Reader reviews

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

I bought this on a whim after seeing it mentioned in a forum thread, and I am glad I did. I found myself making notes in the margins, which is always a good sign. Some of the material is available elsewhere, but rarely presented this clearly. I found myself making notes in the margins, which is always a good sign. A good addition to a technical library, as long as you know what you are buying.

The clearest explanation of databases & big data I have come across.

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 writing is direct and does not waste space on filler, which I value in a technical book. The chapters on databases & big data 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.

Finally, a book that treats ai & machine learning with the care it deserves.

A colleague recommended this and I can see why. It does something that few technical books manage: it respects the reader's time. The progression from chapter to chapter is well thought out; nothing feels out of order. The exercises at the end of each chapter are worth doing — they caught a few misconceptions I did not know I had. One of those books that pays for itself within the first few chapters. Highly recommended.

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 code samples assume a particular environment, which took a bit of fiddling to get running properly. 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.

Well worth picking up if you already have the basics.

This is the third book I have read on javascript this year, and it is comfortably the best of them. A few of the examples could be more realistic, but the underlying points come across clearly. Some terminology is introduced without much ceremony; I had to look a few things up along the way. Worth picking up if you already have the basics. Set realistic expectations and you will get a lot out of it.

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

This is the third book I have read on simulation this year, and it is comfortably the best of them. The balance between theory and practice is well judged; neither side dominates. Some of the material is available elsewhere, but rarely presented this clearly. I particularly liked the way the author builds up from simple cases before introducing the harder material. I have already recommended it to two colleagues and will recommend it to more.