Book excerpt: The forerunner to this book - Ryder, Mir & Freeman's 'An Aid to the MRCP Short Cases' - rapidly established itself as a classic and has sold over 30,000 copies. The new Progressive Assessment of Clinical Examination Skills (PACES) has replaced the old short case exam and, as a result, the authors have revised, reworked and extended their highly successful text so that it continues to address the study needs of candidates. This new revision aid is now presented in two volumes: An Aid to the MRCP PACES Volume 1: Stations 1, 3 and 5 An Aid to the MRCP PACES Volume 2: Stations 2 and 4 This Volume covers Station 2 'History Taking' and Station 4 'Communication Skills'. In the 'History Taking' section at least 50 examples of each type of question and case are included, together with scenarios with simulated patients. The focus of the book is very much on the examiners' expectations so that candidates have a true picture of the areas on which they are being tested. Station 4 'Communication Skills' also covers the ethical issues in the doctor-patient relationship, such as managing organ transplantation, consenting for hospital post-mortem, etc. Also included in this Volume is the 'Experiences and Anecdotes' chapter providing real quotes from both candidates and examiners - this helps the candidate to avoid the more common pitfalls of the exam.