ISBN0716785900

Pros: If you're a lazy student, you could get all the information very quickly by merely reading the figures and then reading the chapter summary. Also, the authors try to put an emphasis on describing experiments that led to the discovery of major concepts in immunology and also put in quite a few correlations to clinical pathophysiologies that result from inappropriate immune response. Since this information is simplified, you don't need to wade through all the details to get to the general point.
Cons: There are numerous and major grammatical and conceptual mistakes that would mix up a person who is not already familiar with the topic (example: on the schematic picture of the antibody, the heavy chain is labelled as the light chain, and the light chain is labelled as the heavy chain). This book is written at the middle school level; it is not appropriate for college level courses. It is very frustrating to read because every key point in a chapter is repeated at least five more times within the chapter itself and then once more whenever a related term comes up in a future chapter. It is a waste time to read this book cover to cover, as 60% of the time you will just be reading reiterations of previous points. Apart from this, concepts are so simplified that they described only in a vague and generalized sense, such that you only get the most superficial knowledge. If you focused, the contents of this book could be learned completely within 2 days. This book is probably worth about $25, but definitely not $85.

This textbook is very unfriendly to anyone wishing to study Immunology, especially for the first time. Information is densely packed, out of order, and many paragraphs trail off into tangents that do not correspond to the title of the current page or section. Many errors and mistypes, which caused my professor to provide a sheet of textbook corrections on the first day of class. Completing chapter questions very difficult due to the shortcomings of the text. If you are studying this book, be prepared to read into every little detail and still not understand basic concepts. I did very well in this class, but this book caused a lot of stress. Good luck!

Before enrolling in my immunology class, I checked the reviews for the textbook (Kuby). The majority were favorable, so I ignored the few low ratings. Big mistake!
The reason for 2 stars instead of 1 is that the diagrams and figures are well done. The text, however, is rambling, disorganized, and sometimes even contradictory. The review questions at the end of the chapters sometimes ask things not in the text, and other times the answers provided at the back of the book contradict the information in the chapter. Which is correct? It is up to you to go hunt down that information, which is not an efficient use of your study time.
My other complaint is that the science is often presented as a history lesson, which adds unnecessary length to the text. While it is somewhat interesting to know when discoveries were made and how the theory has evolved over time, this is rarely the best way to learn a subject.
As a caveat, I have no experience with any other immunology textbook, so I do not know how this one would compare.

It is the second time around that I am reading Janis Kuby's Immunology. The first time was as a grad student and then I had to actually learn it all. Now as a scientist I am re-reading it to remind myself of forgotten wisdoms. I must admit that the second reading is much more fun. Firstly because I don't really have to remember all the particulars and secondly because the chronological order of the experiments gives great insight into the history of immunology as a discipline.
I realize that this is probably not what grad students are looking for, but I find it a very interesting (re)read.

Great book. If you are taking a course using this book, make an accronym note book right away.