Attempting to estimate a book's scope by its title can be as fruitless as judging the depth of a well by the length of the handle on the pump. Such is the case for<i>Primary Care and the Practice of Medicine</i>. John Noble, director of Primary Care at a university hospital, and contributing authors from various disciplines have assembled a text that far transcends the limitations of its title. For example, chapter 1 ("Concepts of Health and Illness") as well as others that follow hold interest for teachers and students of preventive (social) medicine. Chapter 2 ("Criteria by Which Patients Assess the Outcome of Care") convinces the reader that the book applies to all physicians, and further reading reinforces the conviction. Finally, as might be expected, for undergraduate and graduate students and their mentors who are devoting themselves to primary care specialties, particularly family practice, Noble and his colleagues have