Standard meta language (standard ML or SML) is a powerful formal language that is gaining momentum in a vast array of industries, spreading away from the usually confined domain of university courses on formal specification and algorithms. From that perspective, any new book on the subject is welcome. In addition, the book collects a vast array of abstract data types (a total of 67 types), which is a blessing for advanced users. The first ten chapters of the book introduce the semantics and structures of the library types. The remaining chapter dissects each abstract data type. One special characteristic of this book, not seen in other books on standard ML, is its strong emphasis on network programming; readers will find a very detailed and useful explanation of the subject in chapter 10 (“Programming with Sockets”).

This is not a book on SML for the novice; there are other books [1,2] that are more appropriate for beginners. In fact, the only shortcoming of this book is that it is too much of a reference, that is to say, it lacks a guiding example that unifies the vast array of structures within the library. That said, this book represents a strong contribution to the advancement of standard ML; advanced users will praise this book as the ultimate reference for this evolving language.