David S. Goodsell

A colorful and somewhat approachable book about the molecular machines inside our cells. This book bridged a gap I didn't know existed, between high school chemistry and physics on one side, and biology on the other.

While fascinating and mostly lucid, sometimes the soup of molecule names became a bit much. And I would have been very interesting in learning more about *how* these fancy molecules interact with one another. But it seems to be implied that these mechanisms are terribly show more complicated, and probably would have expanded the scope of this book too much.

Overall, a fascinating overview of a topic I knew nothing about. I feel I learned a lot and gained quite a bit of intuition about the cellular automata. Well worth a read! show less

Excellent illustrations, engagingly written. Comprehensible by lay audience.

The author provides a discussion of cell biology and organic molecules using illustrations. The illustrations provide insight into the complexity of the organism, organelles, and organic molecules. The sections on cellular senescence and death are interesting. I also enjoyed reading about the interactions of drugs and vitamins. Sections on bacteria, viruses, and the specialized cells of plants and animals was also helpful.

An illustrated manual of biochemistry, this book show us the structure of the molecules involved in life processes. Illustrations and computer generated images show the shape, configuration and orientation of molecular machines in situ as well as the three-dimensional shapes of proteins, lipids, polysaccharides, nucleic acids. Describes structures of human cells, bacteria, and viruses. Covers cellular processes from DNA repair to aging and death. Explores vitamins, toxins, and drugs.