Compiling with Continuations September 16, 2025 A review of the book Compiling with Continuations, Appel (1992).
Table of Contents Overview
MiniML
Lambda
CPS
Conclusion
References
Overview
Compiling with Continuations is an excellent book for learning Standard ML beyond what’s normally taught or discussed. It’s an excellent book for learning about practical applications of continuations beyond what’s normally taught or discussed. But who would want to do that? Was it influential to the field of computer science? I really can’t form an answer to those questions.
The book has no exercises. This positions it awkwardly in the broader perspective of compiler study. It’s as if it’s a book that isn’t meant to be studied or understood, or perhaps it just doesn’t care. Maybe these things are just somebody else’s problem. It’s not about any syllabus’s learning outcomes. Rather, it’s about the book shotgun-firing you with an onslaught of facts about the chapter title. Enough that it becomes confusing about what’s going on while, ironically, at the same time giving you just barely enough to implement the topics of the first half of the book.
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