Rating: 
Summary: Reads like a textbook, covers only old versions
Review: I bought this book wanting to brush up on the latest enhancements to T-SQL. I've had pretty good luck with the O'Reilly books, so I thought this one would be my best bet. I was really disappointed. Where is the SQL 7 info? One appendix?! I don't think so! The real problem with the book, though, is that it reads like a textbook. There are almost no insights or expert perspectives in this book. People buy computer books for info and experience. This book's info is out-of-date and its experience is nonexistent. I can't recommend this book to anyone.
Rating:
Summary: Henderson's Guru's Guide to Transact-SQL is much better
Review: As many others have pointed out, this book lacks any real SQL 7.0 coverage. Consequently, many of the examples are obsolete (using bcp.exe instead of BULK INSERT to load ASCII data, for example) and some don't even work anymore. But the real problem with this book is that it's not written very well. A few others have mentioned this and I'd like to elaborate a bit on it. Good technical books do not have to be dry as a bone. They don't have to be completely lacking in spirit. They can be interesting, even funny, while at the same time giving you the info you crave and which caused you to buy the book. This book, however, is insipidly dull. There's no wit here. There's no personality. This book is the Al Gore of the T-SQL books market. Contrast this with Ken Henderson's book, The Guru's Guide to Transact-SQL. Henderson's book is deep, thorough, modern (covers SQL 7 and the latest enhancements to Transact-SQL), witty, and engaging. Once I started reading it, I couldn't put it down. Transact-SQL Programming pales in comparison to Henderson's book, and I can't imagine how anyone who'd read both couldn't agree.
Rating:
Summary: Though I feel like a fink for saying so, book is useless
Review: This is one poor book. First, the lack of SQL Server 7.0 coverage is inexcusable. Based on when the book came out, it should have *focused* on 7.0, not 4.2. Second, many of the queries do not work on 7.0. For example, there's one that queries the sysprocedures table. Sysprocedures no longer exists in 7.0 -- the query will neither compile nor run. There are several examples that rely on the implicit ordering of the GROUP BY and UNION commands. Again, that is gone in 7.0. Also, old style joins are used throughout, despite thae fact that they've been deprecated by Microsoft for years now. Worse yet, none of the new 7.0 syntax is covered at all. There are a number of commands that have changed substantially (DUMP/LOAD for example) and a number of completely new commands that this book omits entirely. This book should not have been published. Save your money.
Rating: 
Summary: None Better
Review: I don't understand why so many of the other reviewers focused on the SQL 7 and Style issues when reviewing this book. After having surveyed the market place, I think I can say that there is no better book on the subject in print anywhere. If you were captive in a vault with a workstation connected to a SQL Server and had to program your way out, this would be the book you would want to have with you. If you know what is in this book, you are a heavy hitter when it comes to SQL Server(MS or Sybase). There are some nuances of the changes brought by MS version 7 that are uncovered, but you will be able to deal with them by reading the "What's New" section, and what's more you will be able to understand them. Secondly, those who complain about the style of writing in this book are nuts. What are they looking for? Love interest? The movie rights? This book is both a text, i.e. it teaches how to use the language, and a reference that you will go back to time and again to refresh your memory on point of grammar. To demonstrate how useful I think this book is, I have just spent 30 minutes writing and attaching 3M index tabs to my copy, the better to retrieve information with faster.
Rating:
Summary: This is an excellent book.
Review: No, it does not have a ton of color screen shots and yes it looks like a textbook. So if you are looking for all of that get some other book. But, it is by far the most comprehensive and intellegent book I have ever read on Transact-SQL. It provides real world examples of how to use the commands. It provides in depth examples of how to use the commands. It provides guidance on when to use a command and when not to. And Yes everything does work in 7.0. This is a Transact-SQL book not a SQL Server admin book. It covers Transact-SQL for both Sybase and SQL Server with clear explanations of the situations on where there is a difference. If you want to develop a master level understanding of Transact-SQL this is the book.
Rating:
Summary: No SQL 7 coverage to speak of
Review: In obvious contradiction to its own cover, this book does not cover version 7.0 in any detail. That really disappointed me, especially given that many of the examples don't work on 7.0. Also, the book reads like a text book. It's dry to a fault.
Rating: 
Summary: Missing several key elements; focuses on old versions
Review: I have no doubt that the authors know Transact-SQL very well. The problem is, they inexplicably focus on old versions of it in this book. SQL 7 is practically omitted from this book entirely. There's no coverage of fulltext searching. No coverage of SELECT TOP or the statistical aggregate functions. No coverage of automation, the BULK INSERT command, or the many other commands that were new or that changed significantly in version 7.0. This is simply inexcusable, and I recommend you skip this book because of it.
Rating:
Summary: Completely lacking in current techniques and examples
Review: This book ought to cover SQL 7.0 in some detail, especially with SQL 2000 about to come out. It doesn't. I was really disappointed with the old-style joins (a big no-no) and the queries against system tables that no longer exist. Also, the prose itself is pretty weak. It's boring and reads like a text book.
Rating:
Summary: Terribly out-dated
Review: The problem with this book is that it only covers version 6.5 and earlier in any detail. Sorry, the cover out to mention that. A single appendix does not constitute SQL 7 coverage. Worse yet, many of the techniques you take to solving complex query problems changed dramatically from 6.5 to 7.0, so a number of the solutions offered in the book either don't work at all or work very poorly. Giving when it was published, there's no excuse for this book not covering 7.0 and its way of doing things in detail. For the would-be SQL 7 transact-sql practitioner, this book is very near useless.
Rating:
Summary: Just a great book
Review: My only misgiving in regards to this book is the fact that (as many other reviews note) SQLServer 7.0 is covered in much less detail than the cover would suggest. The whole of the book is geared toward the 6.5 syntax, and only a single appendix deals with 7.0. That being said, however, this is one of the best books I have encountered on SQLServer's T-SQL. Everything <everything> is covered and covered well. And even though the SQLServer 7.0 discussion is limited to an appendix, the information there is fairly comprehensive as to changes between the two versions. If you are looking for a book on SQLServer 7.0 services and its slew of tools, this is probably not the best book to get. However, if you are looking to comprehend and fully utilize the powerful T-SQL language that is the backbone of any SQLServer endeavor, this is the only book you'll need.
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