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. I particularly liked the way the author builds up from simple cases before introducing the harder material. It is denser than the page count suggests, and I found myself slowing down around the middle. If you have the prerequisites, this is an easy recommendation. I will be keeping it on my desk rather than the shelf.

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

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 exercises at the end of each chapter are worth doing — they caught a few misconceptions I did not know I had. The chapters on latex are the strongest — the examples are stripped down but complete, and I could follow along without constant guessing. If you have the prerequisites, this is an easy recommendation. I will be keeping it on my desk rather than the shelf.

Well worth picking up if you already have the basics.

I was looking for something that would bridge the gap between tutorials and proper reference material, and this does that well. The author avoids over-explaining, which keeps the pace up but means you need to pay attention. The progression from chapter to chapter is well thought out; nothing feels out of order. The early chapters move quickly through material I already knew, but the later sections were genuinely new to me. Worth picking up if you already have the basics. Set realistic expectations and you will get a lot out of it.

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. Some of the diagrams are dense and I had to reread a few sections, though that may just be me. The balance between theory and practice is well judged; neither side dominates. I have already recommended it to two colleagues and will recommend it to more.

Finally, a book that treats javascript with the care it deserves.

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 book rewards careful reading. Skimming it would be a mistake. The balance between theory and practice is well judged; neither side dominates. Worth the money and the reading time, without hesitation.

Outstanding. I kept finding reasons to come back to it.

There is a particular kind of technical book that is dense without being difficult, and this is one of them. The early chapters move quickly through material I already knew, but the later sections were genuinely new to me. Some of the material is available elsewhere, but rarely presented this clearly. Some terminology is introduced without much ceremony; I had to look a few things up along the way. Worth the money and the reading time, without hesitation.