Customer Reviews

Organic Chemistry

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This is undoubtedly the best modern book for learning Organic Chemistry. It simply cannot be compared with any of the traditional texts like Morrison and Boyd, because it presents Organic Chemical research as a cutting edge science of the present and future. Since it was first published in 2001, in this book you will find accounts of reactions and reagents that you will simply not find in any similar text. From Suzuki, Heck, and Sonogashira couplings to very important new reactions like Grubbs' olefin metathesis, it covers the whole gamut of current organic chemistry. The most important and fascinating aspect of the book is the almost countless examples of modern drugs, pesticides and other molecules that are presented to illustrate the reactions. In this, for example, one can find the example of how the simple concept of pKa of acids was used in the synthesis of Ranitidine, the best selling drug of today. Or a separate interesting chapter on Sulfur chemistry and Asymmetric Synthesis as applied to important problems in Biology and Medicine.
In fact, the whole approach is very much bioorganic as well as highly practical. From this book, we learn how organic chemistry is used in a highly exciting manner by real life chemists solving real life problems. It truly conveys the excitement in organic chemistry as practiced today. I believe that if you can thoroughly grasp the principles in this book, you are probably comparable to the best organic chemistry graduate in the world. The informal and honest style of the authors is almost too good to believe. Boxed material which contains key points and the colour used in the book make it a very attractive one. The book is a source of an incredible amount of information. The authors must have really spent a lot of efforts in writing it. Truly a book for the 21st century.
A book which is an absolute must on the shelves of practicing chemists and students alike.

I'm a Ph.D. in chemistry student here at University of Nevada and had troubles the past two semesters in passing the written comprehensive exam. I wrote this review to show my utmost appreciation to the authors. They really did a good job in writing this book making every organic chemistry concepts simple and easy to understand; not to mention the inclusion of "arrow-pushing" mechanisms and the latest trend in medicinal chemistry. The book however, is not free from errors but don't fret as they can be easily pinpointed by any serious chemistry graduate student. You can also check out the book's website to see the corrections. To other advanced chemistry students out there, buy this book and you will be thankful for having it. I have more advanced books in my possesion but I value this book the most.

This book is very good for the students who already have the intro organic chem. I actually bought this book to review the material for my organic synthesis final exam and I am very satisfied. The book covers the reactions and machanisms that are very up-to-date. A lot of them cannot be found in typical intro, American orgo textbook, but they are essential in total synthesis these days. Some of these are Mitsunobu reaction, Heck reaction, Stille coupling, Dieckeman rearrangement, etc. I think the book will also fit the grad student who are seeking to review basic material for cumulative exam, though one should also consult more advance books like March's or Carey's advanced orgo chem all along in this case. I actually found the book rather synthesis-oriented, but it does give enough explanation in terms of molecular orbitals to understand why reactions occur in certain way. However, one should also be aware that the explanations may be quite basic and might not satisfy the hardcore physical organic chemist, but again, quite sufficient for synthetic chemist. I really like the authors' style because they do not only tell you reaction in great details, but they also give you its utility in real world of organic synthesis. They also make extensive connections between chapters and help the reader to understand the big picture.

If you are seeking the intro orgo chem textbook, I think this one may very well be applicable, but be prepared to wrok hard on it because there are a lot more materials than typical intro orgo book and extensive connections between chapters. But for sure, one will gain rigorous foundation for more advanced class like organic synthesis.

I bought this book on the suggestion of one of the reviewers to get an overview of fundamentals of Organic Chemistry in my way to clear cumulative examinations.I'm in total agreement with the previous reviewers.I went through many of the undergrad texts in organic and I'm certain that this is the best among available.This is really a 21st cetury organic text.The approach adopted is very personal(as if the authors were directly talking to you).The language used was piquant.This book is a bonanza of information.The good things about this book are they used pKa values to predict the rates of different reactions and they widely used the MOT to interpret the reaction mechanism and stereochemistry in many reactions.They made the embittered subject caviar to the general. Students who have read this book can't be overwhelmed by the mind boggling mechanisms their professors write. I would also like to suggest Norman & Coxon's "Principles of Organic Synthesis"(published by nelsonthornes)for a comprehensive coverage of synthesis stuff.That's a reader friendly text and gives you the logic of synthesis(unlike the Carey's book that presents all the reactions sequentially which are often not rationalized)

This is an exceptionally good book of organic chemistry. The detailled mechanistic of different substitution reactions has no equivalent in other textbooks. The quantitative use of pKa values to explain reactivity and the good discussion of Hammett relationships makes it also excellent. The book is specially good for biological or pharmaceutical oriented students. They will found plenty of examples why their work is relevant.
As the authors clearly stated, it could not be directly used in a sophomore american course. However, it would be very good as a reference and for advanced organic chemistry courses.

I am a chemistry major and so I really like this book, however when I initially started o-chem, I did get a little intimidated by perusing through this textbook. So I suggest, to people who were in a similar position as me to also have a look at Hornback or McMurry.

The text isnt an "Advanced" textbook perse (after a good grounding in the basics for three days, I found this book quite user friendly), its organization is completely different to most other o-chem textbooks and its presentation of ideas is purely mechanistic. Both of which are ideally good things for chemistry majors who require the quintessential knowledge of structure and its impact on function and reactivity.

An examples is that when introducing orbitals, and orbital interaction; Greeves et al quickly go to HOMO and LUMO based discussions and their impact on bonding and antibonding.
Wade and McMurry leave this, one of the most important principles in defining nuclephiles and electrophiles till later.

A second example would be the appropriate structural implications of nucleophiles and electrophiles with respect to vacant orbitals, lone pairs and charge. These are the things used to identify em.

As such, the book isnt fragmented. Each chapter has its specific niche topic and thereofore individuals get a complete understanding of various topics and their implications on the overall organic chemistry. Chapters are well referenced so if, say you are only interested in NMR then you can skip chapters and read only those pertaining to that subject and yet still get a good understanding. Most textbooks act like a stupid monologue, miss a passage and you'd completely miss organic chem.

The chapter on reaction mechanisms is excellant, it actually is better than most primers developed in explaining this concept (i.e. Jacobs).

However, the organization and the concentration of information within chapters may be daunting to individuals who havent had enough experience in general chemistry. Principles of structure and reactivity are assumed knowledge.

Organic chemistry in most universities are taken by biology and chemistry majors. FOr individuals who are only doing one unit of organic chemistry; I would suggest you look elsewhere. A substitute (a less difficult but equally comprehensive textbook for people lacking experience in chemistry) is Hornback's which is renowned for its lucid mechanistic explantion of organic chemistry.

I have read and used many books on organic chemistry, both on my BS and graduate degree programs. This book has been the best ever written on the subject. The authors have treated the subject to its simplest detail to be understood by everyone. Now that I am a practicing chemist, I always look at this book as a reference. The presentation is very good and the way the chapters are organized is very neat and arranged. The topic on synthesis in action and retrosynthetic analysis is very interesting. What I find very nice are the topics on the application of the chemical principles on real life synthesis. The information are all up to date. Stuart Warren and his co authors has gone a long way and their expertise is shown in this wonderful book. Warren has been one of my favorite chenistry authors way back to his simple books on chemical synthesis and retrosynthetic analysis. I recommend this book, not only to students, both on their undergraduate and graduate programs but also to practicing chemist and chemical engineers and all those who love and find the field of chemistry a very interesting subject and those who wants to find chemical knowledge at a glance. Truly, this is a one volume Encyclopedia on Organic Chemistry.

This text is far superior to other undergraduate-level (and many graduate-level) texts I have come across. There are more topics than one will find in most texts, such as a chapters on organosulfur chemistry and retrosynthetic analysis for example. Mechanisms are discussed in great detail, and are actually depicted correctly. If you only want to memorize reactions for the MCAT this is NOT the book for you. If you wish to understand organic chemistry this text is the place to start.

I learned organic as a sophomore with the popular text by Wade. While I did well in the course and text got me through, I found I remembered nothing 2 years later when preparing for a graduate level organic course.

I picked this text up in order to 're-learn' organic. This book does just that. It's not a quick and easy referenence but an excitingly comprehensive text that truly allows you to learn what is really going on in organic chemistry. I am thoroughly satisfied and having finished my preparation with this text, I feel light years ahead of where I was at the completion of my sophomore organic course.

Highly recommended.

When I declare this to be the best OC textbook I've ever seen, I don't wish to diminish the great contributions made by many authors across many decades. There are numerous competent, comprehensive, and scholarly works that have served both to educate generations of organic chemists and stand as references for practicing professionals.

In my opinion this work is head-and-shoulders above anything that has preceded it. In a comparative sense, all previous OC textbooks were designed by sadists to ensure that the student would have the most confusing and unpleasant experience possible. It is a joy to study this book. The pleasant nature of the experience seems to enhance retention of the information presented. What a concept!