In this exploration of programming fundamentals through the lens of scientific concepts, rather than explaining programming in a theoretical way, the authors have made a very concerted effort to describe Python in a very easy, flowing way with many useful case studies. A high school- or early college-level understanding of many scientific concepts is expected. The book uses examples from various domains like numerical calculus, statistics, physics, biology, and finance. The beauty of the approach is that it delves into procedural as well as object-oriented paradigms. The chapters explain the basics and then go on to advanced concepts. The programs and the fragments are embedded in blue boxes. One of the highlights of the book is the exercise section, which contains some very interesting problems. For example, the authors ask readers to find mistakes in a program, thereby making readers think critically and within the context of the chapter.

Readers who know Python on a basic level can jump directly to various chapters. The graphs on making 3D graphs are very well illustrated, and the program plots 3D graphs using mathematical equations. The full program is given in the book. Whether it is DNA mutation or financial concepts, the book is a pleasure to read. Certainly it is not for a quick weeklong course. It will take at least six months, if not more, to cover all of the concepts and get a firm understanding of them. Readers who go all the way through the book could get near a Python hacker status (in a good way), though the book has “primer” in the title. It deals with Python 2.7 because version 3 still does not have all of the libraries. The book outlines tools that convert the program automatically from version 2 to 3. Many of the popular libraries like NumPy and SciPy are covered extensively in the book as well. I have no hesitation in recommending this book for senior high school students or freshmen in college. One must certainly have access to the Python development environment, and this book will be a worthy companion in the journey to mastering programming concepts.