Every once in a while, a very special reference work is published. This is one such example. The publishers announce in their blurb that they are proud to present “a precedent-setting image and graphics-packed series that …represents the textbook of the twenty first century!”. I think they have delivered.

The book is split into nine sections. The first six of these cover all of the major joints, via a regional approach. Major muscle groups—for example, hamstrings—are included in the chapter relating to an adjacent joint. The final three chapters are concerned with bone marrow, bone tumours, and soft tissue tumours. There is no chapter on spinal problems; this must …