Book excerpt: Wilhelm Magnus was an extraordinarily creative mathematician who made fundamental contributions to diverse areas, including group theory, geometry and special functions. This book contains the proceedings of a conference held in May 1992 at Polytechnic University, Brooklyn to honour the memory of Magnus. The focus of the book is on active areas of research where Magnus' influence can be seen. The papers range from expository articles to major new research, bringing together seemingly diverse topics and providing entry points to a variety of areas of mathematics.