I personally find books are better once you have gotten your hands a bit dirty in some code, otherwise most of what you read flies right by. I'd recommend finding a small project you have to undertake, can just be a simple web page that read from a database you already have and make it work. FInd some examples on the web, post questions to mailing lists and forums, etc. but just dive in. Having something to finish keeps you at it more than just reading examples.

That being said, here is a list of Charles' favorite books www.charlescarroll.com/chaz/s...t.aspx.

The Unleashed Book frequently gets raves on lists, though I have never read it.