Reviewed by Dr Harry Brown

Louis Solomon, David Warwick and Selvadurai Nayagam

CRC Press

ISBN: 978-1-4441-7431-1

Price £27.99

http://www.crcpress.com/product/isbn/9781444174311

It’s good to see a British textbook which has evolved to a mature 4th edition, published in 2014 (so up to date) and at a reasonable price. This book ticks all these boxes and is an excellent basic introduction to orthopaedics and trauma that is readable, well illustrated and practical. It has a potential wide audience which includes GPs, students, and members of a musculoskeletal team as well as orthopods.

As the title suggests, this is a concise review and the book keeps to its title admirably. This is not a detailed or in depth textbook but a good all round general review and introduction which goes straight to the facts and there is really no excess baggage that is irrelevant. Despite that, the book is surprisingly comprehensive within its 486 pages -it is laid out into three logical sections-namely general orthopaedics, regional orthopaedics and fractures and joint injuries.

The depth of detail provided is ideal for a quick review of the topic in question-more in depth reading around the subject requires more detailed reading elsewhere. The quality of the numerous pictures and illustrations deserves special mention as they are of excellent quality and helpfully amplify the text for a better user experience. There are many colour pictures, illustrations and not surprisingly radiological images which adds great interest for the reader. These numerous images adds greatly to the educational experience of the book.

Included in the price of the book is electronic access both on a website http://www.vitalsource.com/ and as an app. Both are a fabulous boon and if you have a smartphone, you have instant (and offline) access to the full content of the book with an easy to use search facility. Or you can have web access which again can be very convenient. Instructions to use the eBook facility are clearly printed on the inside front cover of the book and this makes life much easier for the reader.

All in all, this is an excellent value for money book and with the built in bonus of access to the eBook version. It is a very good introduction or refresher for the subject and well worth considering if this is your need.

Dr Harry Brown

December 2014