Go in Action

Introduction

The book "Go in Action" (original title Go in Action) is a practical guide to the Go programming language (Golang), written by three authoritative experts: William Kennedy, Brian Ketelsen, and Erik St. Martin. Published in 2015, it still remains one of the most recommended books for those who want to learn Go through real-world examples. In this review, we will break down what makes the book useful, who it is intended for, and what knowledge you will gain after reading it.

What the book is about

The book covers key aspects of the Go language, starting from the basics of syntax and ending with advanced topics such as concurrency, networking, and testing. The authors do not simply list the language's capabilities — they show how to apply them in practice using examples from real production environments. Special attention is given to:

• Data types, structures, and interfaces
• Concurrency through goroutines and channels
• Error handling and panic
• Packages and modules
• Testing and benchmarks
• Network applications and HTTP servers

Who this book is for

"Go in Action" is aimed at developers who already have programming experience in other languages (e.g., Python, Java, C++) and want to quickly transition to Go. Beginners in programming may find the book challenging, as the authors do not dwell on basic concepts like loops or conditions but immediately move on to Go-specific topics. However, if you are already familiar with the fundamentals of algorithms, you will easily grasp the material.

What the reader will learn

After reading the book, you will be able to:

• Write efficient and safe programs in Go
• Use goroutines and channels to create concurrent applications
• Design APIs and web services using the standard library
• Perform unit testing and code profiling
• Work with packages and manage dependencies
• Understand the internal workings of the Go runtime

Strengths

One of the main advantages of the book is its practical focus. Each chapter contains code examples that can be immediately run and modified. The authors share real-world advice on code style and architecture, which is especially valuable for Go newcomers. Additionally, the book is written in a lively style, without excessive academic jargon, making it easy to digest. The chapters on concurrency deserve special mention — they explain complex concepts so clearly that even a novice developer can understand goroutines and channels.

Who it is recommended for

The book will be useful for:

• Developers transitioning to Go from other languages
• Backend engineers looking to master building high-load services
• Students and instructors of courses on modern programming languages
• Anyone who wants to understand the philosophy of Go and learn to write idiomatic code

If you are already familiar with the basics of Go and want to deepen your knowledge, the book will also be useful — especially the sections on testing and network programming. However, for a complete beginner in programming, it is better to start with more introductory materials and then return to this book.

Conclusion

"Go in Action" is a high-quality practical guide that lives up to its name. You don't just read theory — you immediately apply it in practice. Despite being published in 2015, the core concepts of Go remain relevant, and the book is still recommended by many communities. If you want to learn Go quickly and effectively, this book is an excellent choice.