From the reviews:
One of the goals of Springer's Grundlehren series is to provide reliable and thorough accounts of certain portions of mathematics. This volume by Edoardo Sernesi does just that, and hence fits the series well. ... So this is a book for algebraic geometers; for them, it'll prove to be a useful resource and reference. (Fernando Q. Gouvea, MathDL, August, 2006)
Without any doubt, this is a masterly book on a highly advanced topic in algebraic geometry. ... The entire text is kept at a level that makes it suitable for graduate students ... . But even for experts and active researchers in algebraic geometry, this unique book on algebraic deformation theory offers a great deal of inspiration and new insights, too, and its future role as a standard source and reference book in the field can surely be taken for granted from now on. (Werner Kleinert, Zentralblatt MATH, Vol. 1102 (4), 2007)
The book under review gives an introduction to classical deformation theory using modern language, and is apparently unique among textbooks in the recent literature in that it is largely self-contained and covers the main topics ... . It will be attractive for graduate students with a basic knowledge of commutative algebra and algebraic geometry as a base for advanced lectures. The need for such a book was evident for a long time; the reviewer is happy to have it on his bookshelf. (Marko Roczen, Mathematical Reviews, Issue 2008 e)
