Every software developer, whether they are an aspiring software architect or leading an enterprise architecture team, needs to read this book. It is written by the famous software craftsman, Robert C. “Uncle Bob” Martin.
The book describes what good architecture means for a system and the role of a good architect from a very pragmatic point of view. It emphasizes the importance of creating an architecture that can evolve from a monolith to micro-services, while protecting most of the code from those changes. The book talks about the SOLID and Component Cohesion principles, providing good examples of each one. It discusses how to structure your code to keep your software flexible.
When a team is embarking on a new project, I often pull out this book, and run through a short presentation to summarize the intent of these principles. We look at generic examples, then discuss examples within our own products. The presentation and discussion is a great reminder for those who are already familiar with it, and it ensures that newer developers are exposed to the concepts. As with most things, repetition is important to have the ideas ingrained. I do find that the beginning and middle chapters of the book are the most relevant. The last part, in which Martin describes some of the projects he has worked on, I just skimmed through.
If you are interested in building maintainable software, if you aspire to be an effective software architect, or you just want to be familiar with best practices for building applications, then please pick up a copy of this book!
