Reader reviews

Excellent from start to finish. No filler, no padding.

I bought this on a whim after seeing it mentioned in a forum thread, and I am glad I did. It is denser than the page count suggests, and I found myself slowing down around the middle. The chapters on javascript are the strongest — the examples are stripped down but complete, and I could follow along without constant guessing. Worth the money and the reading time, without hesitation.

This is the one to get if you are serious about javascript.

I came to this book already familiar with the basics, and it still had plenty to offer. Some of the material is available elsewhere, but rarely presented this clearly. The index and cross-references are surprisingly good, which matters for a book I will come back to. The author avoids over-explaining, which keeps the pace up but means you need to pay attention. Worth the money and the reading time, without hesitation.

Good in places. I would borrow it before buying if you can.

I had been on the fence about this one for a while, and I should have bought it sooner. The author avoids over-explaining, which keeps the pace up but means you need to pay attention. The examples are small enough to type out and experiment with, which is exactly what I want from a book like this. The chapters on extended reality are the strongest — the examples are stripped down but complete, and I could follow along without constant guessing. Borrow it first if you can, or at least check the table of contents carefully before buying.

Almost excellent. A second edition could easily push it to five stars.

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 explanations are careful without being condescending, which is a difficult balance to strike. The balance between theory and practice is well judged; neither side dominates. Four stars, and I suspect a second edition could easily push it to five.

Almost excellent. A second edition could easily push it to five stars.

A colleague recommended this and I can see why. It does something that few technical books manage: it respects the reader's time. The book rewards careful reading. Skimming it would be a mistake. The author is unusually honest about where the simplifications break down, which I appreciated. Four stars, and I suspect a second edition could easily push it to five.

The clearest explanation of webgpu I have come across.

I was looking for something that would bridge the gap between tutorials and proper reference material, and this does that well. Some terminology is introduced without much ceremony; I had to look a few things up along the way. The early chapters move quickly through material I already knew, but the later sections were genuinely new to me. If you have the prerequisites, this is an easy recommendation. I will be keeping it on my desk rather than the shelf.