When I became familiar with WordPress a few years ago, I was eager to apply the things I’d already learned about web design, but found the extensive documentation on the WordPress site a little daunting. I searched for a good reference book, but was unable to find anything that explained what I wanted to learn in a way I could understand. Although I’ve managed to learn a thing or two since then, and WordPress has become more user-friendly as well, I was excited to learn that O’Reilly Media, who publish the Missing Manuals, had also published a book about WordPress.

As I began to read Head First WordPress, my first impression was that it was probably a good resource for beginners wanting to learn about installing WordPress, styling themes, and using categories and tags, but that I wasn’t going to find it very useful. However, by page 62 I’d already learned the answer to something I’d wondered about for some time, and once I’d passed the halfway point, I discovered a wealth of information about video and podcasting as well as the vital issues of security and performance, and was really glad I’d decided to continue reading.

Head First WordPress now holds an important spot in my reference library, and I highly recommend it to anyone who wants to learn more about this powerful content management system.

WordPress is easy to use, but the more you learn about it, the more you’ll get out of it, and the better your blog or website will be.