3 Books to learn Servlet and JSP for Java Programmers in 2024
These are my favorite books to learn Servlet and JSP for Fullstack Java web developers.
Hello guys, if you are a Java programmer and want to learn Servlet and JSP and looking for the best resources like books and online courses then you have come to the right place. Earlier, I have shared the 2024 Java Developer RoadMap and best Servlet and JSP courses and in this article, I am going to share my favorite books to learn Servlet and JSP.
Being an author of a Java blog, I often receive a request from my readers and fellow Java developers about book recommendations to learn Servlet and JSP, two of the key web technology for server-side web development in Java.
Unfortunately, there are not many good books to learn Servlet and JSP for Java web developers. Despite being the most popular Java Web technology, there are very few good books to learn Servlet and JSP.
The one book which everybody will suggest to you is the Head First Servlet and JSP, which is indeed one of the best books but it’s outdated now.
It doesn’t cover the latest development in Servlet API, particularly Servlet 3.0, and also not been updated for the last 7 to 8 years, but considering others, it is still an excellent book to learn Servlet and JSP.
The main advantage of this book is the Head First style itself, which is excellent for beginners. With lots of repetition, bullet points, fireside chats, Head First book, make sure you understand things and not just read them.
Since many readers ask me to suggest good books to learn Servlet and JSP, I’ll share a couple of my favorite books, which I think are relevant and help you to learn Servlet and JSP better.
For faster learning, you can also combine these books with some good online courses like JSP, Servlets, and JDBC for Beginners: Build a Database App by Chad Darby on Udemy to learn Servlet and JSP in a more active way.
3 Best Books to learn Servlet and JSP in Depth
Now that we know that Servlet and JSP are an important technology for server-side Java development and crucial for any serious Java backend developer, let’s which book you can read to learn Servlet and JSP from scratch.
Without any further ado, here are some of the best books you can read to learn Servlet and JSP from the Java web development perspective.
1. Murach’s Java Servlets and JSP, 3rd Edition
Murach’s books are great books for a beginner in general, and Murach’s Java Servlets and JSP, 3rd Edition meet the expectation. It is currently the best book to learn Servlet and JSP from scratch. It not only teaches you about Servlet and JSP but also about other related web technologies like JSF, HTML5, CSS3, etc.
It also has a couple of sample web applications, which is great as a project for beginners. You will learn the actual real-world programming while building that application.
It also teaches about security issues on a web application, essential for real-world stuff like Cross-Site Scripting or SQL injection. Overall, a fantastic book to learn Servlet and JSP in a quick time.
It gave both text and examples to work with and explains how to develop JSP-Servlet-based applications using NetBeans, Tomcat, and MySQL
Here is the link to get this book — Murach’s Java Servlets and JSP, 3rd Edition
And, if you need a course to complement this book, I suggest you check out JSP, Servlets, and JDBC for Beginners: Build a Database App course on Udemy. It’s a project-based course and I strongly recommend you to do a project to apply the knowledge you have learned in the book. This course will help you to build that project.
2. Head First Servlet and JSP
Even though this book doesn’t cover Servlet 3.0 API and Asynchronous Servlets, it is still the second-best book to learn Servlet and JSP.
It was used to be the best book to learn Servlet and JSP because of its unique style and excellent content, but since it has not been updated for a long time, It loses that title to the first book in this list.
For a complete beginner, I mean, who has never heard of Servlet or JSP, this is still a great book to start with. You can start learning from this book and then read Servlet specification and Java documentation to update yourself with the latest Servlet development.
Here is the link to buy this book — Head First Servlet and JSP
Also, for best results, you can also combine this book with the Java Web Fundamentals By Kevin Jones course on Pluralsight. I generally find that learning from a course and book is the best way to learn any new technology.
2. Servlet & JSP: A Tutorial, Second Edition
This is the most up-to-date book to learn Servlet and JSP at the moment. It covers Servlet 3.1 specification and JSP 2.3, which is what you need to develop a Java Web application.
Like Murach’s book, this one also includes a wide range of topics including essential Servlet like ServletContext, Filter, Session Management, FileUpload, Listener to necessary JSP, JSTL, Expression Language, and Custom tags.
It also covers how to develop a web application using MVC frameworks like Struts 2 and Spring MVC. It also introduces essential J2EE technology like Java Mail, Java Persistence API (JPA), and Java Database Connectivity (JDBC).
Overall, an excellent and complete, and most crucial up-to-date book to learn Servlet and JSP.
Here is the link to learn more about the book — . Servlet & JSP: A Tutorial
And, if you need another course to go along with this book, you can also check out Bharat Thippireddy’s JDBC Servlets and JSP — Java Web Development Fundamentals course on Udemy. This 9-hour course is great to learn Servlet and JSP fundamentals online.
That’s all about the three best books to learn Servlet and JSP. As I said, Head First Servlet JSP is excellent but not the most up-to-date hence you should either look at Murach’s book or Servlet and JSP by Budi Kurniawan, which covers both Servlet 3.1 and JSP 2.3 along with other essential Java EE technologies.
And, If you come across any good book to learn Servlet and JSP, feel free to suggest as well, happy to include in this list.
Other Recommended books and courses for Java Web developers:
- Top 5 Courses to learn Microservices in Java
- 5 Books to Learn Spring Frameworks
- Top 5 Courses to learn Hibernate and JPA in 2024
- 10 Advanced Spring Boot Courses for Java Developers
- Top 5 Books to Learn Hibernate for Java Programmers
- Top 5 Courses to learn Spring Framework in depth
- 5 Books to prepare Java JEE Interviews
- Top 5 Courses to learn Spring Boot and Spring Cloud
- How to Crack Spring Professional Certification
- Top 5 Java Design Patterns books for experienced Programmers
- My favorite courses to learn Software Architecture
Thanks for reading this article, if you like my book recommendations, then please share with your friends and colleagues, it makes a lot of difference. If you have any suggestion, feedback or you think there is a wonderful book which needs to be included in this list, then feel free to drop a comment.
P. S. — If you are looking for some free resources like online courses to learn Servlet and JSP then I also suggest you join Java Servlets and JSP — Build Java EE(JEE) app in 25 Steps course on Udemy. It’s a completely free course and all you need is to create an Udemy account to access this course.
