If you're very new to programming in general, Python's a great place
to start.
There are many, many tutorials. I won't even try to summarize them.
They're generally good. And the more you read, the more you learn.
Moving past the n00bz needs, there are some more advanced books.
Here's a collection for generalists:
- http://www.packtpub.com/python-3-object-oriented-programming/book
- http://www.packtpub.com/learning-python-design-patterns/book
- http://www.packtpub.com/mastering-object-oriented-python/book
My suggestion is to master the general features of the language
overall.
Focus on specific things (Django, NLTK, SciPy, Maya, Scrapy,
MatPlotLib, etc.) can follow.
I worry that early exposure to some of the details of Python-based
packages may obscure the fundamentals of using the language properly.
Perhaps that worry is misplaced. I know that the NLTK
Book has numerous good examples of
Python which are independent of the NLTK focus.