Review of 'Montessori: the science behind the genius (rev.ed.)' by Angeline Stoll Lillard: Oxford, UK, Oxford University Press, 2007, 404 pp., £19.99 (hardback), ISBN 13: 978-0-19-532526-3

Although Maria Montessori is universally regarded as an iconic figure in the educational world, it could be argued that a genuine understanding of even the basic principles of Montessori education is hardly widespread. Certainly, this reviewer confesses to a rather narrow and limited understanding of the basics of Montessori education before reading this book. Although this work by Lillard is designed to be an assessment of the Montessori education programme and principles as applied to Montessori schools specifically, it also analyses how these principles could be equally applicable to school education in general. Both the evidential base of the Montessori philosophy and its contribution to our understanding of how children learn are examined.