As well as 2 chapters providing practical guidance on identification and morphology, and methods of extraction, processing and detection of plant-parasitic nematodes, there is a chapter with a general overview of integrated management technologies. However, the bulk of the book comprises 18 chapters on major food and cash crops of the tropics and subtropics. Each of these chapters focuses on an individual crop, such as rice and tea, or groups of crops, such as cereals and food legumes, and details aspects of the main nematode pests, including the biology, diagnosis, symptoms of attack and management strategies. All chapters, except the one on nematode parasites of citrus, are multi-authored and include international authorities on plant-parasitic nematodes and experts from the area where the relevant crop is grown. Details of the 49 chapter authors can be found on the CABI website (www.cabi-publishing.org/bookshop).

The decision of the editors to use a crop-based approach has led to some repetition of information on nematode genera, such as Meloidogyne, that have a very wide host range. To some extent, this repetition has been minimized by including aspects of the life-cycle biology in Chapter 2, on identification, morphology and biology. Clearly, with such a spectrum of authors, there will be variation in the text but, in general, the book reads as a coherent whole and is informative on areas of pathology and control. Specialist aspects, such as behaviour, physiology, biochemistry and molecular aspects of the host-parasite interaction are mentioned only in passing in most chapters. The book is well produced and includes several figures, almost all of which are of disease symptoms in the plants. There are also 24 pages of full colour plates, the majority of which are informative and add to the text. This is essentially a practical book that will be immensely useful to agriculturists, extension workers, teachers and students, especially those working in subtropical and tropical agriculture.