Edited by Rebecca Tenney-Soeiro and Erin Pete Devon

ISBN 978-0-323-79608-8

Published by Elsevier

Price £72.99

https://www.uk.elsevierhealth.com/netters-pediatrics-9780323796088.html

This is another fine example from the Netter series and for those of you who don’t know who Frank Netter (1906-1991) was, he was a brilliant medical illustrator. The publisher of this book bought his collection and brought them to life for a new medical audience. Many of the images needed updating and the collection has a new lead bringing fresh life to this superb collection. So, carrying the title “Netter” you expect this book to be richly illustrated and it is.

The book is beautifully produced with the expected rich and many illustrations and the paper is glossy and has a classy feel to it. However, although it may look good, it is the knowledge contained within it’s hardback covers that is very important and this book does very well on this score. The contributors come from the United States with most of them coming from Philadelphia. The editors come from there as well and so this community probably know each other quite well and I think this positively contributes to the excellence of this book.

The quality of the text which should be the core of any good book is excellent and so combined with the superb and educational images makes for a cracking general textbook. It covers a lot of territory and makes a good all round reference source of paediatrics. Take for example the chapter on Human Immunodeficiency Virus, chapter 86 is superb, informative and easy to read. Figure 86.1 is a beautiful and very understandable diagram of the lifecycle (and therapeutic targets against HIV) of the Human Immunodeficiency Virus. (HIV) Whilst table 86.4 is a page long table of appropriate antiretroviral medications for children. The text is again easy to read and well written.

The book follows the trend set by chapter 86 and the excellent texts is highlighted by the beautiful and many illustrations and tables and without doubt, it is a quality textbook. Most of the chapters are relatively short, maybe a few pages but still packed with detail and relatively easy to read.

Even better, the purchase price of the book includes a subscription to the web app of the contents of the book which was easy to access. It is also easy to use and very useful. I could not get the smartphone app to download the book and I contacted technical support. They explained (and replied quickly) that the publishers are changing platforms and the problem will resolve. But currently there is no smartphone app to support their current (new) eBook web platform

This is an excellent book that upholds the Netter tradition and is deserving of the title Netter. It is a top class book and despite it’s price, will represent a decent purchase for a regular user.

Dr Harry Brown

2^nd December 2022