Does anyone have any thoughts as to which would be better:
Grant’s Atlas of Anatomy vs. Atlas of Human Anatomy by Netter
and
Stedman’s Medical Dictionary vs. Dorland’s Medical Dictionary
Also, any thoughts about how helpful the following texts are? They are part of the suggested or strongly suggested list of textbooks but are not covered by financial aid.
Lippincott Illustrated Reviews Biochemistry from Champe and Harvey
Stryer’s Biochemistry
Langman’s Medical Embryology from Sadler
Any thoughts would be GREATLY appreciated. Thanks!
Grant’s vs. Netters
Most students prefer Netters, most profs seem to like Grant’s, for some reason. Either one is fine. The pictures in Netters are better drawn and better for getting a feel of where things are, but Grant’s has some nice explanations. Grant’s also comes with a CD that you can use to quiz yourself. I bought Netters, and then if I felt Netter’s was lacking, I would go to the library and check out the Grant’s that was on closed reserve for a couple of hours.
The past few years, AMSA has been offering you a free copy of Netter’s if you join and apply for their credit card (which you can then cancel).
Stedman’s vs. Dorland’s
I have Stedman’s and I really like it. I’ve never looked at Dorland’s. A nice feature of Stedman’s is that it has a CD that you can basically load all of the definitions on your computer so that you don’t have to lug around the dictionary. Plus, it has audio pronounciation of the terms, which is great.
You can probably get a copy of Stedman’s free for joining AMA at orientation.
Lippencott’s
A nice biochem book. The explanations are clear, and there are lots of diagrams and etc demonstrating concepts and the links between them. A little weak on certain concepts, and you may have to refer to another biochem text for those (coagulation comes to mind).
Stryer’s
Don’t know anything about it.
Langman’s Embryology
Ugh. Some parts of it are good, but overall, I think it is WAY too detailed for what med students need to know.
My suggestion on the “suggested” list. Wait until you start school and see how much you need them. Your library should have a copy of these books available on closed reserve (for use only in the library). You may find that a couple hours in the library is sufficient for what you need them for. Or - see if a classmate would like to go in and share the cost of the “suggested books”.
My school will give out two lists of reccomended texts - one by the faculty, and one by the students. I’m going to primarily use the student list because it’ll have only what I need, and I’m not going to buy a thing until class starts: I don’t want to spend money on expensive books I won’t use. If you’re in class, then that’s cool, but there’s no need until then.
Also, if you love using your computer, check out student consult . You can buy access to a lot of great books including Robbins, Guyton and Hall, etc., and it won’t cost you near as much as if you buy the books themselves.
You might also find that your school gives you access to mdconsult.com, and a lot of great books are available online through them as well.
Most of all, do what you said and don’t buy anything until you get to school! And good luck as you begin your journey thru med school!