The most annoying part about passing by the Computer section of bookstores is when you realize that all of the books in the bookshelves will be obsolete in 5-10 years. This is why serious software engineers prioritize books on processes and methodologies over books on tools.
One guy (Jurgen Appelo) compiled a list of the best of SE books based on “1) number of Amazon reviews, 2) average Amazon rating, 3) number of Google hits and 4) Jolt awards”. Think SE version of Personal MBA.
Below the cut is the top ten. I’ve included my own mini-reviews for the books that I’ve already read.