Blood Smears Reinterpreted [antikvár]

The translation of Blood Smears Reinterpreted was begun when the French originál was still undergoing revisions. I was accorded the opportunity to question any statement or turn of phrase that was unclear to me or appeared liable to misinterpretation. It is my hope that as a result, ambiguities-particularly those inherent in differences between American and European usage-have been removed and that I have at least approached the ultimate goal of any translation: to reflect the author's intention accurately while remaining as readable as the originál. Beyond the role of translator, I was encouraged to assume the role of critic. As a result, somé pages or even single sentences were hotly debated, sometimes for hours, as Marcel Bessis insisted that any interpretations on which we could not agree should be so indicated. In fact our discussion invariably ended in agreement, though they led to changes of a sentence here or a word there and, on occasion, to the addition of a footnote or a brief paragraph. Inevitably our discussions extended beyond the individual page to the structure of the book. Although thoroughly conversant and in tune with its purpose, I had to be reminded again and again that this was not to be a comprehensive treatise of morphologic hematology, the traditional titles and sequence of the chapter notwithstanding. The length of the chapter on red cells and the cursory treatment of mastocytes reflect no value judgement on the importance of red cell spicules on the one hand and mastocyte granules on the other. From this personal experience it seems worthwhile to emphasize once more that the purpose of the book is to give examples of a method of making dead blood smears come alive. The selection of examples and the omission of entire subjects such as multiple myeloma or monocytic leukemia are, once again, not value judgements but the natural outcome of Marcel Bessis's particular interests and prior work on reinterpretation. His intent is for all of us to use this method in our daily work, to extend and improve it and to challenge the interpretations given as we develop new insights. We hope the reader will derive as much enjoyment from that exercise as from the reading of the book itself.