The Tao of Programming by Geoffrey James is a strange and funny book. It's one of my all-time favourites.
These are some of my favourite quotes from the book:
"After three days without programming, life becomes meaningless."
"I don't know whether I am Turing dreaming that I am a machine, or a machine dreaming that I am Turing!"
"When a program is being tested, it is too late to make design changes."
"A well-written program is its own Heaven; a poorly-written program is its own Hell."
"But how will I know when I have received Enlightenment?" asked the novice.
"Your program will run correctly," replied the Master.
"Though a program be but three lines long, someday it will have to be maintained."
"Let the programmers be many and the managers few -- then all will be productive."
"You can demonstrate a program for a corporate executive, but you can't make him computer literate."
The Master Programmer moves from program to program without fear. No change in management can harm him. He will not be fired, even if the project is cancelled. Why is this? He is filled with Tao.
"Without the wind, the grass does not move. Without software hardware is useless."
You can get a copy on Amazon or read it online here.
