The lifecourse as an academic field of study emerged in the 1960s as a way of integrating research focusing upon individuals, institutions and the overarching social structure and is, the editors of the book argue, a core research paradigm within contemporary social sciences. The lifecourse framework locates individual actions and behaviour (from birth to death) to social structures and institutions. Thus lifecourse studies operate at three levels of inter-relationship between individuals and society: the macro, meso and micro. From a gerontological perspective lifecourse studies locates ageing and life phases as a sequence of transitions and trajectories and, as an academic approach, is often both interdisciplinary and innovative. In recognition of this maturing approach to the study of ageing the authors present this edited collection as the first collection that covers lifecourse studies from its origins to the current state of the art. This is not a book of commissioned chapters which are then edited by the team but is, in fact, a reader in the true sense of the word, being a collection of previously published papers. As such the book is divided into five sections covering: (a) conceptual frameworks; (b) lifecourse policy: the state and institutions; (c) inequality and markets; (d) linked lives: families and intergenerational relations; and (e) transitions: biography and agency. Each of these five sections is introduced by an introductory chapter which offer useful overviews of the section and identify the importance and relevance of the selected contributions. To illustrate this approach we focus upon Section 4 which examines families and intergenerational relationships. This section occupies the space between the macro-level focus on institutions of the state and the market, and the individuality of biography and agency which concludes the volume. The introduction to the section highlights some key definitions of different types of relationships, introduces Elder's notion of ‘linked lives’, and briefly tackles social change, modernisation and the family before providing an overview of the four papers included in the section. The selection of papers is eclectic and, perhaps, illustrative of the range of endeavours, approaches and questions encompassed within the broad term of lifecourse studies. Thus in this section we have contributions looking at transition to adulthood; theoretical perspectives on couples' careers; a lifecourse view of families and ageing; and a transgenerational approach to resilience.

A key claim of the authors in their rationale for the volume is that it covers lifecourse studies from the early beginnings to the current state of the art. There are some very interesting papers in this book. It was a pleasure to reacquaint myself with the writings of Cain and Elder setting out the case for the development of the lifecourse approach and Haggestad's chapter on the lifecourse view of families and ageing. However, whilst we have some chapters originally published in the 2000s, the bulk of the papers included in this book date from the 1990s. This did not convince that the reader really provided a ‘state of the art’ perspective, although it does usefully showcase the breadth and diversity of lifecourse research. It was not clear as to how papers had been selected. Although the classic papers of Elder and Cain select themselves, the case for the others was not always clear and this gives the volume a rather eclectic feel. The editors suggest that this volume is for advanced undergraduate/graduate students across a range of disciplines including sociology, psychology education and political science, as well as those interested in ageing. I struggled to see how this volume would fit within the framework of many UK undergraduate courses unless the selected chapters were linked specifically to the courses being taught and it certainly is not put together with practitioners in mind. It may have some utility for research students or graduate students but otherwise has limited appeal within the UK context.