Master C at the level systems programmers actually use it. Understand memory management, pointers, undefined behavior, and the C compilation model.
how to write malloc in C from scratch
C Programming Deep Dive is where systems-level C becomes concrete. You measure sizes, implement malloc and free patterns, walk pointer arithmetic, write memory functions, and confront undefined behavior with tests that fail when you get it wrong.
Searchers asking "how to write malloc in C from scratch" or "pointer arithmetic tutorial" land here for a reason: each task is a small, testable slice of the mental model, not a 200-page book chapter. You will also touch arenas, setjmp-style control, and compilation model basics so the rest of LowLevelCraft makes sense.
Finish this subtrack before assembly if C still feels magical. The skill is not syntax. It is predicting what the machine does with your bytes.