Customer Reviews

Biochemistry

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

My university uses this book for the two-semester biochem sequence for BSc Chemistry/Biochemistry students. It's a well-written book, overall -- lots of information but not a very dense "scientific" read. The best part is the way the authors keep tying things back to reality ... sidebars explain how the dynamics of protein folding affect Alzheimer's disease, or what protease inhibition means for the development of HIV drugs.

The figures are aesthetically pleasing and really help to clarify descriptions in the text. The only problem is that the figures are usually a couple pages away from the text they refer to. For example, when describing the mechanism of chymotrypsin cleavage, it would make a lot more sense to put all the text on the left page and the mechanism/structures on the right page. Instead, the text is about three pages before the mechanism, meaning the reader has to keep flipping back and forth trying to understand what is going on. It's like that in most if not all cases. Not a big deal, but it's the sort of thing the layout editor should have realized when putting the book together. Maybe they'll fix it in the fourth edition.

Regardless, this is a very good biochem book. I'd recommend it for an undergraduate student of chemistry or biochemistry.

I used this book for all four years of biochemistry classes while getting my B. S. in biochemistry. This book was my main reference in classes which suggested other texts. It saved me thousands of dollars because I never had to buy another book on the subject. I still use it two years later as a reference in my lab. In addition, it has been incredibly helpful while making my way through my Master's. I can't think of a subject that it leaves untouched. It is a relatively easy read and it's very logically laid out.

I struggled through my first two semesters of biochemistry with this book. It is absolutely terrible. The language is contorted and overly confusing. Relatively unimportant concepts are explained in excruciating detail while important things (like the PDH compex) are given short shrift.

Fortunately I discovered Lehninger before the end of my second semester, and after reading it everything became much more clear. My advice if this book is required for your course: buy Lehninger and photocopy the G&G problem sets from a friend if you have to. It is a superior text and it's cheaper.

This book is very detailed and covers a wide range of bio-chemistry information.