general

I've just finished reading this book and i feel this new edition is even better than it's predecessor, which is already not far from perfect. This well-known textbook is a comprehensive overview of what we have known about molecular cell biology, and what's more important is - every material here are treated very clearly and carefully, and this is where this book really shines - I even believe a layman with some elementary knowledge about chemistry and biology could not only read this book from cover to cover but also actually *understand* them.

Both the material and the references are quite up-to-date (not surprising), so don't hesitate to buy if you have the third edition.

I give it five stars because:
1) the authority is doubtless;
2) it's comprehensive, wide in scope;
3) the text is written in plain english, thus won't confuse students in the non-english speaking countries;
4) the figures are *really* excellent, IMHO better than any others that I have seen in other books;
5) the index is nice;

and some minor flaws:
The typesetting of "List of Topics" is somewhat... odd. There are no page numbers associate with the individual topics in that list too. Also I think the reference sections could be better.

So... let it be 4.5 stars.

I'm an undergraduate student in Biology and I was looking for the best book on the subject... after a hard selection of the best ones available, I came up with two great items: Lodish's Cell Molecular Biology and Alberts's Molecular Biology of the Cell.
When I spoke with my older colleagues in college and asked my Cell Biology teachers (they're both career researchers) for their opinion about what should I buy, I always received the same kind of answer: «Well, they're both great references, Lodish's is a very insightful text on the matter, as well as Alberts's. But you know... Alberts's is the real thing, the one to go for: It gives you the most wonderful and comprehensive view of the cellular world!»
So, I decided to buy Alberts's and indeed, it is a terrific book: accurate, up-to-date, really enjoyable to read (for those avid for scientific knowledge), the English is quite accessible, illustrations are excellent, a truly great achievement! From now on, this book will be my «bible»!

Taking an online course in Molecular Cell Biology. This is the text.

This is an incredible book. Well organized, very up to date. It is not a trivial book by any means. I recomend that during the first pass on reading an assignment - that you do NOT have a pen at your side, just read it. It is an incredible read. The hard part is the shear amount of information in 1300 pages.

It will take me a while to plow through this text and the course, but I think it will be worth it in the end. The book is full of surprizes, at appropriate times information on evolution or medicines are thrown in. This is not a book for the timid.