Reader reviews

A few useful pages, but mostly material I had seen better elsewhere.

I came to this book already familiar with the basics, and it still had plenty to offer. The author is unusually honest about where the simplifications break down, which I appreciated. The code samples assume a particular environment, which took a bit of fiddling to get running properly. The balance between theory and practice is well judged; neither side dominates. Two stars. The subject deserves a better treatment than this.

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

This is the third book I have read on javascript this year, and it is comfortably the best of them. 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. Worth the money and the reading time, without hesitation.

Well worth picking up if you already have the basics.

I picked this up after getting stuck on a project and it turned out to be exactly the right book at the right time. The balance between theory and practice is well judged; neither side dominates. Some of the diagrams are dense and I had to reread a few sections, though that may just be me. Worth picking up if you already have the basics. Set realistic expectations and you will get a lot out of it.

This is the one to get if you are serious about graphics & design.

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 book rewards careful reading. Skimming it would be a mistake. The chapters on graphics & design 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.

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

I had been on the fence about this one for a while, and I should have bought it sooner. The early chapters move quickly through material I already knew, but the later sections were genuinely new to me. The author is unusually honest about where the simplifications break down, which I appreciated. I have already recommended it to two colleagues and will recommend it to more.

Worth every page. I have already recommended it to two colleagues.

A colleague recommended this and I can see why. It does something that few technical books manage: it respects the reader's time. The explanations are careful without being condescending, which is a difficult balance to strike. 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. If you have the prerequisites, this is an easy recommendation. I will be keeping it on my desk rather than the shelf.