Review by Choice Review
A revised edition of the same title (1978). The sequence of the 306 families follows that proposed by G. Ledyard Stebbins in Flowering Plants: Evolution Above the Species Level (CH, Oct'75). The book starts with a well-illustrated glossary. Each family is represented by an individual world-distribution map, an estimate of the number of genera and species, a summary of distribution, and a notation of economic uses. A more detailed discussion of these topics plus the diagnostic features, the classification, and the relationships of the family follow. Approximately 200 of the families are represented by exquisite, detailed, color illustrations that make the book well worth a place on a cocktail table. Although considered a revised edition, a careful check revealed very few changes. A new preface has been written; in three families, the genus or species number increased by one, necessitating a brief rewrite of the distribution to include the changes. In one family, the species number was reduced. This book is suitable for any botany library, amateur or professional, personal or institutional. All levels. C. T. Mason Jr.; University of Arizona
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Choice Review
