Building LLMs for Production versus Hands-On Large Language Models.
Both show up on every "best" list. They're not competitors. They're a sequence. Here's which one to read first, and when.
Reviewed by Ashish Sheth · Updated May 2026
Option A
Building LLMs for Production
Louis-François Bouchard, Louie Peters · 2024
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Author
Louis-François Bouchard, Louie Peters
Jay Alammar, Maarten Grootendorst
Pages
463
425
Published
2024
2024
Publisher
Towards AI
O'Reilly Media
Level
intermediate
beginner to intermediate
Amazon Rating
4.8/5 (23)
4.5/5 (392)
Goodreads Rating
4.11/5 (53)
4.29/5 (254)
Building LLMs for Production
Strengths
+ Clear explanations with simple analogies for complex concepts
+ Practical code examples using LangChain and LlamaIndex
+ Strong chapters on fine-tuning, quantization, and distillation
+ Endorsed by Jerry Liu (CEO of LlamaIndex) as most comprehensive LLM apps textbook
Caveats
− Title says 'Production' but lacks depth on actual hosting and serving infrastructure
− Reads more as applied research than a practical engineering guide
− Better as a reference than a cover-to-cover read
Hands-On Large Language Models
Strengths
+ 275+ custom diagrams make abstract concepts visual and intuitive
+ Accessible to beginners without prior PyTorch/TensorFlow knowledge
+ Practical code examples covering real use cases like semantic search and RAG
+ Well-structured progression from foundations to advanced techniques
Caveats
− Limited depth on transformer internals despite the author's blog reputation
− Image generation sections lack clarity
− May be too introductory for experienced ML practitioners
The verdict
Read Hands-On Large Language Models first to build foundations, then move to Building LLMs for Production for advanced concepts.
Building LLMs for Production
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Hands-On Large Language Models
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Frequently asked
Which is better, Building LLMs for Production or Hands-On Large Language Models?
Read Hands-On Large Language Models first to build foundations, then move to Building LLMs for Production for advanced concepts.
Is Building LLMs for Production good for beginners?
You need basic Python and some understanding of what LLMs are. It's not a first-ever AI book, but it starts from fundamentals and builds up.
Is Hands-On Large Language Models good for beginners?
Yes, it's one of the most beginner-friendly LLM books available. No PyTorch or TensorFlow experience needed. The 275+ diagrams carry a lot of the explanation load.