Reader reviews

I have read a lot of books on this subject and this is the clearest.

I had been on the fence about this one for a while, and I should have bought it sooner. A few of the examples could be more realistic, but the underlying points come across clearly. The author clearly knows the subject deeply and has thought hard about how to teach it. A couple of chapters felt like they could have been merged, but that is a minor complaint. I have already recommended it to two colleagues and will recommend it to more.

A useful guide. The examples assume a particular environment, but that is fixable.

This is the third book I have read on programming this year, and it is comfortably the best of them. The progression from chapter to chapter is well thought out; nothing feels out of order. The author avoids over-explaining, which keeps the pace up but means you need to pay attention. Good value for the price and worth the time it takes to work through properly.

A genuinely enjoyable read that also taught me a great deal.

I have been working with software development for a few years now and I still found plenty here that was new to me. The code samples assume a particular environment, which took a bit of fiddling to get running properly. A couple of chapters felt like they could have been merged, but that is a minor complaint. I appreciated the honesty about what the book does not cover — it saved me from expecting things that were not there. One of those books that pays for itself within the first few chapters. Highly recommended.

Good book. The writing is direct and the author is honest about limits.

I have been working with data visualization for a few years now and I still found plenty here that was new to me. The exercises at the end of each chapter are worth doing — they caught a few misconceptions I did not know I had. There is a section near the end that ties several earlier ideas together in a way I had not seen before. A good addition to a technical library, as long as you know what you are buying.

The clearest explanation of javascript I have come across.

I had been on the fence about this one for a while, and I should have bought it sooner. Some of the material is available elsewhere, but rarely presented this clearly. The explanations are careful without being condescending, which is a difficult balance to strike. There is a section near the end that ties several earlier ideas together in a way I had not seen before. One of those books that pays for itself within the first few chapters. Highly recommended.

A worthwhile addition to my shelf, with realistic expectations.

I read this over a couple of weekends alongside a small side project, which turned out to be the ideal way to approach it. The author avoids over-explaining, which keeps the pace up but means you need to pay attention. Some terminology is introduced without much ceremony; I had to look a few things up along the way. Worth picking up if you already have the basics. Set realistic expectations and you will get a lot out of it.