Between Heaven and Earth

"as a student of equine shiatsu (my course also covered human shiatsu) i found this book to provide a clear, easily comprehendable introduction to the five elements. although this book is based around acupuncture and chinese herbal medicine, i found it easy & enjoyable to read (no techno jargon), suitable for students of oriental medicine or just those interested in it. despite the fact that there was a lot that was irrelivant to me, i still enjoyed reading it. i'd recommend it to anyone who wants a basic intro to chinese medical theory."
~ Written on 2006-04-01

"This book is worth buying for its second section ("Types"), in which the authors offer an original and very detailed examination of human character using the Five Phases (elements) as a key. The attributions and correspondences which they supply for each of the elements (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water) draw on a very deep understanding of people and a great wealth of clinical experience. I can honestly say that reading those five or six chapters has enhanced not only my conception of five-phase theory (considerably), but also my insight into my own character and behaviour.

The first section, which summarises the theory of Traditional Chinese Medicine, is quite personal and contains some very unorthodox interpretations; these are not always presented as such, making this book NOT suitable for complete beginners to TCM. Having said that, the introductory chapters are very informative and interesting, highlighting the differences between Oriental and Occidental approaches to medicine in a way which certainly gives pause for thought. Did you know that one report in 1910 was responsible for American medical science following the direction it did? The details are in here.

The third section of the book attempts to cover acupuncture and herbalism in greater depth, and ends up going into far too much detail on herbs in particular (bearing in mind that herbalists will need much more comprehensive texts anyway, and the rest of us have little use for page after page of plant names). Overall, I think it's fair to say that the book suffers from a lack of cohesion and focus. Still, the central thesis as set out in section two is so illuminating (and - as far as I know - unique to these authors) that I can certainly recommend this book to all students of shiatsu, acupuncture, herbalism etc. Don't make it the first book you read (Kaptchuk is probably a better introduction, then Maciocia), but do read it, if only for the bit in the middle!"
~ Written on 2005-07-23

"Wether or not the book perfectly matches what you are looking for, you are getting quality for your money."
~ Written on 1999-09-06

"This book gives a good foundation for understanding how the Chinese five elements theory is used in clinical practice. The description of five-element theory is very poetically written, so the book is fun to read. There is also a good introduction to acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine. The chapters on acupuncture and herbal medicine are fairly technical, so if you don't have much interest in these areas, you may find the sections boring.

The main problem with the book is it's over-emphasis on the Five Elements. From what I understand, the Chinese five element theory is not regarded as important to diagnosis and treatment in TCM as the theory of yin/yang and chi (in fact, the validity of the theory is still hotly debated in China today) so its treatment here may be a bit over-emphasized."
~ Written on 1998-06-12