Example usage of the reader monad.

reader.js

/**
 * This short program will encrypt the user password
 * and insert a new record into a mock database.
 */
const Reader = require('fantasy-readers');
const R = require('ramda');
const crypto = require('crypto');

// our mock database
const database = [
  { email: '[email protected]', password: 'e0538fd8f022bb3b139d72cf12766cb0e31690ff' },
  { email: '[email protected]', password: '42c4fbf6fec201c66b82c97833b08d936d2cd526' }
]

// creates a statefull database connection
const connectTo = (db) => {
  return {
    insert: (doc) => db.push(doc),
    get: (i) => db[i],
    delete: (i) => db.splice(i, 1),
    list: () => db
  }
}

// some utility functions
const encrypt = (i) => crypto.createHash('sha1').update(i).digest('hex');
const encPassword = R.evolve({password: encrypt})
const getInput = () => ({ email: '[email protected]', password: 'secret' });

// this is how you access the db connection inside the reader
const save = (user) => {
  return Reader.ask.map((db) => {
    db.insert(user);
    return db.list();
  });
}

// the body of the program
const prog = R.pipe(
  Reader.of,
  R.map(encPassword),
  R.chain(save)
);

// this is our db connection now
const dbCon = connectTo(database);

// this is how you pass the db connection in
const result = prog(getInput()).run(dbCon);

// show the output
console.log(result);

I'm trying to understand this monad, have low understanding of FP. Why can't we just curry the save function? What am I missing?

// this is how you access the db connection inside the reader
const save = user => db => {
    db.insert(user);
    return db.list();
};

// the body of the program
const prog = R.pipe(encPassword, save);

// this is our db connection now
const dbCon = connectTo(database);

// this is how you pass the db connection in
const result = prog(getInput())(dbCon);

UPD:
Got it. Seems in this particular case there is no difference. But in case we want manipulate with result of saving, then Reader monad works like a charm.

const prog = R.pipe(
    Reader.of,
    R.map(encPassword),
    R.chain(save),
    R.map(console.log), // <-- here is the point
);

This is nice, but quite simplistic. I would love to see an implementation involving other monads for async operations (which DB interactions usually are)

You can check the state monad implementation by
https://github.com/dicearr/monastic
Exploit it as as a reader monad like

const { get: ask } = require ('monastic')
...

and for async computation, combine StateT with F.Future from
https://github.com/fluture-js/Fluture