Essential Developmental Biology

Overall, I think this is a very good introductory text for developmental biology. It is clear, concise, and does a fairly good job of explaining a difficult subject. The book, true to its title, nicely presents the essentials required for a student to traverse the rough terrain of development. Shankar Srinivas, Journal of Cell Science

There is a clear flow of information, and a simple account throughout, on the relationship between gene expression and function. Slack succeeds in giving a uniquely plain-talking and essential guide to the subject in the form of an inexpensive paperback handbook. [...] I will certainly teach from this book and would prefer to use its very direct approach for one or two topics which are unnecessarily complicated in Wolpert and Gilbert. Laurie Haynes, British Society for Developmental Biology, Winter 2001

This is a textbook that I wish i'd had as an undergraduate. Jonathan Slack has produced a truly useful text on developmental biology, in which all the contributory elements are effortlessly integrateed. No one area is over-emphasised; for example, cell biology and genetics share equal space with embryology, which often tneds to dominate a book on this subject [...] Slack has the gift of summarising in a very concise manner without leaving the reader with the impression that the 'text' is missing something [...] The end result is a value-for-money, slim-line paperback that will enlighten, stimulate and motivate. 'Essential Developmental Biology' will genuinely help students to understand a complex area of sciences and deserves to be widely adopted as a set text. Gareth Cuttle, Department of Physiological Sciences

This book represents a timely and welcome addition to the literature of a complex field that students often find hard to grasp. Kevin Coward, Institute of Biology