Reader reviews

Better than I expected. Rare to find a technical book this well judged.

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 author is unusually honest about where the simplifications break down, which I appreciated. Some terminology is introduced without much ceremony; I had to look a few things up along the way. An easy five stars from me. I look forward to whatever the author writes next.

I have read a lot of books on this subject and this is the clearest.

I bought this on a whim after seeing it mentioned in a forum thread, and I am glad I did. The author clearly knows the subject deeply and has thought hard about how to teach it. The code samples assume a particular environment, which took a bit of fiddling to get running properly. Some of the diagrams are dense and I had to reread a few sections, though that may just be me. One of those books that pays for itself within the first few chapters. Highly recommended.

Recommended, with the caveat that it is not a gentle introduction.

I had been on the fence about this one for a while, and I should have bought it sooner. There is a section near the end that ties several earlier ideas together in a way I had not seen before. The chapters on databases & big data are the strongest — the examples are stripped down but complete, and I could follow along without constant guessing. Recommended, with the caveat that it is not a gentle introduction.

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

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 code samples assume a particular environment, which took a bit of fiddling to get running properly. The exercises at the end of each chapter are worth doing — they caught a few misconceptions I did not know I had. A good addition to a technical library, as long as you know what you are buying.

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

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 exercises at the end of each chapter are worth doing — they caught a few misconceptions I did not know I had. Not one I will be returning to. There are better introductions to game development available.

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

I have been working with higher education for a few years now and I still found plenty here that was new to me. The author is unusually honest about where the simplifications break down, which I appreciated. The index and cross-references are surprisingly good, which matters for a book I will come back to. I found myself making notes in the margins, which is always a good sign. I have already recommended it to two colleagues and will recommend it to more.