Let us first consider the title. “Reference” is correct. This work is indeed a reference book, and an excellent one at that. It describes about 700 base SAS words, arranged logically into 18 chapters, and alphabetically within each chapter. For each word, Aster gives a short definition or a one- or two-line description. For each command, a list of options is given. Here and there, the book includes one-line examples. In a few cases, computational formulas are given.

“Pocket” is hardly appropriate. At about 9 inches high, 6 inches wide, and less than half an inch thick, the book does not fit into any of my pockets, although it does fit conveniently into my briefcase. It is not much smaller than the author’s full-size book [1], however, which is about 9.25 by 7.5 inches and over an inch thick (580 pages) and also fits into my briefcase. On the other hand, it is much smaller than the reference book published by the SAS Institute [2], which is a standard 11 by 8.5 inches and more than an inch and a half thick (1,042 pages).

“Professional SAS Programmer” is exactly right. This book is not for beginners. It is not to be used as a textbook or primer. For that purpose, I would recommend the author’s larger book [1]. Like most dictionaries and reference books, it is for people who know what they are looking for. Whatever you are looking for, you will find it (if you use the table of contents rather than the index). “Base SAS” is not in the title, but it should be. Other SAS products are not covered.

The first three chapters are introductory, explaining the structure of SAS programs and datasets. The next three chapters describe the commands that can be used in either the DATA step or the PROC step, those that are specific to the DATA step, and those that are common to many procedures. Chapter 7 deals with expressions and their components, although functions and CALL routines are not described until chapters 16 and 17, respectively. Chapters8 and 9 describe dataset and system options. Chapter10 covers the macro-language. Chapter 11, “Files,” contains no commands. It lists devices, libraries, engines, member types, entry types, and special SAS dataset names. It also describes views and the use of passwords. Chapters 14 and 15 describe informats and formats, respectively. (In my opinion, separating them into two chapters was unnecessary.) Chapter 18 covers the procedures that come with Base SAS, including all subcommands and all options.

The index is far from complete, containing fewer than 300 SAS words. On the inside front and back covers is an alphabetized list of 500 SAS words. Following each word is the category (or categories) the word belongs to. Fourteen categories are represented. Datastep statements, functions, CALL routines, and procedures are also listed in the index. Logical operators, formats, informats, dataset options, and system options are listed on the inside covers, but are not listed in the index. Another category on the inside covers is display manager and text editor commands. They are not listed in the index, although window types are. For some reason, the following categories are also represented on the inside covers, but not in the index: devices, colors, entry types, and member types. All 500 words appear in the text, in their correct chapters.

The author writes in his preface, “As this book took shape, I particularly remembered the people who travel with the SAS System on portable computers.” I hope he makes more sales than that. It could also be useful for programmers who work in large organizations. Instead of taking up shelf space with many copies of the SAS Institute’s bulky reference book [2], the organization might do well to supply each programmer or group with a copy of this handy book. University students who use SAS extensively would prefer to carry this book around rather than any of the larger books. The only drawback is the price. With its 188 pages, it lists at $19.95, while the 1,042 page SAS language: reference [2] lists at $20.95.