Haploid plants possess only one set of chromosomes and these plants can be ‘doubled’ to produce valuable breeding material. This technique is one of the most successful of all biotechnological plants breeding tools and is widely applied to both practical and research programmes. This volume (which is based on the proceedings of a 2006 conference) attempts to give a broad overview of this wide topic, and also presents some recent findings and concepts. The text is dense throughout, and each article very extensively referenced. The illustrations and generally informative images are in black and white, but there is, unfortunately no index. The introductory chapter attempts to set the scene, but would have been much more useful to the general reader if made simpler rather than presenting 15 pages of references, some of which are quite obscure. The all-important table of species that have been responsive to the technology could also have been made much clearer and informative. No doubt any researcher in haploid production would find this a very valuable source of information, compiled by experts in the field and drawing on the expertise of many of the acknowledged leaders in this area of science. For a general reader, there is a wide range of chapters, encompassing useful subjects such as patents and haploids, and in many cases providing a wealth of information, though some remain reports of work in progress.