The excellent English edition of the fascinating Combes's book, translated by Isaure de Buron and Vincent A. Connors, with a forward by Daniel Simberloff, is now available to English speaking readers. The author describes the biology and life cycles of parasites, their various habitats and different types of association with their hosts. In the second part of his book on genes in durable interactions, he discusses in detail the parasite-host coevolution, i.e. the genetic interactions between hosts and their parasites. The third part entitled "Durable interactions and the biosphere" contains important information on community ecology of parasites and their role in the evolution of their hosts. The author's reflections at the end of each part are especially stimulating. This book represents a storehouse of up-to date knowledge on the functional aspects of host-parasite system. It includes the most recent data on this subject, all arranged in a logical order. Each chapter contains numerous concrete examples of host-parasite interactions, such as schistosomiasis and malaria in humans, and many others - ranging from protists and metazoans to mobile DNA elements that affect wild and domestic animals. It should be emphasized that much of the most interesting material included in this book is from papers published in languages other that English, bringing together a variety and wealth of information from different fields of parasitology. The book is well written and well presented, with an excellent selection of illustrative material. This entertaining, sometimes provocative, book is an important new contribution that deserves to be read by all biologists interested in parasitology, ecology and evolution. It will prove enlightening and stimulating not only to students but also to teachers of courses considering parasite ecology and evolution. This splendid book has no equivalent in the current parasitological literature.