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Handbooks are crowding the book stalls and some reflect the rising cost of living. The tremendous advances made since their precursors have gone out of print send shivers down the spines of prospective buyers in anticipation of what could be learned but, alas, remains beyond their financial capacity. The Handbook of Sensory Physiology, of which the first volume in a series of eight deals with the principles of receptor physiology, will, when published completely, perhaps explain how imagination is influenced by receptor activity. The famous definition of imagination as the "balance of reconcilement of opposite qualities" remains, however, difficult to translate into physiological terms. Important aspects of sensory physiology are discussed in detail and are aimed at experts in the field. The hope is expressed that they will obtain an overview of a highly technical and complicated area and acquaint themselves with work done by their colleagues. For the