Programming Perl (3rd Edition)
Larry Wall wrote Perl and he wroteProgramming Perl. Better yet,  he writes amusingly and well--all of which comes across in this latest edition  of the definitive guide to the language.Like Topsy, Perl just grew, and as a result the need for a third edition came  about. It's now over 1,000 pages, which it needs to be, as it performs several  different duties. First, it's an introduction to the Perl language for those who  are new to programming; also, it's a guide for those who are coming from other  languages; and, finally, it's a Perl language reference.Among Larry Wall's other pursuits is being a linguist, and it's perhaps for this  reason that Perl is a peculiarly flexible language with many routes to achieving  the same ends, as the authors ably demonstrate. It's also extensible in several  ways, designed to work with many other languages. Also, as it's largely  interpreted, programs written in Perl tend to run unmodified on a variety of  platforms--although platform-specific Perl modules and programming practices are  also discussed.A major strength ofProgramming Perlis the way subject areas are  approached from several directions. This constant shift of viewpoint eliminates  blind spots in the reader's understanding and provides a pleasing echo of the  way Perl itself can take many routes from here to there.Because the Perl community is both knowledgeable and active, the language covers  much more ground here than in the previous edition. Even if you have both  previous editions, you'll want this latest version--if only for the new jokes.--Steve Patient, amazon.co.uk