Have to agree, piqufoh's comment is asinine. Pandas is the first time I've even considered moving work done in R to a new all-python workflow. Exhaustive coverage by some imaginary, disinterested third party would still be forced to settle on pandas as the focus, because it literally is the only game in town.
As to the merits, per se, of having some third party write the book: I'm doubtful. I followed wesm's development through blog posts, twitter updates, etc. Writing pandas forced him to consider a lot aspects of dealing with data in python, both deep and practical. In the process, I'm confident he became one of the foremost experts in not only his own software but in the current state of Data Analysis in Python. Who better to write this book?
As to the merits, per se, of having some third party write the book: I'm doubtful. I followed wesm's development through blog posts, twitter updates, etc. Writing pandas forced him to consider a lot aspects of dealing with data in python, both deep and practical. In the process, I'm confident he became one of the foremost experts in not only his own software but in the current state of Data Analysis in Python. Who better to write this book?