The MERN stack is a popular choice for web developers who want to build dynamic and interactive web applications. MERN stands for MongoDB, Express JS, React JS, and Node JS, which are the four technologies that make up the stack. In this post, I will not go into the details of each technology, but rather focus on the best books that can help you master the MERN stack.
Learning the MERN stack does not have to be expensive or time-consuming. You can get by with just three books that cover everything you need to know. I have selected these books based on their quality, relevance, and accessibility. I have also arranged them in the order that I recommend you to read them, starting with the first one on this list.
If you are new to reading programming books, or you have trouble finishing them, you can check out my guide on how to read programming books effectively. I hope you find this list useful and informative. Feel free to share your feedback or questions after reading any of these books.
Table of Contents
- Best MERN Stack Books -Top 3 List -.
- Beginning MERN Stack: Build and Deploy a Full Stack MongoDB, Express, React, Node.js App
- MERN Projects for Beginners: Create Five Social Web Apps Using MongoDB, Express.js, React, and Node
- Pro MERN Stack: Full Stack Web App Development with Mongo, Express, React, and Node
- Conclusion: Best Books To Learn The MERN stack.
Best MERN Stack Books -Top 3 List -.
In this section, I’ll get into the details of what each book covers, the breakdown of the chapters, and some more information about the book, like the number of pages and the Publisher of the book.
Beginning MERN Stack: Build and Deploy a Full Stack MongoDB, Express, React, Node.js App
If you know nothing about the MERN stack, that is, you have never worked with MongoDB or Express JS, React, or even Node JS before, then this is the perfect book for you. The book assumes that you know nothing more than the most fundamental programming concepts. Therefore, it walks you step-by-step through the process of constructing a Movies review web app, beginning with the very basics and ending with the deployment of the finished project to the internet. It starts off with MongoDB, NodeJS, and Express, then React JS.
The book is divided up into manageable chapters, so reading it won’t be too daunting for the average reader. Check out how to read programming books to get even more tips if you’re an average reader. With only 136 pages, the book has got 26 chapters which means each chapter is made up of around 5 pages. Here is what you’ll cover in each chapter:
- Chapter 1 offers a basic introduction to the MERN world. Youâll learn things like what makes up the MERN stack, how to set up a MERN stack web app, etc.
- In Chapter 2, youâll learn more about the Mongo database.
- In Chapter 3, youâll set up MongoDB Atlas Cloud Database.
- Chapter 4 walks you through adding sample data to the database you just created.
- In chapter 5 youâll be introduced to NodeJS and Express; youâll set up the backend of the website.
- In Chapter 6, youâll create the backend server.
- In Chapter 7, youâll create The Movies Data Access Object.
- Chapter 8 helps you create the Movies controller.
- In Chapter 9, youâll test your Backend API.
- In Chapter 10, youâll create the functionality for users to leave Movie Reviews.
- In Chapter 11, youâll test the Reviews API.
- In chapter 12, youâll create a route for a single movie and its ratings.
- In Chapter 13, youâll start learning about React JS.
- Chapter 14 walks you through creating a navigation header bar using React.
- In Chapter 15, youâll create the routes.
- In chapter 16, youâll connect the react frontend to the backend.
- In chapters 17 and 18 youâll create a MovieList and Movie components respectively.
- In chapters 19 to 20, youâll deal with listing, adding, and editing Movie reviews.
- In chapter 22, youâll create the functionality to delete a movie review.
- In chapters 23 and 24, youâll deal with pagination.
- In Chapter 25, youâll deploy the backend on Heroku.
- And finally, in Chapter 26, youâll host and deploy the React frontend.
And that would be it for this book. When you have finished reading this book, you will be familiar with the foundations of developing a web application using the MERN stack. You can now venture into creating your own projects with the MERN stack or build upon the book’s provided knowledge by reading more books on this list.
Here is more information about the book:
| Amazon Rating: | 4.4/5 | My Rating: | 5/5 |
| Author: | Greg Lim | Number of Pages: | 136 |
| Year Published: | 2021 | Publisher: | Independently published |
| Best For: | Best MERN stack book for beginners | * |
MERN Projects for Beginners: Create Five Social Web Apps Using MongoDB, Express.js, React, and Node
This project-based MERN stack book will teach you how to utilize the MERN stack (MongoDB, Express JS, React JS, and Node JS) by leading you step-by-step through the process of constructing 5 real-world web applications (nearly every page has got a screenshot).
You will begin by developing a âdating application (sounds fun, doesn’t it? ), then a âvideo sharing application similar to Tiktok, then a âmessaging application, then a âphoto-based social application similar to Instagram, and ultimately a full-featured âsocial media application similar to Facebook.
You will acquire a significant amount of knowledge as you work through the process of developing these web apps using the MERN stack. This includes setting up the many technologies that come together to form a MERN project, social authentication, Redux and React Hooks, Heroku, and Firebase. At the conclusion of this book, you will be able to construct your very own web applications from the ground up by utilizing the MERN stack.
This book is divided into 6 chapters, here is a quick glance at what each chapter covers.
- In the first chapter, youâll learn how to set up a MERN stack development environment.
- In Chapter 2, youâll build a dating web app that has chat functionality and other amazing features.
- In the third chapter, Youâll then create a vertical video-sharing app like Tiktok.
- In the next chapter (chapter 4), you will learn how to build an awesome messaging web app. Users will be able to chat in real-time, as well as log in to their account using Google authentication
- Next (In chapter 5), you will create a photo-sharing app like Instagram
- And finally (In chapter 6), a social media web app like Facebook with the ability to post images with captions and log in using email and password authentication.
As you can see, there is so much there is to learn about the MERN stack that you’ll get from this book. Unlike the first book though, the author recommends the reader to have a basic knowledge of HTML, CSS, Javascript, and its front-end framework React JS.
Below is more information about MERN Projects For Beginners:
| Amazon Rating: | My Rating: | 5/5 | |
| Author: | Nabendu Biswas | Number of Pages: | 296 |
| Year Published: | 2021 (first edition) | Publisher: | Apress |
| Best For: | Best Project Based MERN stack book. | * |
Pro MERN Stack: Full Stack Web App Development with Mongo, Express, React, and Node
After you’re done with the first two best MERN stack books, this book will work as a reference for when you’re creating your own MERN projects from scratch. Pro MERN Stack is also geared towards providing MERN knowledge to developers who are coming from other web development stacks like MEAN, MEVN, etc. With that being said, the book focuses on teaching React more than other components of the MERN stack as it assumes the developer already knows them from the previous stacks. But do not worry about that though, if you’re not from any other stack, Vasan also argues that this is because the front-end contains more code than other parts of the web application.
Although I said this book can be used as a reference, it is actually structured in a tutorial-like format where you’ll build one single project from the beginning to the end. Here are some things you’ll learn as you build the issue tracking web application:
- In addition to React, you will also use React Router, React-Bootstrap, and GraphQL to create the project in this book.
- Learn the fundamentals of MongoDB, Express JS, and Node JS to create a web application.
- Youâll also make use of technologies like Webpack and Babel to construct JavaScript-based single-page web applications.
Unlike the other 2 books in this list of MERN stack books, Pro Mern Stack also has got questions and answers at the end of each chapter.
| Amazon Rating: | 4/5 | My Rating: | 5/5 |
| Author: | Vasan Subramanian | Number of Pages: | |
| Year Published: | 2019(second edition) | Publisher: | Apress |
| Best For: | Best MERN stack book for professionals and developers coming from other stacks. | * |
Conclusion: Best Books To Learn The MERN stack.
If you want to master the MERN stack, you can’t go wrong with these books. They will take you from a novice to an expert MERN developer in no time. I have personally read and benefited from these books, and I highly recommend them to anyone who wants to learn the MERN stack.
Of course, there are many other books out there that teach the MERN stack, and I may not be aware of some of them. So if you have a favorite MERN stack book that is not on this list, but you think it deserves to be, please share it with me and the other readers in the comments section below.
