For the beginning https://github.com/shushrutsharma/Data-Structures-and-Algorithms-Python More on reddit.com

A "data structure" is a way of organizing information (i.e.: collections of data) Real/Physical world examples: * A list where you add your friend's name and phone number and any other notes one by one as you get them. * A "Contacts" book where you add your friend's names but put them in the appropriate alphabetical section. * A "Rolodex" (or box of index cards) where each person get's their own card. * A grid of columns and rows you draw on graph paper where all names are in the same column, etc. Each of these is a different way to organize or structure the data. AKA: A different data structure. Each has advantages and disadvantages. * Some are easier to get started with (implement). Like the list. * Some are easier to find a name quickly (like the contact book) * Some are easier to add a new person in the middle (like the Rolodex/Index Cards) * Some take up more physical space and are harder to carry around (Like the Rolodex) You choose which to use based on your own criteria. Do you have a small number of people so a little list of 10 is fine? Do you have a large list of people (like 100) where a list would be unwieldly so you buy a little contacts book with alphabetic tabs on the side? Do you add and remove people frequently (like in a business) where a Rolodex is better? Do you need to take the numbers with you (like when you go on vacation) so a little book is better? Or do you only need the numbers when at your desk at work, where a big fat Rolodex is fine?? As far as the built in strings, integers, Booleans, etc.: Programmers generally call those data types, not data structures. Are they technically little data structures? Yeah, maybe. But it's not worth worrying about. Just call those data types and the bigger things data structures. More on reddit.com

Data Structures and Algos (DSA) is usually an early course (or set of courses) for an undergrad degree in CS. There aren't typically many prerequisites except: coding basics – e.g., you know about variables, functions, flow controls, etc. OOP basics – e.g., you know about classes, instances, inheritance, etc. Not knowing you, my suggestion would be: brush up on coding basics – Can you write a function from scratch? How about a small imperative program? if the DSA course uses OOP, brush up on OOP – Can you write a class from scratch? How about small OOP program? keep engaging with your course, or another DSAcourse, until you get over the hump Good luck! More on reddit.com

Any good algorithm book will describe the algorithms in abstract terms, and not just in one particular language. Because after all, you can implement them in any language. I would recommend "Introduction to Algorithms" by CLRS (Cormen, Leierson, Rivest, Stein). The algorithms are described in pseudocode, not in any particular programming language. For example, their insertion sort is "implemented" as follows: for i = 2 to n key = A[i] // insert A[i] into the sorted subarry A[1:i - 1] j = i - 1 while j > 0 and A[j] > key A[j + 1] = A[j] j = j - 1 A[j + 1] = key You might notice that this already looks close to Python (and that their array indices are 1-based). IIRC Guido was inspired by how pseudocode looks (which is not standardized, just an ad hoc way to describe algorithms in a language neutral way); that's why there's the "Python is runnable pseudocode" memes, and stuff like this . Another popular book is "Algorithms" by Robert Sedgewick; I've never read it, but I assume the algorithms are also described in pseudocode. I've found a github repo where people implement the algorithms in Python. Of course there's also the holy bible TAOCP by Knuth, but that's more a reference for experienced people, as it is incredibly information dense and mathematical. Knuth himself said that "2 pages in my book is somebody's entire career work". More on reddit.com