Author: Lauren Pecorino
By OUP

Very easy to read and refer to, 2007-11-28
I am finding this book very good to work with while studying cancer. It gives good diagrams, study tips and helps you to understand the subject overall.

Author: Guy Brown
By Palgrave Macmillan

A Facinating Journey Through Life and Death, 2008-04-11
The Living End: the future of death, aging and immortality is a facinating read about life and death; aimed it appears to me at the non-specialist reader. Dr. Guy Brown tells us that he wants to describe how the: "new sciences have changed our understanding of death and how death is likely to change in the future". He also sets out to: "understand how the revolutionary changes in death and the life sciences will impact on our concepts of life and death".

On the face of things, Dr Brown's book might seem dark and pessimistic but on the contrary it is simply a realistic and to some extent optimistic book. As Dr Brown himself says: "in this book I intend to 'rage, rage against the dying of the light' as well as exploring options for changing our fate". Furthermore, as Dr Brown realises that his subject matter might be "heavy and depressing", he tells us he will lighten our journey with various distracting interludes". Each of the main chapters, therefore, are accompainied by an interlude. I am not sure that Dr Brown's interludes provides relief because they are just as realistic and hard hitting as the main chapters. However, they provide a wonderful historical and literary digression. For example, there are medical history, myths and poetry. There are quotations from Dante, Homer, Shakespeare and a twentieth century poet, Dylan Thomas.

I read the book in an optimistic frame of mind but was constantly faced with a bleak reality. As I read I spotted this conundrum: "life expectancy in the UK rose by 2.2 years between 1991 and 2001, but healthy life expectancy rose by only 0.6 years; while ill health rose by 1.6 years". I tried to solve the conundrum by reafirming that I will retire from work no later than 65 and not press on any further as recently suggested as a way to solve the pension crisis. However, Dr Brown soon presented another set of statistics that showed: "old age people are supposed to undergo a process of 'disengagement' from family, friends and society". Bear in mind that Dr Brown regards old age as starting at 65. I felt hopelessly loss; I felt like going into work and immediately announce my retirement.

It is not that I was afraid of Dr Brown's main message. On the contrary that message: "people dying today are old or very old, and die from chronic, degenrative dieases that kill them over years or decades" is to be welcomed. The problem I had with the message was that one was left with the impression that Dr Brown has an axe to grind as like a leitmotif it kept recurring throughout the book in various guises. Here is the same message rapt in a slightly different package: "people are dying older and older, so exposing them to illnesses that increase with age".

In contrast to the above issue about the way many of us will die, Dr Brown flips the coin on the other side and examines two contrasting theories of how life is lived doday. His explanation of these two theories are very clear. There is the digital theory of life as opose to the analogue theory of life. The former theory depicts an all or nothing scenario of life while the latter depicts a life of degrees and shade.

Another major theme of the book, or perhaps a variation on a theme, that I found quite intriguing was the issue about how we have moved from acute diseases and death to chronic diseases and death. This recurring theme raised a number of important questions such as, are we prepared to pay more taxes to provide medical treatment for the chronically sick? Are we prepared to re-organized our lives to provide more care for our elderly relatives? And should we have to tolerate a slow lingering death?

But as Dr Brown outlined how debilitating diseases such as Alzheimers attack the brain and reduce once highly active people to mere dependants, he managed to convey,very well, an aspect of the human condition, decline and death, that is not normally well covered in other literature. His account of pope John Paul's II decline was quite simply moving.

Dr Brown also shows us the impact of politics and econmics on medicine. There is little point in pharmaceutical companies striving to develop cures - this would not make economic sense. But if that is the case one has to ask what are governments doing about it? After all in many developed countries it is the government who subsidises medical treatment by of course taxation.

Ultimately, Dr Brown's thesis is a subtle argument for euthanaisia, one that I don't necessarily opose. However, I believe that The Living End will quite simply be the most thought provoking and influential book that I will read this year.

Author: Susan Jeffers
By Hay House Inc

Author: Sandra Anne Taylor
By Hay House

A Quantum Achievement, 2008-07-19
Quantum Success has to be THE most insightful treatise on the subject of personal wealth creation that I have ever read. Why? Because the author, Sandra Anne Taylor, genuinely narrates a philosophy that is wholey grounded in metaphysics and plain common sense. If you have ever studied the Cosmic Ordering approach to getting what you want and found that it simply does not work then I emplore you to buy this book for within its pages are contained one essential revelation after another. It took me over six months to read it for time and again I would have to pause over a sentance, or even a simple statement, and allow it to become absorbed into my sub-conscious before moving on. It is a joyous and thoroughly illuminating read. It changed my life - which after reading several hundred publications on the same subject, I had given up hope of ever finding a book that would do so. Wonderful!

Author: Wayne M. Becker, Lewis J. Kleinsmith, Jeff Hardin
By Pearson Education

Author: William H. Elliott, Daphne C. Elliott
By OUP Oxford

An easy to understand Biochemistry text book, 2005-12-31
This is a great text book for biochemistry if you need find and understand the facts fast. It has great diagrams and illustrations that make it easy to visualise the concepts and it is written in a way that makes it easy to understand complex mechanisms.

Author: Deepak Chopra
By Amber-Allen Publishing

The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success, 2008-10-09
To all of you who know me, you know that I love this type of book but this one is the cake with the cherry on the top. It makes most of the others appear shallow in a strange way. This is short,only 111 pages but it packs a mighty punch. I found that I was reading it slowly as I didn't want it to end. It outlined in such clear terms what others have been saying on the laws of the universe and how to tap into them to receive what you need out of life. One chapter that hit me between the eyes was how we are responsible for our feelings. I knew this as an academic concept but perhaps because of the wording, I realised that if someone said something to me which upset me, then it wasn't their fault but mine for feeling the way I did. I started to see events and conversations in a different way. I accepted responsibility for my feelings in a way I had never done before and this movement from abstract understanding of an academic concept to full personal responsibility of thoughts and feeling was new and extremely powerful. Sometimes we need someone to say something in a different was for the full penny to drop into the slot and we have that ah ha moment. This book was my ah ha moment. I know that it is not a new book but I hope that you get as much out of this pocket book as I did.

Author: John Hancock
By OUP

Clear Introductory Text, 2001-05-03
This is a relatively easy introduction to cell signalling. Material is fairly up-to-date and many useful diagrams. Lists of references and further reading for those who wish to explore further. Probably one of the best texts available for an introduction to cell signalling.

Author: Roger J.B. King, Mike W. Robins
By Prentice Hall

Superb, 2005-09-08
Biochmistry is a daunting thing for most students, let alone the specifics as relates to cancer formation and development! This book is the best thing to give you a great grouding in the cancer topic. I found it so easy to read, to understand and refer to, and only a basic understanding of cell biology and biochemistry is needed, as the chapters flow from one to another explaining everything as it goes. The chapters themselves are layed out logically, the diagrams, though not very colourful or bright, are relevant, very clear and easy to understand. I will admit that it may not be very technical, thus not suitable alone for all courses, but it's a book I (as a medical student) can recommend to anyone struggling with the topic or who may be just curious about it, or any other medics out there! Top notch, and definitely not one I'd get rid of anytime soon...