One of the easiest things an anesthesiologist can do is to administer an anesthetic, and therein lies one of the major dangers of anesthesia. Like in flying and diving, if the rules are followed, mishaps should be very rare. The Art of Anesthesiology so often depends on anticipation of the unexpected, knowing the patient and doing something intelligent when the Science does not give a clear cut answer to a problem. The risks to our patients can, therefore, be markedly reduced, if we have a good grasp of the difficulties and dilemmas that they are prone to, before they are anesthetized. Herein lies the great value of preanesthetic assessment. Preanesthetic Assessment has now reached its third volume in the space of five years. Twenty-four new areas are covered with more than enough detailed information to satisfy the careful practitioner and the Board Examiner. Dr. Elizabeth Frost is to be congratulated on presenting a breadth of material that contains something useful and informative for everyone in training or practice. Subjects vary from the demands of the athlete to those of the Jehovah 's Witness, congenital disorders to pediatric and obstetrical quandaries. Other problem areas include drug abuse, endocrinology, the patient undergoing neuroradiology and a mixed bag of diseases that provide the unprepared anesthesiologist with problems.