Learn Kubernetes in a Month of Lunches

Kubernetes can feel like a lot to take in: containers, cluster networking, storage, configuration, and scaling all meet in one platform. In this Manning Early Access Program edition, Elton Stoneman takes a practical route through the subject, building understanding as readers work through the tasks of running and managing applications.

Please note: This is Version 7 of the MEAP edition. Its contents represent an early-access manuscript, not a guarantee of the contents of any later edition.

Start with applications, not just architecture 💻

The book introduces the core ideas behind Kubernetes, then moves into running applications with Pods and Deployments. From there, the lessons extend to Services and networking, ConfigMaps and Secrets, persistent data, and controllers for scaling across Pods. The sequence helps connect Kubernetes concepts to the practical decisions involved in deploying an application.

Follow a four-week learning path

Its four sections progress from Kubernetes fundamentals to real-world application patterns, production preparation, and more advanced cluster operations. Along the way, topics include multi-container Pods, StatefulSets and Jobs, Helm, release rollouts and rollbacks, developer workflows, and CI/CD.

Prepare workloads for production

Later lessons explore self-healing applications, centralized logging, monitoring with Prometheus, Ingress, and security policies. The final section turns to role-based access control, multi-node and multi-architecture clusters, workload placement, automatic scaling, Custom Resources, Operators, and serverless functions.

Learn by working through the material

Stoneman describes the book as a hands-on introduction, with exercises and labs intended to give readers practical experience alongside the explanations. The approach is aimed at people who are new or new-ish to Kubernetes and already have some understanding of containers; the author also presents it as relevant across IT roles rather than for one specialty alone.

For readers looking to build a structured foundation in Kubernetes, this early-access edition offers a guided progression from the first deployed workload toward more complex application and cluster concerns.