On Java 8 is designed for someone with a basic foundation in programming. For beginners, web sites like Code.org and Khan Academy can provide at least some of that background, along with the Thinking in C seminar freely available at the OnJava8 Site.
Services like YouTube, blogs and StackOverflow have made finding answers ridiculously easy compared to just a few years ago when we relied on print media.
Combine these with perseverance, and you can use this book as your first programming text. It’s also intended for professional programmers who want to expand their knowledge.
Bruce Eckel is a computer programmer, author, and consultant. Eckel's best known works are Thinking in Java and the two-volume series Thinking in C++, aimed at programmers wanting to learn the Java or C++ programming languages, respectively, particularly those with little experience of object-oriented programming. Eckel was a founding member of the ANSI/ISO C++ standard committee.