Reader reviews

Exactly the book I needed. Straight to the point and genuinely useful.

This is the third book I have read on javascript this year, and it is comfortably the best of them. I particularly liked the way the author builds up from simple cases before introducing the harder material. The code samples assume a particular environment, which took a bit of fiddling to get running properly. The author avoids over-explaining, which keeps the pace up but means you need to pay attention. An easy five stars from me. I look forward to whatever the author writes next.

Very good, with a few caveats. The core material is strong.

There is a particular kind of technical book that is dense without being difficult, and this is one of them. I appreciated the honesty about what the book does not cover — it saved me from expecting things that were not there. 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.

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

I had been on the fence about this one for a while, and I should have bought it sooner. The writing is direct and does not waste space on filler, which I value in a technical book. The index and cross-references are surprisingly good, which matters for a book I will come back to. The explanations are careful without being condescending, which is a difficult balance to strike. An easy five stars from me. I look forward to whatever the author writes next.

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

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 code samples assume a particular environment, which took a bit of fiddling to get running properly. The progression from chapter to chapter is well thought out; nothing feels out of order. The examples are small enough to type out and experiment with, which is exactly what I want from a book like this. If you have the prerequisites, this is an easy recommendation. I will be keeping it on my desk rather than the shelf.

It does the job, though it took some patience to get through.

I bought this on a whim after seeing it mentioned in a forum thread, and I am glad I did. Some terminology is introduced without much ceremony; I had to look a few things up along the way. It is denser than the page count suggests, and I found myself slowing down around the middle. Borrow it first if you can, or at least check the table of contents carefully before buying.