one!), and the Amperometric Titration of Mereaptans. Several good separation experiments are also included. Instructors will find the grouping d p n b lems at the end of the chapters, clearly identified by topics, to be an aid in selecting assignments. Answers to most of the oddnumbered problems are included in the appendix. An Instructor's Manual is available. Occasional errors do appear, mostly minor, but one wonders about the proofreading when one fmds the word chromatogram used instead of polarogram on p. 317 and the statement "Each species in an ion pair hears a fullw i t i v e charge" onp. 195. It is irritating to find a table (p. 353) identifying common chelating reagents used in solvent extraction onlv hv abbreviation. 6ve;all, the authors should be commended on bringing a goud textbook up-to-date and making it putentially more useful fur students. Thme who are lookine for a book with more emohasis on classical &alvsismavwant to look elsewhere, but the authors hive attempted ta reflect current trends in analytical chemistry. ~
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Wayne C. Wolsey Wacscalester Colfep St Paul, MN 55105
The Essence of Organlc Chernlstry Jane M. Cram & Donald J. Cram, University of California, Los Angeles. Addison-Wesley Publishing Co., Reading, 62 pp. Figs. 19.5 X 24 MA, 1978. xv em.
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This hook would seem to be an excellent text for a one-semester organic chemistry course in which the instructor wishes toemphasize applications of organic theory and reactions to life processes. The authors have done a masterful job of weaving biological examples of organic reactions into a very comprehensive survey of classical organic chemistry. The text is organized in the traditional functional group pattern. The first three chapters are devoted to chemical bonding, saturated hydrocarbons, and unsaturated compounds, respectively. Chapter 2 includes the neeessarv introduction to svstematic ,~~~ nomenclature and structural theory, invluding p r ~ n r ~ p l eois isomerism and cmformn. tim. Chaptrr 3 is usrd as a vehicle fur presenting a variety of unsaturated functional groups such as alkenes, aldehydes, ketones, and carhoxylic acids. Typical organic reactions begin in Chapter 4 with additions to alkenes and alkynes; the structural features of teroenes are covered a t the end of this chapter. (.'hnpter 5deals with the preparntam and chemistry of alrohds, phenols, ethers, and rpoxidei. Chapter 6, im alkgl hnlidm and related compounds, is used to introduce the concepts of nucleophilic substitution and elimination. This chapter also deals with esters of phosphoric and sulfuric acids, as well as orzanwulfur eomoounds. These tooics are " then usrd as the l~aririvr dircus~mnsof terpene biusynthcsi*and biological transmethA220 / Journal of Chemical Education
ylatiun. Stereurhemiatry is ewered in Chapter 7, the last twc~.~ctionsofwhrehdeal with the ~tereorhrmiutrv of nuclewhilic substitution and elimina&n. chapter 8 is concerned with carboxvlic acids. acid chlorides, amider, and anh;,dridel. 'l'he mechaniim of nucleophilic acyl substitution is intruduced here. The chemistry of esters and thioesters constitutes the hulk of Chapter 9, which also contains a discussion of fats, phospholipids, soaps, and detergents. The chapter concludes with a section on biological ester formation. Chaoter 10 is devoted to a description of the chemistry of aminea, am~ d r sand , proteins. The last four scctions of this chnpter treat amino acid sequencing in proteins, chemical synthesis of proteins, enzymatic hydrolysis of amide bonds, and structural organization of proteins. ALdehydes and ketones are introduced in Chapter 11. Major emphasis is placed on carbonvl addition reactions. with a more detoilrd discussion of aldol condensations appraring In Chapter 14 Chapter I I concludes nit h srrtions un biological oxidation-rrduction interconversions of carbonyl and hydroxy functions and the role of pyridoxal phosphate in biochemical transaminations. Chapter 12 is dedicated to aromatic compounds, beginning with resonance and continuing through examples of typical electrophilic substitutions, the directing influence of substituents, the chemistry of diazonium salts, and a final section on synthetic dyes and natural pigments. Carbohydrates and sugar containing compounds are treated in Chapter 13. The last four srctionq of the c h a ~ t e deal r with N-~lvcosidrsof D-rihose and nucleic acids. including ATP, NAG Chapter 14 is entitled, "Carbon-Chain Building Reactions," and it is here that the most detailed discussion of the synthetic utility of Grignard reagents and sodium end a t e s is presented. There are also several examoles of hiochemieal aldol., Claisen..~ and mal
