The book has four sections: fundamentals of psychiatric practice; general adult psychiatry; psychiatric sub-specialties; and reference material. The clinical disorders are covered concisely under the headings of aetiology, epidemiology, clinical features, differential diagnoses, assessment/investigation, management and prognosis. All the psychiatric subspecialties have been adequately represented. The ICD-10 and DSM-IV coding index has also been provided.

The important information that a trainee in psychiatry needs on a day-today basis for the assessment and management of common and urgent situations, as well as medication with dosages and side-effects, has been adequately covered. The chapters on legal and ethical issues, mental health legislation in the UK and Republic of Ireland, and therapeutic issues deserve special mention as they provide precise information, which was previously difficult to find from a single source. The separate section on difficult and urgent situations will be an excellent aid for psychiatric trainees while on-call.

The book is bulky, which suggests that the fine balance between being overinclusive and being precise might not have been attained. However, this might change with later editions. The need for a chapter on evidence-based psychiatry in a handbook is a matter of debate. It is, however, a very well written chapter.

The title of the chapter ‘Disorders of behaviour’ suggests that in other clinical disorders there is no disorder of behaviour. The ICD-10 heading for this group of conditions ‘Behavioural syndromes associated with physiological disturbance and physical factors’ might have been more accurate. A few more blank pages for a reader to make their own notes would have been beneficial.

The authors need to be commended for this book which definitely measures up to the high standards set by other handbooks in the Oxford series. The simple note-based format makes for easy reading. It is a valuable resource for medical students during their psychiatry placements, senior house officers and, most importantly, those preparing for the MRCPsych examinations. Busy consultants and specialist registrars will find this book a useful quick reference and it will doubtless find a place in the bags of all psychiatric trainees.