Here's what you can do to bend your brain into submission

These tips are a starting point;
listen to your brain and figure out what works for you and what doesn't. Try new things.
Slow down. The more you understand, the less you have to memorize.
        Don't just read. Stop and think. The more deeply you force your brain to think, the better chance you have of learning and remembering.

Do the exercises. Write your own notes.
 Use a pencil. There's plenty of evidence that physical activity while learning can increase the learning

Read the "There are No Dumb Questions"

Make this the last thing you read before bed. Or at least the last challenging thing.
Drink water. Lots of it.
  Your brain works best in a nice bath of fluid. Dehydration (which can happen before you ever feel thirsty) decreases cognitive function.
Talk about it. Out loud.
 Speaking activates a different part of the brain. If you're trying to understand something, or increase your chance of remembering it later, say it out loud. Better still, try to explain it out loud to someone else. You'll learn more quickly, and  you might uncover ideas you hadn't known were there when you were reading about it.
Listen to your brain.
Pay attention to whether your brain is getting overloaded. If you find yourself starting to skim the surface or forget what you just read, it's time for a break. Once you go past a certain point, you won't learn faster by trying to shove more in, and you might even hurt the process.

Fell something.
Your brain needs to know that this matters. Get involved with the stories. Make up your own captions for the photos. Groaning over a bad joke is still better than feeling nothing at all.

Write a lot of software!
There's a only one way to learn to program: writing a lot of code. Coding is a skill, and the only wat to get good at it is to practice.