This classic work shows a care and understanding of C++ that only Bjarne Stroustrup, the designer of the language, can achieve. It also conveys the punctilious and sometimes suffocating detail that only Stroustrup would desire to communicate. The novice programmer will have difficulty distinguishing between the essential and the dispensable material. However, experienced C++ programmers will appreciate the reference manual portion of the book, which contains an exact definition of C++ that even numerous examples cannot express. Stroustrup's book has several chapters on classes and the reference manual component of the book contains the complete grammar of classes. This is a book that every experienced C++ programmer needs to own.