This issue begins with three papers discussing, among other things, cognitive processing in Williams syndrome. Although a rare condition (1 per 20,000 births), Williams syndrome has attracted a great deal of research in recent years. This probably reflects two interesting features of the condition; that much is known about the genetic cause, and that people with Williams syndrome show an interestingly uneven profile of abilities and difficulties. It is this latter aspect that is explored in the present papers, which pursue an understanding of the nature of face, object, and word processing in Williams syndrome.