The appearance of this massive work after years of preparation represents a major publishing milestone in pediatrics. It is the stated intent of the editors to relate the basic science aspect of pediatrics to clinical practice, and the book is a natural outgrowth of the expanding, productive basic research in pediatrics.
The book is divided into three parts. The first, "Sciences Fundamental to an Understanding of Growth and Maturation," is a pedantically turgid exposition of cell biology, heredity, and the behavioral sciences, too much for a pediatrics book and not enough for a text on cell biology.
The second part, "Anatomic and Functional Systems of the Child," forms approximately two thirds of this bulky book. The content corresponds to the standard American textbooks, but the manner of presentation is vastly different. Major emphasis is given to the relation of disease to structure and function, with attention to clinical descriptions. For