Good balance of formal and layman language

I enjoyed this book's implementation-oriented approach to teaching language constructs, in the tune of such classics as SICP. The book title is misleading in that this book focuses almost exclusively on functional languages. But within that realm, it admittedly does cover a broad range of features. The book has just the right amount of formal notation to insure relative completeness, but not so much as to scare away unfamiliar readers. I think it's a nice gentle introduction to the whole field.

As I alluded to, the only reason I didn't give this a 5-star is the slightly misleading general-purposeness appeal, even though it really is entirely functional-oriented. Other than that, the book was a great read.

Other Reviews

• very methodical and simple
• Good balance of formal and layman language
• An Almost Perfect Book
• Be sure to have your dictionary on hand while reading...