I’ve been working with WordPress for a couple of months now and I have been teaching myself as I go. One of the really great things about WordPress is the theme system. I find it really well thought out. Still trying to learn all of the ins and outs can be a bit trying. Even with the really great Codex that Worpress has, it cn be a bit intimidating. Thus the good folks over at Sitepoint published a really cool book – Build Your Own Wicked WordPress Themes.
This book is a very good introduction to WordPress. It does not go into a great deal of depth, but enough to get you started. They offer some excellent pointers in design, but not as in depth as their Website Design book does. Where they really shine, in my opinion, is in creating examples using the Ian Stewart’s Thematic Theme and the concept of Child Themes. This will get you well on the way to creating some very functional and well thought out sites.
Two other books I’d recommend for your WordPress library are:
Professional WordPress from Wrox
Smashing WordPress from Wiley
Both of these books go into a great deal of detail covering just about all aspect of the WordPress package.
*note: This is an unsolicited review. I also purchased the book