Biochemistry: A Functional Approach

This 42-chapter text on what might be called "general biochemistry" is intended, according to the author's preface, "for those wishing to understand living organisms, especially those who strive to define and ameliorate human ills." The functional approach of the title is not new, but it represents a reasonable meshing of physiological chemistry, clinical correlations, and mammalian biochemistry; the emphasis, most appropriately, is on the last. The book is well printed in the new popular color combination of black and rust, and, although it contains no exercises for solidifying or extending textual material, the author does cite a few review and technical references for further reading. A strong point is the thoughtful inclusion of a boxed outline at the beginning of each chapter describing the organization of what is to follow. A weak point is the unsure bridging of chapters: topics proceed from amino acids and proteins to DNA and RNA