Hands down, Campbell's Biology is the most beautifully written and illustrated biology textbook on the market and has remained so through many, many editions. I am a plant biologist and was pleased to see that even at the introductory level, this book gave plant life equal prominence with animal biology. If you want to fall in love with biology, this is the text to get you there. Campbell and Reese accompanied me through freshman biology, every upper level undergrad and graduate biology course I took, and finally served as an indispensable reference when studying for my qualifying examinations. I don't currently teach intro bio, but if and when I do, Campbell and Reese will lead my selections for the textbook.
On more practical matters for the potential book buyer--While it is fantastic to have the most up-to-date edition, we are talking intro bio here. So you really can't go wrong by grabbing a discount copy of the sixth edition and hanging onto it for dear life. Every edition of this text is worthy of a place in your permanent collection. And it is heads and shoulders above a crowded field of competitors. Couldn't offer any higher praise than this. |
Biology Books In Print, Audio Books.