This edition of the earliest surviving kirk session books from Perth is one of the most important additions to the published sources of the Scottish Protestant Reformation to appear in recent times. Only St Andrews has a comparable run of sixteenth-century session minutes, published in the very first series of the Scottish History Society (vols 4 and 7, Edinburgh, 1889–90). Professor Todd's meticulous transcription of the original manuscripts and her fascinating and lucid introduction make available a treasure trove of primary evidence about the first generations of the parochial Reformation. As she rightly emphasises, the Reformers had the ‘impossibly ambitious’ agenda of completely changing hearts and minds and turning Scottish parishes into godly communities. ‘The Reformation thus understood was a parochial endeavour, one whose outcome can only be understood by close examination of what went on in parish and pew’ (p. 2). Thanks to the survival of other Perth records, the kirk session's business and record keeping can be placed firmly within its burgh context. The appendix identifying the elders is especially illuminating and enhances the richness of the source. These laymen were the key individuals who adopted the new religion and, by aligning the Protestant message with their own communal purposes, succeeded in changing their community. At one time or another nearly everyone in Perth would appear before the session, if only to request their marriage banns be proclaimed, and the edition furnishes a remarkable insight into the lives of the residents of this major burgh. Consequently, this volume will be of considerable significance not just within Scotland but also within British and European Reformation studies and it will make a substantial contribution to national, social, cultural and general ecclesiastical history.