The classic medical textbook tends to be overly technical, excessively detailed, profusely referenced, and the antithesis of enjoyable reading. With the expectation of many hours of hard work, I lvas unprepared for the pleasure that lay ahead. This book is what we in the United States call a " sleeper ". Without pomp or solemnity it captures you with a light-hearted style that subtly belies its sophistication. The authors have indeed mastered the art of simplicity, combining profound knowledge with an airy format, to a degree that is hard to emulate. All the salient features o. fpacing are...

Echocardiography has become an essential tool for good practice of cardiology. Intro- duction of 2-D echocardiography has opened a new em of cardiac imaging and investigation. The rapid progress in the field of echocardiography has created an extreme need, now more than ever, for a practical book which is concise, yet complete, well illustrated with good quality tracings and which provides the latest information on the state of the art of combined M-Mode and 2-D) echocardiography. In this book " The Essentials in Echocardiogra- phy " Drs. Laurenceau and Malergue have done an excellent job of...