The Cambridge Photographic Atlas of Galaxies, by M. König & S.
Binnewies, translated by P. Helbig (Cambridge University Press), 2017.
Pp. 344, 28.5 × 24 cm. Price £44.99/$54.99 (hardbound; ISBN 978 1 107
18948 5).

This is a translation of König and Binnewies' book in German Bildatlas
der Galaxien: Die Astrophysik hinter den Astrofotografien published by
Franckh Kosmos Verlag. I have not been able to view the original
version, but it seems that the translator has done a good job here as
the text reads as very accessible English.

The book starts with a very brief chapter on the historical context and
classification schemes for galaxies. The rest of the book is the atlas
of galaxies, dividing the objects by their general classes. Introducing
each section is a useful short chapter on the basic astrophysics around
the particular class. The sections are ordered by `Spirals', `Barred
Spirals', `Ellipticals', `Irregulars and Interacting', `Dwarf', `Ring',
`Groups and Clusters', and finally `Active, Quasars and Gravitational
Lenses'. Each galaxy has at least one page dedicated to it; with either
the picture on the same page as the description or in some cases a full
page image is used. Technical data about the galaxies have been sourced
from the NASA/IPAC Extragalactic Database (NED) so should be fairly up
to date (as of 2016). All the `favourite' galaxies seem to be included
plus a number that may be less familiar. And there is good coverage of
southern-hemisphere objects too.

The pictures used throughout this book are excellent - and whist they
have been taken by amateur astro-photographers they are by no means
amateurish. And CUP have done a great job in rendering them well. Many
of the images have been taken with large or very large telescopes which
are outwith the realm of the average back-yard astronomer. Each image is
accompanied by details of the telescope and camera used, the overall
exposure time and the photographer. And a nice touch which emphasises
the attention to detail in this book, is that the direction of North is
indicated with every image. The book is well referenced, providing
useful pointers for those wishing to explore in more detail. 

This is an excellent book for both reading and dipping into and more
than just a `coffee-table' publication. It will be a welcome resource
for anyone interested in studying, observing or imaging galaxies, which
is rather un-represented in current popular literature. I
whole-heartedly recommend it. - CALLUM POTTER.