[MathMonkeyMan]

I didn't read the book, but I watched the recorded [lectures][1]. I got the sense that course was the tip of an iceberg of an entire academic discipline of programming philosophy and practical wisdom. On its face, though, it is an introduction to programming that starts with symbolic substitution, moves on to mutation and other tricks, and then I think gets into interpreter design.

If you want your mind blown, read "The Little Schemer" (or the original "The Little Lisper," or another of its variants). I particularly like the section near the end where the Y combinator is (secretly) described. The goal of that book is to "teach you to think recursively." It's not about writing recursive functions at work, but about appreciating the self-referential properties of algorithms.

[1]: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL8FE88AA54363BC46

[gnatman]

I love Abelson's style and sometimes will put these lectures on for background noise as I fall asleep!