I started studying Design Patterns with "Design Patterns: Elements of Reusable Object-Oriented Software" by famous Gang of four: Erich Gamma, Richard Helm, Ralph Johnson, John Vlissides. It was my mistake.
This book is great, but it is not for beginners. I spent a lot of hours trying to understand patterns. But it was not useful for me, because I was a beginner. I stopped reading and was disappointed with myself.
If you are a really tough programmer you might know this book very well and you don't need my advice to read it. But if you are a beginner I have an advice for you. Please, don't begin to study design patterns with the book of Gang of four.
"Head First Design Patterns" by Elisabeth Freeman, Eric Freeman, Bert Bates, Kathy Sierra, Elisabeth Robson is written for beginners.
One day I found the book "Head First Design Patterns" by Elisabeth Freeman, Eric Freeman, Bert Bates, Kathy Sierra, Elisabeth Robson. Authors use JAVA to explain design patterns.
It was indispensable for me and I believe it will be very useful for every beginner.
In the beginning of the book there is an interesting chapter about brain and thinking. It contains tips how to learn more efficiently.
More than that this book is rather funny. Check it out.
