Vanderpoorten, A. and B. Goffinet. Introduction to Bryophytes (Book Review‪)‬

Vanderpoorten, A. and B. Goffinet. Introduction to Bryophytes. 2009. viii + 303 pages (+ 16 pages unnumbered); figures; tables; black and white photographs; colored photographs (plates); line drawings; glossary; references; index. Cambridge University Press, New York, New York. ISBN: 978-0-521-70073-3 (Soft Cover) and ISBN: 978-0-52187712-1 (Hard Cover); Prices: $45.00 and $110.00, respectively. Available from Cambridge University Press, 32 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10013. Introduction to Bryophytes (IB) is a noteworthy, up to date, text on the biology, from an evolutionary perspective, of liverworts, hornworts, and mosses. A wide range of topics are explored among ten chapters including, but not limited to, morphology, geography, ecology, physiology, and conservation. Coverages of the topics are enhanced by effective figures and photographs. In addition, selected topics are discussed in special boxed off areas. As the authors intended, the book's contents focus on recent advances in the study of bryophytes. This is evident by the large number of mostly primary literature citations of nearly 500. Of these, about 87% were published from 1990 to some in 2009. Although the book's coverage assimilates selected materials from the more comprehensive tome Bryophyte Biology edited by Goffinet and Shaw (Cited in IB), Introduction to Bryophytes can stand alone and is suitable for beginning students of bryology with an introductory background in botany. Because the book's contents center mostly on relatively recent literature, we will, from time to time, mention older monographs not cited by the authors to assist new students to bryology who might seek additional information, historical perspectives, and different points of views on related bryological topics.