The master of books on Windows programming does it again.  This time it is Windows Programming using the Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF).  If you plan to be a serious WPF developer, this is a must read.

What I like best about the book is the title.  Applications = Code + Markup.  Charles Petzold starts off in the book saying that the new breed of Windows applications are still code.  In a way, it is saying, don't get all scared about XAML and think that the entire WinForms programming model has been thrown out of the window.  You continue learning to program Windows in pretty much the same way as the previous generation.  Only that it gets exciting because there are new ways of doing things, aka declarative coding. 

Needless to say (if you have read CP before), the book can be read pretty much like an interesting novel that you can't drop before it is finished. I have run through the first 4 chapters in one day (didn't just read - wrote code as well) and plan to finish the book by the end of this year (which actually is 5 days away)!

Meanwhile, if you are just starting on .NET, or want to get deeper, you might also want to read .NET Book Zero - a free book available on Charles Petzold's site - www.charlespetzold.com

His blog also has announced the next book he's working on - "Windows 3D". Check out this post.