The successful book by Annette Otterstedt, "Die Gambe. Kulturgeschichte und praktischer Ratgeber" is now made available in an English version. The author has revised the original edition thoroughly, taking in the most recent results of research, which is particularly obvious in the enlarged chapters on the early history of the instrument, women playing the viols, the practice of viol consort, transposition and pitch, and a newly added chapter on the 20th-century viol. This is not merely a standard work for viol players and early music enthusiasts: it is as yet without equal as a brilliantly written, exemplary introduction into the world of an instrument.