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Rating: 
Summary: A nonessential purchase.
Review: For some reason, this book has become a standard for otolaryngology residents, despite the fact that much of the material is outdated and in some areas, incomplete. The concept for this book would make a great resource, if it really did cover the "essentials".
Rating: 
Summary: an excelent review book
Review: K J Lee's Essential Otolaryngology-head and Neck surgery is not only an outstanding review book for otolaryngologist, but also a good reference book for medical personnel. The book is written in a summary format and some prior knowledge of the topic is necessary. Separate sections on "pharmacology and therapeutics in ENT" and "highlights and pearls" are provided at the end of the book for reference and final review. This textbook is used by many ENT physicians as they progress through their residency training and often used by physicians reviewing for their board examination. None-the-less, this is a review book and does not replace standard otolaryngology textbooks. Nursing staff in ENT clinics and hospital units, benefit from its concise disease presentation format, as they refresh their memory about a particular head and neck disease process. Medical students, often use the book to become familiar with their assigned cases, presentations, and to prepare for rounds. The seventh edition of this book has new information on allergy, endoscopic sinus surgery, and oncology. I do not recommend this book to general public, since without prior otolaryngology medical knowledge, understanding of the subject can be challenging. Having read the past three editions of this book, I would recommend it to medical personnel (physicians, physician assistants, nurses, and students) involved in practice of otolaryngology.
Rating: 
Summary: controversial
Review: This book has been controversial for at least two reasons. The first reason is if colleagues are asked when to get this [thick, mostly outline format soft covered] text, some say right away for it can serve as a scaffold to "hang information on". And then there are those on the other side of the spectrum who say this book is difficult to take in for the junior folks on the service and should be reserved for those at the chief resident level who know these issues on several levels.
The second controversy is that this book has a title of "essential" when it might not cover all that is actually essential. And, as a corollary, what about information that is "nonessential"? Shouldn't the BC/BE head and neck surgeon be familiar with those issues as well? Regardless of these issues, I have sampled several books and think this book does not have a contender in its class. I would highly recommend it IF one is going to buy a book about otolarynology, but not if they think that they have to get this book to be a knowledgeable house officer or ancillary professional. I bought this book as a PGY1 a few years ago and it has certainly been a handy text to have in the call room and to prepare for the inservice. This book should not be intended for medical students due to its density in relation to student rotation duration, or attendings in relation to their assumed familiarity with material.
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