Benjamini E, Coico R, Sunshine G: Immunology, 4th Ed, 498 pp, New York, Wiley-Liss, 2000 ($48.50).

Nonimmunologists who occasionally visit the overcrowded arena of immunology books, like this reviewer, probably remember the book of Dr. Benjamini and his associates by its motto “less is more.” Coping with a deluge of new discoveries makes the task of living by this motto extremely hard, but here is the best that these experienced educators have come up—all condensed into 500 pages. I thought that a few details here and there could have been deleted without much harm, but then, I imagine the authors would have been criticized for not having included this or that “essential cytokine” or such a “major breakthrough” as the lectin activated pathway of complement activation. Overall, I think that they have completed their task marvelously.

For the fourth edition, the authors have revamped the book and included hundreds of color drawings. They have rewritten much of the text and added good review material for the students. There is no doubt that these changes have increased the didactic value of the book and made it even more attractive. I like especially the study material at the end of each chapter because it forces students to think and apply their newly acquired knowledge. Although this features seems to be aimed primarily at medical students, college undergraduates could use it as well.

Immunology teachers who are using the previous editions of this book will be pleased by the latest revision, and I suspect that some new adoptions will be forthcoming. The book is well suited for one-semester college courses of immunology. I do not believe that the medical students could read it in the usual time allotted to immunology in the new curricula, but it has good material that neither the students nor their professors should ignore.