Most Helpful Customer Reviews
15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
This is a Chemistry Book., September 11, 2003
This review is from: Chemistry (Hm Chemistry College Titles) (Hardcover)
Now, this is what I call a chemistry book. If you are required to buy it, then you will find out. But if you are wanting to buy a Chemistry book, just to know about Chemistry, then this is an awesome book. You have to have some basic knowledge of Chemistry for this book to be useful, and if you have a teacher who is a good one, then you are going down the right track. What is really great about this book, is the end of each chapter. It provides you with a clear and accurate summary, and then there are many questions that cover everything you have learned thus far. What is also good, is that main points and themes are highlighted, so that one may know what are key and relevent points. I would recommend this book or one like it, even if you are just refreshing. A textbook is a million times better than the "series books", like "For Dummies" or "Made Simple" and so on and so forth. If you think they are to expensive, I am sure you can buy these books from the amazon marketplace sellers for less. All in all, this is a great buy.
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17 of 21 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
There are better books out there., January 23, 2002
By A Customer
This review is from: Chemistry (Hm Chemistry College Titles) (Hardcover)
The author of this text must believe that by tediously repeating the same unclear statements ad nauseum, they miraculously become clear and insightful. Material is not clearly presented. By drilling certain pinacle points without establishing a sufficienlty wide base for those points, students often wind up stuck with misconceptions. They think they get it, but what they get is wrong. This can be a nightmare for many instructors (those paying attention to their students anyway). I am not impressed just because the same problems are worked out over and over and over again. There is more to understanding chemistry than memorizing how to work out a redox problem. In my teaching experience, I've found that only the top students are able to really glean anything from this text. A good general chemistry text should contain some advanced material for those students. More importantly, however, it should present the bulk of the material in a sufficiently clear manner to reach the middle of the pack. I'm not suggesting that it only contain material my grandmother could understand, but it should at least be within reach of the average student who makes an honest effort. As for Nick's comments, an A student who got a 5 on an AP exam might not be the most useful reviewer for such a text. I suspect he wrote his review more to exercise his ego and boast to us about his grades than to really help anyone with text book selection. Also inspired by Nick's review is the following caveat. Many of my less imaginative colleagues throw together courses with no effort. All a student needs to do to get an A is regurgitate things they've already seen on the board or in bold face type in their text books. No REAL understanding is required. Sometimes students who pass these courses with stellar grades leave thinking they are God's gift to chemistry. These same students are horrified when they get to the next level and realise they have no true grasp of the deep concepts. Maybe Nick can get back to us after he's taken a course in P-chem. I've found that few of the A students from Gen. Chem. are as confident when they get to P-chem. In fact, the best P-chem students here are those who took Gen. Chem. with the Zumdahl book, but found it difficult and sought supplementary instruction from tutors. The tutors most often refered them to Brown Lemay and Bursten (my preference is for Atkins/Jones).
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent book!, April 16, 1999
By A Customer
I used the first edition in 1989 as a general chemistry student. The book was easy to follow and well written. Later as a school teacher, I used the book teaching my ap students. The problems are challenging, incorporating many techniques and problem solving skills. Now, as a chemical engineer, I still use it as a reference guide.
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