Learning perl just now, and he is working under you?
He better get on the stick. So, the apprentice cracks open the O'Reilly camel & feels thrown to the wolves, I suggest "Beginning Perl by Simon Cozens, Peter Wainwright."

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/AS...786012-3744037
(Though I would make him pay for it)

I read the whole thing in two sittings at Books-A-Million.
Wrox tends to be more down to earth and "friendlier" to n00bsters when learning the material. O'Reilly books on the other hand, aren't as so I guess... however they make good references and should be made a requirement. Also, most of the time Wrox books have more pages for the same price and are more visual (Wrox books contain more screenshots). In all the O'Reilly books that I've seen, most of it is text, and use very little diagrams. Though when a problem arrives he is going to have to be familar with the "bibles of the trade " O'Reilly books are going to save his arse, not the " learn_in_24_hours" that he needs to learn quick.

I'd bet money that book won't rub him the wrong way, even if he is a n00b. However, if it does, you know what the Don has to do to the The Apprentice.

If he has trouble with Shell Programming. I can make more suggestions aswell .

He needs to learn about increasing produ
ctivity and building unity.