This book reviews the application of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy to the study of microbial physiology. It can be sub-divided into sections on methods, macromolecules, the investigation of microbial metabolic pathways, case studies and metabolic engineering. The individual chapters are written by different authors who are clearly experts in their field of study. This book is intended for a specialist audience who are motivated to read in-depth about NMR. The overall basic principles are clearly and fairly stated in the first chapter, and this gives one an idea as to the underlying science. The subsequent chapters look at the application of this science, and can be read as individual studies on their own. The level of science is high, and it is difficult to fault the comments made by the authors. The emphasis is on bacteria that do not cause disease and their basic physiology. There are in-depth discussions on the bacterial sugar transport system, the structure of microbial polysaccharides and the transport of molecules in and out of microorganisms. Overall, this is a detailed book that is of value to specialist readers, and thus will have a limited audience. It did not really convey an overview of how the technology was taking the study of bacteria forward outside of the narrow cases that were considered. However, it did have a chapter on future trends in the study of microbial reactions that might guide the reader as to the importance of this subject. There was also a compendium on websites at the end of the book, which again could prove of value.