Rating: 
Summary: an easy way to understand
Review: this book is a great introduction for beginners or just interested people without a big knowledge in genetics. it shows the basic genetic mechanisms, whose understanding is essential for continueing literature. and by the way...who does not like reading comics
Rating:
Summary: Amazingly acccessible description of gene mechanisms
Review: This book is a very insightful peek into the world of genetics and microbiology. It's a great place to start understanding the science. It's also a great 'view from 50,000 feet' for someone who just wants an overview of the mechanics of genetics. Highly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: Really good introduction
Review: This book is just another of Larry Gonick's successes in books. After borrowing a couple of his books I decided to buy most of his publications. No dissapointed with my decision yet. This book covers all the basics of molecular and some cell biology in a very entertained way. The style, as always, is very simple and make it easy to address a complex topic that I found really easy to understand with this book. Although, I think that "The Way Life Work" does a better job than this book in approaching this topic.
Rating:
Summary: A Great Way To Teach The World About Genetics
Review: This book is very cute, funny, and yet educational. I recommend this book to people who wants to know genetics without having to read "too much science". I personally, buy this book for my family and my boyfriend, to let them know what kind of field I'm interested in (I'm an undergraduate University of Indonesia student, studying genetics)
Rating:
Summary: An excellent book
Review: This book is wonderful.I am an Egyptian geneticist and this book has added much to my way of teaching to my students.Now ,I can easily symbolize the behaviour of DNA during replication and transcription.The presentation of the authors of the the transcription process is so fascinating.An arabic edition has been issued and in low price affordable by students here in Egypt and so i recommeded it to my students as simple review book . Please send a thank you to the authors.GO ON. \AHMED SHOUKRY AMIN, ASSISTANT LECTURER OF GENETICS., ZOOLOGY DEPARTMENT, FACULTY OF SCIENCE, CAIRO UNIVERISTY ,EGYPT. kemetcho@yahoo.com
Rating: 
Summary: Great introductory text to genetics
Review: This book was written in 1983 to present an interesting and unintimidating approach to explaining Mendelian genetics, interspersing humor with history and simplifying some of the harder, but still "basic" concepts: co-dominance, how proteins are made, eucaryotic genes, attenuation, recombinant dna, and basic cloning theory. I liked it because the historical background walks you through the scientists' reasoning, why a particular theory was correct (or not), and how the thinking has evolved over the last several hundred years. The final section of the book attempts to present some of the ethical dilemmas that result from the ability to "play dice." As the book is almost 20 years old, a lot of the "really interesting" discoveries and advancements in molecular biology and genetics aren't going to be there. Despite this, the book is, overall, a fine primer on Mendelian genetics.
Rating:
Summary: Great intro for readers of all ages
Review: This is a charming introduction to the basic ideas of genetics. Despite its amusing, basic style, there's a lot of good information here. It descibes recessive genes, not just with Mendel's pea plants but with a bible story as well. It summarizes the history of reproduction, and of what people have known of reproduction.
It goes on to modern molecular biology, DNA and the people who dsicovered it, and the mechanisms of DNA replication and protein synthesis. Gonick isn't afraid of complex ideas like introns - well-known now, but shockers when they were first discovered. The last sections cover gene regulation - why the cell does what, when - and recombination.
Unfortunately, this book dates all the way back to 1991. That's the medieval era in the biotech world, and a lot has changed. For example, we now know that the human genome holds about 30,000 genes, not the 200,000 estimated when this book was written. It's a real shame that Gonick hasn't written a newer edition to clean up those few dated facts and to include more of what's been discovered since. The errors are generally minor, though, and don't detract seriously from this unique presentation.
It's still the best light introduction around, humorous and serious at the same time. It's real science, so some of the terms might be a bit much for very young readers. Still, I recommend this to any interested adult and to any kid willing take it seriously and willing to listen when corrections have to be made.
//wiredweird
Rating: 
Summary: A Bit Dated but Good
Review: This is a good book, but there are times when it could be a bit clearer. Sometimes the cartoon style gets in the way. Sometimes there's a sizable jump in thinking from section to section. Still, all in all, it's a good read for an introduction to the subject. I did like the Mendel treatment very much. A good story that's very illustrative of how the basics work.
However, my main point in writing this review is that it could use a little updating. I have the "Updated" edition, which was written in 1991. It's 2005 and the references are way out of date. Check with Amazon to find out if the edition they are selling has a more recent set of references. Despite the age of the book, the material is pretty much independent of recent changes. Amino acids, proteins, Mendel, DNA are still the same today. Some reviewer mentioned that human gene count is out of date. 200,000 in the book vs 20-30K from recent data. OK, but the ideas are still the same. Nevertheless, a newer edition would be welcome.
I would have given the book 4 stars, but the age took away one of the stars.
Rating:
Summary: Genetics for dummies
Review: this is a pretty good book that covers the basics, but I would never confuse this with a textbook. I would have to disagree with the assertion that it "puts all textbooks to shame," as the Harvard prof put it. it's good for laypersons who might not have any prior knowledge of genetics. however, for those of us who are biology majors/biochem minors, at least this was what I was thinking: aww, how cute, a comic book. don't get me wrong- I'm not trying to insult the authors. nonscience people who want to learn about this stuff should because the subject matter and current implications in food and agriculture are important, and it's a good book to start off with.
Rating: 
Summary: Poorly written and uninformative
Review: This piece of junk found its way to my garbage can not long after buying it. I've had great success with the "For Dummies" series in acquiring computer application knowledge, so figured that this book could replicate that success in a scientific field. That was not the case. Cartoon-based, this book is more properly called cartoonish. It explains genetics poorly, if at all, and makes over-generalizations, too simplistic analogies, and dull, plodding stabs at bringing this interesting field to light. Definitely a pass for any serious reader, dilettante, or the idly curious.
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