GraphQL on PHP: A Complete Guide to Building Modern APIs

The book "GraphQL on PHP" is a practical guide for PHP developers who want to master a modern approach to building APIs. Unlike REST, GraphQL allows clients to request only the data they actually need, making applications faster and easier to maintain.

Who is this book for?

• PHP developers familiar with the basics of OOP and frameworks (Laravel, Symfony, Yii).
• Backend engineers who want to transition from REST to GraphQL.
• Fullstack developers looking to improve frontend-backend interaction.
• Tech leads evaluating the adoption of GraphQL in existing projects.

What will you learn?

• GraphQL Basics: types, schemas, queries, mutations, and subscriptions.
• Environment Setup: installation and configuration of libraries (webonyx/graphql-php, Lighthouse for Laravel).
• Schema Design: creating flexible and scalable data schemas.
• Working with Databases: integration with ORM (Eloquent, Doctrine), optimizing N+1 queries using DataLoader.
• Security: authentication, authorization, protection against injections, and query depth limiting.
• Caching and Performance: caching strategies, query batching, performance analysis.
• Testing and Debugging: writing tests for GraphQL APIs, using GraphQL Playground and GraphiQL.
• Real-World Examples: building a full-fledged API for an online store, a social network, and a content management system (CMS).

Why should you read this book?

GraphQL is becoming the standard for modern APIs. The book is written in simple language, contains numerous code examples and ready-made solutions. You will not only learn the theory but also be able to immediately apply the knowledge in practice. The author shares proven patterns and pitfalls that every developer encounters when implementing GraphQL.

Additional Materials: the book includes links to a repository with source code, checklists for migrating from REST, and cheat sheets for GraphQL syntax.

Make your APIs faster, more convenient, and more modern with GraphQL and PHP!