101 Ray-Tracing, Ray-Marching and Path-Tracing Projects (Paperback)

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

I was looking for something that would bridge the gap between tutorials and proper reference material, and this does that well. The balance between theory and practice is well judged; neither side dominates. I appreciated the honesty about what the book does not cover — it saved me from expecting things that were not there. The balance between theory and practice is well judged; neither side dominates. Good value for the price and worth the time it takes to work through properly.

Some sections were excellent and others felt like filler.

I have been working with programming for a few years now and I still found plenty here that was new to me. The balance between theory and practice is well judged; neither side dominates. There is a section near the end that ties several earlier ideas together in a way I had not seen before. Three stars feels about right. It will stay on my shelf, but it will not be the first one I reach for.

The clearest explanation of programming I have come across.

I bought this on a whim after seeing it mentioned in a forum thread, and I am glad I did. There is a section near the end that ties several earlier ideas together in a way I had not seen before. The explanations are careful without being condescending, which is a difficult balance to strike. I appreciated the honesty about what the book does not cover — it saved me from expecting things that were not there. If you have the prerequisites, this is an easy recommendation. I will be keeping it on my desk rather than the shelf.