Book excerpt: As increasing numbers of people turn to alternative healing practices, this classic text on the science and art of homeopathic medicine remains ever relevant. Written at the turn of the twentieth century by a distinguished physician, its concepts of health and healing are still ahead of our time. Dr. Kent summarizes, interprets, and systematizes the traditions of homeopathy, offering insights into the essential characteristics of the healing process: how to take a case history, how to study the case, how to establish the hierarchy of symptoms in determining the appropriate remedy--and above all, how to decide what to do after the first prescription, how to interpret the many reactions to therapy, and how to achieve a scientific understanding of a cure. This informative volume is must reading for any student or practitioner of homeopathy as well as any individual seriously interested in understanding the fundamental laws of health and healing.