Hibernate in Action (In Action series)
by Christian Bauer, Gavin King
Paperback: 408 pages
Publisher: Manning Publications (August 1, 2004)
ISBN: 193239415X
Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.4 x 0.9 inches
Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds. (View shipping rates and policies)

My rating: *****

The think that strikes one immediately about this book is the thoughtful way in which even tangential subjects are treated. A great deal of attention is paid to outlining the why of the design of Hibernate and general meditations of design philosphy. That being said, you might think that the book is overly discursive, but it is not, such background information being presented in a thorough, yet crisp manner.

My only caveat is that this is not a how-to book for the very junior programmer requiring slavish adherence to simplistic guidelines, the book is very thorough in outlining different alternatives requiring some judgement in execution. It was not designed as such.