Collins Advanced Science - Biology [Paperback]

I bought this book when i chanced upon it at my local Waterstones. It has lots of illustrations, colour photographs, and simple diagrams - but in terms of the detail and depth of information contained in the text it's quite lacking. I would recommend this book to those who struggle with new concepts, or horrible complex areas of the syllabus, such as respiration and photosynthesis; the book explains these areas in a simple straightforward manner, without too much biological jargon or useless information. The page layout is very clear and easy-to-follow, with blocks of text sectioned off under brightly coloured headers. On the other hand, this book just doesn't go into enough scientific detail for my liking. Many of the units and concepts covered lack the fine detail that would be needed to get an A grade. I have even spotted a mistake in the text (of the 2nd, and latest, Edition) - in the unit covering meiosis it says that during Early Prophase I the /centromeres/ move to opposite poles, when it should say that the micro-tubule organising centres (aka centrioles) move to opposite poles. Another annoying thing is that although they've wrongly mentioned the centromeres in their description of meiosis I, they also fail to mention the behaviour or function of the centromeres at all anywhere else in the unit - eg. under 'Metaphase I' they fail to mention that the centromeres do not replicate, for which reason the sister chromatids remain as a single unit and aren’t separated in the proceeding Anaphase. Furthermore, under 'Metaphase II' they don't mention at all that the centromeres divide, thus allowing each sister chromatid to form a daughter chromosome in the each of the gametes made - they simply say that each chromatid migrates to opposite poles, without saying how or why. The most annoying thing however, is that they do not provide answers to the past examination questions that are at the end of each chapter - and the CD-Rom which supposedly has those answers is apparently supplied by neither any of the major book retailers nor Collins themselves! If you want an in-depth A-grade book then i'd recommend 'Advanced Biology' by Oxford University Press - it's more detailed, has better exam questions (to which answers are provided in the back of the book!), and it also costs less!

I used this textbook alongside my AS Level Edexcel examboard Biology book. It was excellent in the sense of reading in depth and around the subject in general and reeally did fit in well with my biology syllabus.

It didn't really cover my A2 syllabus, whcih is a shame as I love the colourful pages, detailed explaination of key concepts and very concise and easy to understand text - particually very strong on the meiosis/mitosis concepts, which I felt wasn't covered very well in my exam board text book, and also the cardiac section is very good.

It was a very expensive textbook for me at the time as I only just started my AS biology when I bought it, however it paid off as I become much more confident in biology, had a wider knowledge of different concepts and it really did put me at an advantage over other students in the class and showed in my results!

A very good textbook, definitely well worth the money!

This Book is the bible for students taking advanced biology.
It covers everything you need and more. Its brim full of factual content and funky easy to read diagrams and pictures.
Aceness.
its easy to read as it is set for students, theres not to much waffle and jargon you usually find in biological textbooks. As I said a true life saver. The new edition is a lot better than the previous one and the mistakes have been corrected.
I was on a grade D at A-level until i purchased this book and with its aid and a little grit and determination i acheived a grade B. More proof of its effectiveness.
Cheers Mikey B!