A dataclass model toolkit: serialization, validation, and more.

Get It Now#

Available on PyPI:

pip install serious

Why So Serious#

Stop pushing dicts around!#

On top of coupling of data with its behaviour, using proper objects adds semantic meaning to your code. Good classes manifest the intentions of the system and restrictions imposed on it. APIs get cleaner, changes become simpler to implement, and maintenance turns out cheaper.

No declarative validation#

All of object validation happens in its __validate__ method by raising ValidationError. This introduces multiple benefits:

Explicit raising of validation errors allows to see which cases are not covered by tests.
No need to remember library-specific validator names. A set of simple if statements instead.
The information is less dense in field definitions, making them easier to read.

Type annotations everywhere#

Stay certain that no alien type will break production. Test correctness with mypy.

(Optionally) Immutable model#

Immutable (or frozen) means that object’s state cannot be changed after it was created. Although the main reason for this are multi-threaded environments, frozen objects still can make life easier. With immutable model you can be sure that object’s state did not change unless reassigned it explicitly.

Easily extensible#

Plug in custom field types and output formats. Serious is designed for versatility.

Made for Humans#

In software libraries the API is all that matters.

If you find yourself struggling through some aspect of the library — it‘s a failure on our part. Please spend 30 seconds creating a GitHub issue. No bureaucracy there!

Big Example#

from uuid import UUID
from dataclasses import dataclass
from typing import Set, Optional, List
from datetime import datetime

from serious import JsonModel, ValidationError

@dataclass(frozen=True)
class User:
    full_name: str
    username: Optional[str]
    phone: Optional[str]

    def __validate__(self):
        if not self.username and not self.phone:
            raise ValidationError('User must have either a phone number or a username.')

@dataclass(frozen=True)
class Message:
    author: User
    content: str
    sent_at: datetime

    def __validate__(self):
        if self.sent_at > datetime.now():
            raise ValidationError('A message cannot have a future timestamp.')

@dataclass(frozen=True)
class Chat:
    id: UUID
    name: str
    members: Set[User]
    transcript: List[Message]

    def top_member(self) -> User:
        """Member with most messages."""
        return max(self.members, key=self.message_count)

    def message_count(self, member: User):
        return len([m for m in self.transcript if m.author == member])




model = JsonModel(Chat)

chat = model.load('''
{
  "id": "e0b256d3-d515-4691-9057-649a93dee487",
  "name": "Great Quest",
  "members": [
    {"username": "king", "phone": null, "full_name": "King Arthur"},
    {"username": "w", "phone": null, "full_name": "Woman"},
    {"username": "dennis", "phone": null, "full_name": "Dennis"}
  ],
  "transcript": [
    {
      "author": {"username": "king", "phone": null, "full_name": "King Arthur"},
      "content": "I am your King.",
      "sent_at": "0483-07-31T11:35:09.025479"
    },
    {
      "author": {"username": "w", "phone": null, "full_name": "Woman"},
      "content": "Well, I didn’t vote for you.",
      "sent_at": "0483-07-31T11:35:09.025489"
    },
    {
      "author": {"username": "king", "phone": null, "full_name": "King Arthur"},
      "content": "You don’t vote for kings.",
      "sent_at": "0483-07-31T11:35:09.025490"
    },
    {
      "author": {"username": "w", "phone": null, "full_name": "Woman"},
      "content": "Well how’d you become king then?",
      "sent_at": "0483-07-31T11:35:09.025492"
    },
    {
      "author": {"username": "king", "phone": null, "full_name": "King Arthur"},
      "content": "The Lady of the Lake, her arm clad in the purest shimmering samite held aloft Excalibur from the bosom of the water, signifying by divine providence that I, Arthur, was to carry Excalibur. THAT is why I am your king.",
      "sent_at": "0483-07-31T11:35:09.025493"
    },
    {
      "author": {"username": "dennis", "phone": null, "full_name": "Dennis"},
      "content": "Listen, strange women lyin’ in ponds distributin’ swords is no basis for a system of government. Supreme executive power derives from a mandate from the masses, not from some farcical aquatic ceremony.",
      "sent_at": "0483-07-31T11:35:09.025495"
    }
  ]
}
''')

print(chat.top_member())  # User(full_name='King Arthur', username='king', phone=None)