The Youngs point their fingers at candida as a main culprit in the poor health of many people. Unfortunately, they back up their claims with only vague references, such as "a 1991 study" and "a leading cancer researcher." Many readers may wish for more specific evidence, but instead will have to make do with enthusiastic recommendations, alphabetized lists of vegetables, and pleasing chapters with vegetarian recipes that taste good no matter how you feel about the diet as a whole.

Sprinkled throughout the book are short testimonials of people who were able to reverse cancer, improve their digestion, and lower their cholesterol by following these recommendations, and it's hard to argue with the cholesterol-lowering results that a 70 percent vegetable diet will achieve. Still, the medical value of much else in the book remains hotly contested, and as always, it's wise to check with your doctor before starting off in search of miracles. --Jill Lightner

Young, whose company packages and sells Linux software and services, and Goldman Rohm, a technology journalist and author of The Microsoft File, provide a unique glimpse at a bevy of colorful computer cowboys who helped shape Linux: Richard Stallman, the "mad prophet" of the open-source movement; Linus Torvalds, the self-effacing Linux creator ("I am your god") swamped with 200 e-mails a day suggesting code revisions to his creation; and Eric Raymond, a Linux programmer and author of The New Hacker's Dictionary. The book includes rollicking anecdotes about how Young persuaded giants such as Intel and Dell Computer to invest in Red Hat and the "bizarre notion" that his company could topple Microsoft, or at least provide a strong alternative. He writes, "If you move into an industry playing by existing rules, you'll just become another player. You won't revolutionize that industry unless you change the paradigm." Well-written and entertaining, Under the Radar is for anyone who has come under the spell of the open-source movement, as well as those who wonder where the software industry might be headed. --Dan Ring