The Essential Book of Traditional Chinese Medicine: Clinical Practice

This book is brief enough to be used as a handy reference, yet filled with just the right amount of accurate detail to give a complete, concise picture of a subject sometimes obscured by hype. All the basic theoretical landmarks (yin-yang, five phases, meridians, six excesses, seven emotions, eight principles) are given attention, together with a glimpse of diagnostic and treatment techniques. All the information presented on disease-patterns, diagnostic techniques, etc., is summarized into clear tables. Informative footnotes are used to clarify and expand, as well as refer the reader to both classical and modern sources. This book is less flashy than others which purport to present Chinese Medicine, yet I believe it is one of the better introductory texts, both because of its size, and because it maintains a balance between information for students and a language accessible to interested laypersons with no prior knowledge of Acupuncture or TCM. It makes no debased claims, and presents all the information from a scholarly perspective, based on current teaching and practice models used in the People's Republic of China. The style is sober, yet engaging and easy to read.As a student of Chinese Medicine, I encourage everybody who is interested in this subject to add this book to their reading list. It is one of the books I'm always going back to when studying from other texts.

This is an excellent book for people deeply interested in understanding true Traditional Oriental Medicine. The book is efficiently designed, the index is excellent, and the writing is clear. Chapter one gives an overview. Then there is a concise explanation of yin-yang theory and the Five Elements. The Organ and Channel systems are well-defined and described in enough detail to give a good comprehensive feel for their inter-relationships. The causes and course of disease is thoughtfully presented. Finally the Methods of Examination and Diagnosis are covered, again with enough detail so that a new student to traditional medicine can, in reading just this one book, have a good basic foundation for pursuing the life-long study of this most profound medicine. On the down side, Oriental Medicine is such a vast field that no one book can give more than a brief overview, or else a deep look into a single area of investigation. Also if you are looking for treatment protocols this book does not have them. And because of the length of the book (only 305 pages) the depth of detail is not great. The book is dedicated to laying out, effectively and efficiently the foundations of Traditional Chinese Medicine. And that task has been well done.