Book excerpt: This book has as its subject the boundary value theory of holomorphic functions in several complex variables, a topic that is just now coming to the forefront of mathematical analysis. For one variable, the topic is classical and rather well understood. In several variables, the necessary understanding of holomorphic functions via partial differential equations has a recent origin, and Professor Stein's book, which emphasizes the potential-theoretic aspects of the boundary value problem, should become the standard work in the field. Originally published in 1972. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.