, you will learn about memory management, ownership, moves, borrows, unit tests, generic code, closures, collections, iterators, concurrency, etc. The topics covered in the book include:
How Rust represents values in memory (with diagrams)
Complete explanations of ownership, moves, borrows, and lifetimes
Cargo, rustdoc, unit tests, and how to publish your code on crates.io, Rust’s public package repository
High-level features like generic code, closures, collections, and iterators that make Rust productive and flexible
Concurrency in Rust: threads, mutexes, channels, and atomics, all much safer to use than in C or C++
Unsafe code, and how to preserve the integrity of ordinary code that uses it
Extended examples illustrating how pieces of the language fit together
This book is well-written and comprehensive and will give the reader a good in-depth knowledge and understanding of the Rust language.
Other Ways to Learn
If you want to learn Rust quickly and learn it well, I recommend that self-taught programmers pair their book with another learning medium. This way, you have multiple inputs and don’t get burnt out on just one form of learning.
I recommend Udemy, which offers Rust Programming Language for Beginners. The course is packed with nearly 20 hours of video lessons on the Rust language. While you’re not reading, you can brew a hot beverage and put on a video to re-enforce the content.
If you are learning on a budget, I’ve compiled over 70 free coding resources to help you continue your learning journey. I hope to see you over there. Thank you so much for visiting this article. 😊