Neil A. Campbell (1946–2004)

In twelfth grade AP Biology I had this book. I have vague memories of it. As with many science textbooks, I could read many paragraphs before I read the one sentence that delivered the point. However, I enjoyed reading this on my own time, which is more than what I can say for many textbooks. My teacher preferred to discipline argumentative students and rant about how AP students should be, and he hardly taught the material. We covered half the book: ecology, cell biology, and genetics. What show more of anatomy, physiology, and taxonomy? I read that on my own, not for test preparation, but because I love biology and this book was intellectually palatable enough to enjoy learning. show less

I wasn't going to review Biology by Neil A. Campbell, because well...
1. It's ubiquitous.
2. I studied from the sixth edition in high school for Biology AP and the eighth edition for first-year Biology, and while I read it, there were definitely places I didn't because I didn't have to or didn't want to or I fell asleep or I briefly wanted a social life.
3. Where are those Ph.D's that show I am expert enough to review a first-year textbook about biology?

But then, I remembered:
1. Until those show more free-source online textbooks gain user-friendliness and traction against the capitalist beast that is the textbook system, it will remain ubiquitous. (And boy, is that rant about the abuses of the textbook business long, off-topic, and totally for another day.)
2. That means I spent two years with it, and if nothing else I learned via idea diffusion while my head rested on its glossy pages because I got an A- grade average. (Idea diffusion is college student urban myth that is going to be proven any year now, just you wait and see.)
3. What else is education for than to teach you that you know nothing?

In short, I like it, actually. Even if the prose gets unwieldy at times, and the layout gets overwhelming... there's always a beautiful picture of a tentacly nautilus I can doodle into my notes or an interview with scientist who gets grants to give IQ tests to ants or something on the next page.

Can't hurt to get in that mythical volumes edition though; your back will probably thank me.

Also my prickly second-quarter Biology professor had a signed edition with him always. That level of respect has got to mean something. show less

Well written textbook. I used it both in high school and in college, and I found it helpful the entire way.

This was the textbook for all three of my intro-level Biology courses. It's a really good book. At some point, if I end up taking the Biology GRE, I'll probably just need to memorize pretty much the entire thing. :D