Customer Reviews

Immunobiology

5 star:		(23)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Janeway's Immunobiology is probably the best immunology book that someone really interested in immunology should take to the mythical desert island. One can enjoy it by its clarity from the basic graduate courses, and then keep reading it when doing research and pursuing hypothesis on the most advanced immunological topics. Many times I have found better organized and complete information on this book (even the old editions!) than on the latest reviews on specialized journals. The intense and careful work displayed to promote the real understanding on the concepts and the relations between immune components is impressive. Even more, the success in explanation is such that the authour takes the risk to have his book neglected as "too easy" by first time readers. However, immunology researchers in contact with the often chaotic and contradictory immunological literature can really appreciate the incredible amount of critical work invested and the intellectual gift of the author (authors) to abstract complex immune phenomena into nicely designed and biologically precise "cartoons". The focus on the evolutionary and functional consequences/origins of the immune mechanisms and structures makes Janeway's book one of the most refreshing and valuable voices in a sometimes too-technically oriented discipline. An impressive accomplishment never praised enough.

I cannot say enough good things about this book. I'm a graduate student in Microbiology and Immunology, but my undergraduate major was in biochemistry. Having had NO immunology classes before, I felt myself beginning to drown in my first graduate immunology class... I knew I needed help (there was no textbook for this lecture-only class), and went searching. This is the book I eventually bought.

It saved me, big time! In plain language, and with easy-to-follow pictures throughout, this book literally taught me all about immunology--it is the reason I passed my classes; NOT sitting stunned in some lecture hall listening to some guy drone. It took some work, and I had to read the book almost front-to-back, but it is a WONDERFUL text.

This book is not really a graduate caliber text, however. For specific and more technical aspects, books like the one by Paul are going to be the ticket. But even now, when looking to brush up on my basics, design pictures for a lecture, etc. I refer back to this book first. Only 3 years old, my copy is dog-eared, worn, and well-used. I often end up with classmates and professors asking to use it, too.

If you find yourself desperate and failing in an immunology class, BUY THIS BOOK AND READ IT. If you are taking any immunology text, and your prof has chosen a really cruddy book you are having difficulty understanding, do the same. If you're a professor trying to teach an immunology class, USE THIS BOOK. Make life a whole lot easier on your students--and you, when grading and evaluations time comes around!

Janeway and his co-authors have prepared a masterful text with remarkably clear exposition of the myriad of details in this rapidly developing field. It is replete with illustrations, including cartoon-like diagrams, histological slides, and tables, each of which are used to illuminate the discussion as deemed helpful by the authors. They present an incredible amount of information, and the text, reflecting recent revision, is remarkably current. This volume is suitable as a text for a course in immunology for medical students, or as an introduction to the subject for graduate students requiring knowledge of the immune system. It is perhaps advanced for most undergraduate courses, although the text is sufficiently clear that undergraduates can comprehend the material. It is primarily a question of whether the undergraduate reader has received sufficient foundation in cell and molecular biology to possess the presumed foundational knowledge. This is no "brief" overview. It is stuffed with detail giving students a thorough foundation in this fascinating field. A real tour de force.

This book is excellent for anyone who have some biology backgrand at the undergrad level and also for graduate students who need basic knowlege on immunogoly for researh. This book describes complicated mechnisms in details with such simplicity that even I, a psychology graduage student, can easily understnad by reading a page top to down withought going back to previous sentences. In addition, things are described very logically, which helps me memorize them. If you are interested in going into immunological research, you will be impressed by the fact that this book also describes latest research methods used in immunological studies.

What can i say? THIS BOOK SAVED MY LIFE!! I was forced to buy "Immunology" by Parslow-Stites, but it was so complex for me , because i didn't knew the basics. This is where Janeway shows up. You will quickly learn facts that will help you a lot understanding immunology, and make your lecturer surprises because of the depth of your knowledge. LOTS OF DIAGRAMS and DRAWINGS make this the PERFECT BOOK for Immunology. Don't search more, you've found the book you'll need.

Janeway's immunobiology is beautifully written for both medical and basic biological studies. With the update of a new edition every two years, this textbook is moving closely with this rapid scientific field. The big improvement seen in this edition is its organization and writing style. Compared to the previous edition, the authors explain concept much more concisely and less verbosely. The pictures drawn ( in a simple, friendly cartoon formats)throughout the text are nice and helpful to understand. The references given at the end of each chapter are carefully chosen. Overall, this immunology textbook covers all we need to understand all major concepts in immunology.

This is by far the most well written immunology text I have encountered. Even the most difficult concepts are presented in the most understandable manner. This book is very extensive in the material it covers and is highly recommended for an advanced undergraduate student or as an introductory graduate text. By far the feature most appealing to me are the extensive images and cartoons used in this text, used quite effectively to elucidate even the most difficult of topics. This visual presentation style combined with the extensive and highly readble coverage of relevant material make this a must have for any serious student. The book is also updated frequently I believe a new edition is on the way slated to be publsihed in April 2004.

This is by far the clearest immunology textbook I have ever seen. It rivals but easily outshines other commonly used immunology textbooks, such as Kuby and Roitt. Replete with fantastic diagrams, lots of color, and beautifully written prose. It also does a great job bridging together all of the material, rather than introducing them as disconnected pieces and leaving them as such. I would highly recommend this book to anyone seeking some clarity in this field!

I'm a beginner at immunology, and I have almost no immunological background. My boss, who is a medical doctor that's published and has been cited in this book, recommended this book to me, so that I may catch up to understand his research and build a foundation in immunology.

This is one of the only books I've ever been able to read on my own and actually understand and digest all the material. And everything beyond the first chapter is absolutely new material to me, but this book just made learning immunology easy and fun. It's probably the only textbook I'd ever use as free-reading material and actually enjoy. As one of the reviewers has mentioned, the best feature about this book is the "cartoons" that illustrate pretty complex biological mechanisms. I learn things visually, and I can't emphasize just how well the cartoons help me understand what I can't normally pick up from just reading the text. And, they're also really cutely drawn. From the standpoint of a beginner in Immunology, this book is probably one of the best textbooks.

This book rocks. It is unbelievably well written and can be used by immunology students at all levels. Each chapter begins by explaining how what you are about to read fits into the big picture, it then explains how the section will be broken down and why as well as where in the book such subjects will be further discussed. As each section begins, another review pulls the details out from under the microscope and back into their place in the overall function. There are fabulous diagrams and each one has additional explanations written slightly differently than the body of the text, so if you didn't understand when reading thru the chapter, there is a 2nd chance for achieving understanding by reading the diagram explanations. All too often, texts this technical get lost in detail and and leave students with a fragmented understanding and lots of frustration. Not so with this text. Even thru the tuffest most technical parts when memory and understanding may get muddy, this book keeps you well aware of where your understanding fell off, you still have the big picture and a chronology that instills confidence in continuing through the material with a successful outcome.