Reader reviews

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

There is a particular kind of technical book that is dense without being difficult, and this is one of them. The author is unusually honest about where the simplifications break down, which I appreciated. The balance between theory and practice is well judged; neither side dominates. Recommended, with the caveat that it is not a gentle introduction.

Some sections were excellent and others felt like filler.

I have been working with graphics & design for a few years now and I still found plenty here that was new to me. Some of the diagrams are dense and I had to reread a few sections, though that may just be me. The explanations are careful without being condescending, which is a difficult balance to strike. The code samples assume a particular environment, which took a bit of fiddling to get running properly. Fine, but there are stronger books on the same subject if you look around.

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

I came to this book already familiar with the basics, and it still had plenty to offer. Some of the material is available elsewhere, but rarely presented this clearly. Some of the material is available elsewhere, but rarely presented this clearly. The author is unusually honest about where the simplifications break down, which I appreciated. A good addition to a technical library, as long as you know what you are buying.

A useful guide. The examples assume a particular environment, but that is fixable.

I had been on the fence about this one for a while, and I should have bought it sooner. The book rewards careful reading. Skimming it would be a mistake. The early chapters move quickly through material I already knew, but the later sections were genuinely new to me. A good addition to a technical library, as long as you know what you are buying.

Well worth picking up if you already have the basics.

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 book rewards careful reading. Skimming it would be a mistake. The early chapters move quickly through material I already knew, but the later sections were genuinely new to me. A good addition to a technical library, as long as you know what you are buying.

Good book. The writing is direct and the author is honest about limits.

I had been on the fence about this one for a while, and I should have bought it sooner. It is denser than the page count suggests, and I found myself slowing down around the middle. A few of the examples could be more realistic, but the underlying points come across clearly. The author is unusually honest about where the simplifications break down, which I appreciated. A good addition to a technical library, as long as you know what you are buying.