36 Best Books on Compilers

We have compiled a list of the Best Reference Books on Compilers, which are used by students of top universities, and colleges. This will help you choose the right book depending on if you are a beginner or an expert. Here is the complete list of Compilers Books with their authors, publishers, and an unbiased review of them as well as links to the Amazon website to directly purchase them. If permissible, you can also download the free PDF books on Compilers below.

1. Compilers

 
1."Compilers: Principles, Techniques and Tools" by Alfred V Aho and Ravi Sethi
Book Review: This book is widely known as the Dragon Book among professors, students, and developers worldwide. It discusses the advancements in software engineering, programming languages, and computer architecture. The book also addresses the broader range of challenges that arise in software design and development. It covers various topics in automata theory, such as regular expressions, NFA, DFA, grammars, ambiguities, and techniques for handling ambiguities. Additionally, the book provides detailed explanations of grammar theory, parsers, handles, and prefixes.

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2."Programming Language Pragmatics" by Michael L Scott
Book Review: This book includes the latest advancements in programming language design, focusing on a new chapter on runtime program management to provide comprehensive coverage of concurrency. It serves as a valuable resource for students and professionals, equipping them with a solid understanding of software development issues. With a thorough exploration of concurrency, the book enables readers to grasp the significant advances shaping the field of software. It includes over 800 examples to facilitate content comprehension.

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3."Modern Compiler Implementation in C/Java" by Andrew W Appel
Book Review: The book offers an overview of the various stages involved in compiler construction, covering lexical analysis, parsing, abstract syntax and semantic actions, intermediate representations, tree matching instruction selection, dataflow analysis, runtime systems, and register allocations. It also discusses code generation techniques, register allocation, and the compilation of functional and object-oriented languages. The book addresses topics such as garbage collection, loop optimization, instruction scheduling, and more. It includes discussions on Java and object-oriented programming concepts, providing a well-rounded perspective on the subject matter.

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4."Engineering a Compiler" by Keith D Cooper and Linda Torczon
Book Review: This book offers a in-depth coverage of essential techniques involved in constructing a modern compiler. It provides readers with a thorough understanding of imperative and object-oriented language compilation, as well as instruction scheduling and register allocation using graph coloring. The book places a strong focus on code optimization and generation techniques, and includes helpful summaries, overviews, and review questions for each chapter. It also explores common challenges in compiler construction and presents algorithmic alternatives. The book covers scanning, parsing, and semantic description techniques. With its breadth and depth of content, this book is suitable for compilers courses at both the undergraduate and graduate levels.

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5."Compiler Design in C" by Allen I Holob
Book Review: This book is very useful for students, engineers, and programmers as it equips them with the necessary knowledge and skills to tackle real-world compiler design concepts and implementations. It begins by offering an understanding of the fundamental concepts of the C programming language. In the later part of the book, it delves into the creation of a complete C compiler, focusing on all the essential components required for compiler generation tools. The book effectively utilizes techniques such as Lex and yacc to facilitate the development of a robust C compiler. It includes a dedicated chapter that covers a range of C++ topics and features, enhancing the reader’s understanding and expanding their programming capabilities.

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6."Compilers : Principles, Techniques, & Tools 2nd Edition" by Alfred V Aho and Ravi Sethi
“Compilers: Principles, Techniques, & Tools 2nd Edition” Book Review: This book is a complete guide to compiler technology, offering examples and algorithms to help readers grasp the main concepts. It starts with an introduction to compiler design and covers important topics such as finite state machines, runtime environments, code generation, garbage collection, type checking, scanning, and parsing. The Dragon Book is specifically designed for professionals and computer science engineering students in their fifth, sixth, or seventh semester who already have a basic understanding of the subject. It provides a thorough and accessible resource for expanding knowledge in compiler technology.

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7."Elements of Compiler Design" by Meduna
“Elements of Compiler Design” Book Review: This book offers a clear explanation of the process of compiler writing, combining both theoretical foundations and practical applications. The author presents the concepts and techniques used in compiler design, including fundamental models like grammars and automata, in a straightforward manner. The implementation and application of compilation techniques and algorithms are highlighted through numerous detailed examples and case studies throughout the book. Suitable for computer science undergraduate students and professionals alike, this book serves as an accessible guide to understanding and mastering compiler design.

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8."Compiler Design" by K Muneeswaran
“Compiler Design” Book Review: This book aims to provide an understanding of the design and implementation aspects of compilers. Each phase of compiler design, including syntax analysis, lexical analysis, run-time storage organization, intermediate code organization, code optimization, and final code generation, is discussed in detail in separate chapters. The book also covers various compiler writing tools like Lex, Yacc, JavaCC, and ANTLR, providing a thorough explanation of their usage. To enhance learning, each chapter includes objective type questions with answers, review questions, and exercises, which are graded based on Bloom’s Taxonomy Principles. The book includes appendices on parsing the C language and five model question papers. It is well-suited for undergraduate and postgraduate students studying computer science, information technology, and computer applications.

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9."Using the GNU Compiler Collection" by Richard M. Stallman and The GCC Developer Community
“Using the GNU Compiler Collection” Book Review: This reference manual offers detailed instructions on utilizing the GNU compilers, specifically the GCC compilers version 4.3.3. It provides extensive information on their features, incompatibilities, and includes a thorough analysis of bug reporting procedures. Serving as a valuable resource, this book is considered a definitive guide for those aiming to maximize their utilization of GCC. All proceeds generated from book sales contribute towards the development of free software and documentation, making it a meaningful contribution to the open-source community.

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10."Compiler Design" by Winster and Aruna Devi
“Compiler Design” Book Review: This book offers an exploration of compiler design concepts, providing detailed insights into each phase. Through the use of relevant examples, the author discusses topics such as parse trees, regular expressions, context-free grammars, syntax-directed translations, intermediate code generation, code generation algorithms, and optimization techniques. Designed specifically for computer science and engineering, as well as information technology students, the book also includes a set of question papers from Anna University, offering valuable practice for students preparing for examinations.

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2. Compiler Design

 
1."Compiler Design" by Chattopadhyay
“Compiler Design” Book Review: This book is an essential resource for anyone interested in understanding the intricacies of compiler technology. The book covers a wide range of topics, including lexical analysis, syntax analysis, semantic analysis, optimization techniques, code generation, and code optimization. Each chapter provides clear explanations, examples, and algorithms to enhance comprehension. With its comprehensive coverage and user-friendly approach, this book is highly recommended for students and professionals seeking to enhance their knowledge and skills in the field of compiler design.

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2."Compiler Design" by O G Kakde
“Compiler Design” Book Review: This book primarily targets undergraduate students in the field of computer science and engineering, specifically those studying compiler construction. It also serves as a valuable resource for students preparing for the GATE examination. The book covers the concepts in a clear manner, emphasizing problem-solving skills and providing in-depth knowledge on the subject. It includes numerous examples, illustrations, and unsolved problems to enhance understanding and practice.

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3."Express Learning - Principles of Compiler Design" by ITL ESL
“Express Learning – Principles of Compiler Design” Book Review: This book is a valuable resource for individuals looking to delve into the world of compiler design. The book covers key concepts such as lexical analysis, parsing, semantic analysis, code optimization, and code generation. With its clear and concise explanations, accompanied by relevant examples, readers can easily grasp the principles of compiler design. This book is recommended for students and professionals seeking a practical and comprehensive guide to understanding and implementing compilers.

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4."Compilers: Principles, Techniques, and Tools" by Alfred V Aho and Monica S Lam
“Compilers: Principles, Techniques, and Tools” Book Review: The book serves as a valuable resource for computer scientists and developers alike. It is particularly beneficial for undergraduate and postgraduate students studying programming languages. Covering both fundamental and advanced concepts of compilers, the book offers comprehensive insights. Each chapter incorporates the latest developments in software engineering, ensuring the content remains up-to-date.

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5."Principles of Compiler Design" by D Chithra
“Principles of Compiler Design” Book review: This book is a useful resource for anyone interested in learning about compiler design. The book covers a wide range of topics, including lexical analysis, syntax analysis, semantic analysis, optimization techniques, code generation, and code optimization. Each chapter provides clear explanations and examples to help readers grasp the fundamental principles of compiler design. With its comprehensive coverage and user-friendly approach, this book is highly recommended for students and professionals in the field of computer science and software engineering.

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6."Compiler Design Work Book" by I C E INSTITUTION
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3. Advances in Compiler Construction

 
1."Compilers: Principles, Techniques and Tools" by Alfred V Aho and Ravi Sethi
“Compilers: Principles, Techniques, and Tools” Book Review: This book provides clear and separate solutions that are not dependent on each other, making it easier to understand the subject. Known as the Dragon Book, it explains important concepts such as the structure of compilers, analyzing words and sentences, checking types, creating code, improving code, translating in a specific way, using different techniques, dealing with multiple computers working together, managing waste, and sharing real-life examples. It covers the topics required for information technology and computer science engineering courses.

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2."Programming Language Pragmatics" by Michael L Scott
“Programming Language Pragmatics” Book Review: This book offers an exploration of the relationship between language design and implementation, covering the latest developments in programming language design. It discusses various concepts, including Java 6 and 7, FORTRAN 2003 and 2008, C++0X, C# 3.0, Ada 2005, and Scheme R6RS. It addresses newer topics such as run-time program management, covering virtual machines, just-in-time and dynamic compilation, mobile code, managed code, reflection, sandboxing, binary translation and rewriting, debugging, and program analysis tools. With over 800 examples provided, this book is well-suited for undergraduate computer science students, programmers, as well as systems and software engineers.

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3."Modern Compiler Implementation in C/Java" by Andrew W Appel
“Modern Compiler Implementation in Java” Book Review: This book provides an extensive exploration of all the essential phases of a compiler, covering topics such as parsing, semantic actions, abstract syntax, lexical analysis, intermediate representations, dataflow analysis, instruction selection via tree matching, graph-coloring register allocation, and runtime systems. It also incorporates the latest techniques in code generation and register allocation, as well as the compilation of functional and object-oriented languages. This edition introduces a new Mini-Java programming project, which focuses on both frontend and backend phases, offering practical hands-on experience.

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4."Compiler Design in C" by Allen I Holob
“Compiler Design in C” Book Review: This book is specifically designed for computer science and programming students, providing an introduction to the essential principles of compiler design. It covers a range of topics related to C-language, incorporating a balanced mix of fundamental concepts and critical thinking elements. The book primarily focuses on the second pass of a typical four-pass compiler, which encompasses a parser, lexical analyzer, and code generator. With the aid of numerous examples, the book effectively illustrates its concepts using the C language. It serves as an ideal resource for compiler courses offered in computer science departments.

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5."Advanced Compiler Design and Implementation" by Steven S Muchnik
“Advanced Compiler Design and Implementation” Book Review: This book offers a thorough exploration of advanced topics in compiler design and implementation for contemporary processors. It discusses key areas of compiler design, addressing a diverse range of potential code optimizations, evaluating their significance, and identifying optimal implementation techniques. Professionals and graduate students will greatly benefit from the book’s guidance in designing and implementing efficient structures for highly optimized compilers that cater to real-world programming languages.

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6."Compiler Construction Using Java" by Anthony J Dos Reis
“Compiler Construction using Java, JavaCC, and Yacc” Book Review: This book offers an exploration of the theory, application, and programming technology behind compiler construction. It focuses on all the essential topics required to learn compilers from the basics, and includes a robust and adaptable software package for project evaluation, along with numerous tutorials, well-defined projects, and test cases.

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7."Compiler Construction" by Sunitha
“Compiler Construction” Book Review: This book is a valuable resource for anyone interested in understanding the intricacies of building compilers. The book covers a wide range of topics, including lexical analysis, syntax analysis, semantic analysis, intermediate code generation, code optimization, code generation, and symbol table management. It also explores advanced concepts such as data flow analysis and register allocation. The chapters are well-structured and provide clear explanations along with examples to enhance understanding. With its comprehensive coverage and practical approach, this book is highly recommended for students and professionals in the field of compiler construction.

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8."System Programming and Compiler Construction (Includes Labs)" by Anand A Godbole and R K Maurya
“System Programming and Compiler Construction (Includes Labs)” Book Review: The primary objective of this book is to enhance understanding of the role and operation of system programs in relation to application programs. It offers an explanation of compilers and their various phases. It covers significant topics including the theoretical foundations of code optimization and the utilization of software tools for system program development. With its accessible language and abundant illustrations, this book is an excellent resource for both students and professionals seeking to expand their knowledge in this domain.

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9."Compiler Construction: Principles And Practice" by Kenneth C Louden
“Compiler Construction: Principles and Practice” Book Review: This book is a beginner’s guide to the basics of compiler construction. It covers important topics like scanning, grammar, parsing, and code generation in a simple and easy-to-understand way. The book also includes a practical project where readers can build a real compiler from scratch. It is perfect for students and beginners who want to learn about compilers and gain hands-on experience. With clear explanations and step-by-step instructions, this book is an excellent starting point for those new to the field of compiler construction.

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10."Writing Compilers and Interpreters: A Software Engineering Approach" by Ronald Mak
“Writing Compilers and Interpreters: A Software Engineering Approach” Book Review: The book revolves around the central theme of developing compilers and interpreters, offering valuable guidance on constructing an interpreter, compiler, interactive source-level debugger, and integrated development environment (IDE) with a graphical user interface (GUI) using Java programs. It provides insights into writing compilers and interpreters, executing programs through the interpreter, interacting with the interpreter during program execution, examining the call stack, modifying variable values, stepping through the program’s execution, incorporating an IDE, developing a compiler that generates Java Machine object code, and executing these programs on multiple platforms.

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4. Advance Compiler Construction Design

 
1."Compiler Design (International Computer Science Series)" by R Wilhelm and D Maurer
“Compiler Design (International Computer Science Series)” Book Review: This book proves to be beneficial for software designers, engineers, researchers, and scientists. Its primary focus lies in the exploration of techniques and concepts related to compiler construction. In addition to the theoretical aspects, it also discusses the practical applications of these discussed techniques. The inclusion of examples, concise questions, and chapter-end exercises further enhances the learning experience.

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2."Compilers: Principles, Techniques, & Tools with Gradiance (pkg)" by Alfred V Aho and Monica S Lam
“Compilers: Principles, Techniques, & Tools with Gradiance (pkg)” Book Review: This book is a comprehensive guide that covers the essential principles and techniques of compiler design. Written by Alfred V Aho and Monica S Lam, it provides a deep understanding of scanning, parsing, semantic analysis, optimization, code generation, and more. The book also includes the Gradiance online learning system, which offers additional practice exercises. Suitable for both students and professionals in the field, this book is a valuable resource for anyone interested in compiler design and implementation.

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3."Modern Compiler Design" by David Galles
“Modern Compiler Design” Book Review: This book is created for people who design software, engineers, researchers, and scientists. It primarily discusses compiler design. The book covers topics such as lexical analysis, top-down parsing, bottom-up parsing, and trees semantic analysis. It emphasizes an integrated java project that aids in compiler design. Additionally, it includes examples, short questions, and exercises at the end of each chapter to help readers practice and apply what they have learned.

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4."Compilers" by Alfred V Aho and Ravi Sethi
“Compilers” Book Review: This is a valuable book for software developers, engineers, and computer science students. It offers a comprehensive guide to understanding the principles and techniques of compiler design. The book covers important topics such as lexical analysis, syntax analysis, semantic analysis, code generation, and optimization. With clear explanations and examples, readers can learn how compilers transform programming languages into executable code. The authors, Alfred V Aho and Ravi Sethi, provide a well-structured approach and include exercises and projects to reinforce learning. This book is a must-have resource for anyone interested in compiler construction.

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5."Design and Construction of Compilers (Wiley Series in Computing)" by Robin B Hunter
“Design and Construction of Compilers (Wiley Series in Computing)” Book Review: This book is for people who design software, work as engineers, conduct research, or are scientists. It talks about using high-level languages and designing compilers. The book covers important areas such as lexical analysis, syntax analysis, using symbol tables, allocating storage, and generating code. It includes solved examples and exercises to help you practice what you’ve learned. Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced professional, this book is a great resource to understand the practical aspects of compilers and high-level languages.

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6."Learn Compiler Design Basics" by Virender Singh
“Learn Compiler Design Basics” Book Review: This book is for people who design software, work as engineers, conduct research, or are scientists. It focuses on the basics of compiler design, which is important for understanding how software works. The book covers different programming languages that compilers use to execute programs. It explains the pros and cons of these languages. You’ll also learn about the principles, limitations, and concepts of compilers. Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced professional, this book provides valuable knowledge about the fundamental aspects of compiler design.

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7."Compiler Design and Construction" by Arthur B Pyster
“Compiler Design and Construction” Book Review: This is a comprehensive book that is ideal for software developers, computer science students, and anyone interested in compiler design. The book covers a wide range of topics, including lexical analysis, syntax analysis, semantic analysis, optimization, code generation, and code optimization. Each chapter provides clear explanations and examples to help readers grasp the concepts effectively. The book also includes practical exercises and projects to reinforce learning. Overall, “Compiler Design and Construction” is a valuable resource for anyone looking to enhance their understanding of compiler design and construction.

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8."Compilers: Their Design and Construction Using PASCAL (Wiley Series in Computing)" by Robin B Hunter
“Compilers: Their Design and Construction Using PASCAL (Wiley Series in Computing)” Book Review: This book is helpful for computer engineering students, researchers, and software designers. It covers important topics like lexical analysis, syntax analysis, symbol tables, storage allocation, and code generation. The book explains how to construct and design a compiler. It discusses the use of programming languages such as ALGOL 68, Pascal, and ADA. The book also emphasizes practical aspects of compilers, providing valuable insights for real-world applications.

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9."Algebraic and Coalgebraic Methods in the Mathematics of Program Construction" by Roland Backhouse and Roy Crole
“Algebraic and Coalgebraic Methods in the Mathematics of Program Construction” Book Review: This book is created for computer engineering students, software designers, researchers, and scientists. It explores topics like lattice theory, fixed point calculus, universal algebra, category theory, and allegory theory. The chapters cover functional programs, algebra of program termination, coalgebraic specification, and temporal algebra. The book focuses on using algebraic methods in program construction, providing valuable insights and techniques for developing programs.

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10."Compiler Design Using FLEX and YACC" by Vinu V Das
“Compiler Design Using FLEX and YACC” Book Review: This book is created for software designers, researchers, and engineering students. It focuses on the design, development, programming, and construction of compilers. The book covers the theory and format of Lex specifications, as well as the features of FLEX. It explores topics such as lexical analysis, syntax analysis, type checking, code generation, and symbol tables. The book includes solved examples, exercises, and short questions at the end of each chapter to reinforce understanding and practice.

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We have put a lot of effort into researching the best books on Compilers and came out with a recommended list and their reviews. If any more book needs to be added to this list, please email us. We are working on free pdf downloads for books on Compilers and will publish the download link here. Fill out this Compilers books pdf download" request form for download notification.

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