The Revolution in Medical Imaging

Gr. 6-9. Tied to health and science curricula, books in the Library of Future Medicine series are made to order for reports. Surgery takes readers from the days when the cure for a headache was making a hole in the skull to the modern surgical suite before speculating on what's to come. It's the less technical of these two volumes, as well as the most interesting, with only a few macabre specifics. There's also a nod to ethical questions. Moe's text is drier, subject notwithstanding, but the author does a commendable job of explaining the workings of some very complicated diagnostic equipment--from X rays to nuclear imaging--without overdoing technicalities. She also makes clear some of the risks and advantages of the procedures. The series design isn't particularly inviting. The illustrations, a few in each volume, are well chosen (no gruesome shots), but, despite generous leading, the narrow margins and the enlarged, bold typeface make the text seem unnecessarily daunting and hard on the eye. A bibliography and Web sites are among appended materials. Stephanie Zvirin
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