This is an introduction to the Scheme programming language. It is intended as a quick-start guide, something a novice can use to get a non-trivial working knowledge of the language, before moving on to more comprehensive and in-depth texts.

The Scheme Cookbook's primary aim is show how common programming problems can be solved in Scheme via short programming "recipes". Parts of the Cookbook are specific to PLT Scheme but we aim to provide portable solutions when possible (see BeingPltSpecific).

Now that you have mastered ``How to Design Programs'',1 you may wonder how to write some useful programs such as the ones you use on a daily basis. These programs read existing files; write new files; pop up windows; talk to your friend's computer and download the latest music; or they turn your computer into a server of your favorite paintings and poetry.

This book is for people who are interested in how Scheme works, or people who are interested in Scheme in terms of programming language design--as well as people who are just interested in using Scheme.

There's not much conflict between these goals, since one of the best ways to learn Scheme--and important principles of language design--is to see how to implement Scheme, in Scheme. I'll illustrate the power of Scheme by showing a couple of simple interpreters for subsets of Scheme, and a simple compiler. A compiler for Scheme can be surprisingly simple and understandable.

#  The book features thorough integration of theory and practice, and presents theory as an essential component of practice, rather than in contrast to it. Thus, students are introduced to the analytic tools they need to write effective and efficient programs, in the context of practical and concrete applications.