To help programmers keep pace with Perl upgrades, Walters (involved with the Phoenix Perl Mongers and other Perl projects) introduces the new and improved features of Perl 6 by building on Perl 5 Open Source design themes. E.g., a table compares Perl 5 and 6 operators. While he covers some topics for novices and programmers in other languages, the intended audience is Perl programmers curious/anxious about this "perlier Perl". Source code for the book is downloadable from an auxiliary Web site. Annotation ©2005 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)