choose or omit to design a course.This tacitly acknowledge that there is far more suhject matter in this text than can he covered in the normal two semesters of general chemistry. The text is encyclopedic in nature, and it would he hard to identify a topic included in any general chemistry text that is not included in this. There is far more material than can he covered, and the individual instructor will have to elect omissions. The text is part of a complete package, laboratory manual, study guide, etc. An instructor can adapt a complete curriculum by adopting this text and ordering the package. The very few typographical errors ohserved were insignificant to the meaning and reading. Answers to every other prahlem are given a t the end of the text and an extensive sample check of these turned up no mistakes. Again, the numher of prohlems eiven is far more than anv student could reasonably, ur profitably. he asked to work in twu semesterr s,a variety of options for assignment would be available to the instructor. This is a text of today for the student of today and any experienced instructor will acknowledge that this approach is more effective for such a student than is that of more traditional teats. When this is combined with a careful and intellectually honest approach t o the subject, and McQuarrie and Roek have certainly done this; then a text of this type is the choice that must he made. To this end, the text is recommended as being as good as any currently available. R. Owen Asplund University of Wyoming Laramie. WY 82071 Organlc Chemlstry L. G. Wade. Jr. Prentice-Hall: New York, New York, 1987. xxv 1377 pp. Figs. and tables. 20.8 X 26.1 cm.
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In a time when organic chemistry textbooks tend t o overwhelm students by sheer size and mass of material, Wade has written a large book that should be manageable by the student. Taking a traditional approach to organic chemistry, this hook introduces the student t o such concents as resonance very early ( p 11, and quickly ioll~,wrwithan intruduution to molecularurhital theory and bonding. Reactivity and mechanism are introduced via free radical chemistry in Chapter 4. A pleasant touch, used extensively in this chapter and throughoutthe book, is the presentation of thermodynamic data both in kcal and in kJ. Chapter 5 plunges the student into some 70 pages of meaty organic chemistry. This includes a detailed presentation of S N ~S ,N ~ , and Epchemistry. No mention is made of S,i or E,CB mechanisms. The presentation in this chapter makes excellent useof the fourcolor printing employed in this hook. The illustrations are very helpful. T h e treatment of stereochemistry in Chapters I and 8 gives a chance for one t o review the S N chemistry ~ of Chapter 5. However, littleor no problem should arise if one wished to teachstereoehemistryprior t o
the chapter on nucleophilie substitution. A ronventimsl functimal g r w p a p proach iscontinued through Chapter ID. Chapter 14 brings the first introduction to spectroscopy in the form of conjugated systems, orbital symmetry, and ultraviolet spectroscopy. While these topics are ohviously related, the flexibility of coverage allows numerous options a t this paint. Other spectroscopic topics appear later-NMR in Chapter 17 and infrared and mass speetrometry in Chapter 19. While this separation of the spectroscopic methods may be a hit disconcerting t o some, the author points out that each spectroscopic technique follows closely related chemistry. The latter chapters of this text (Chapter 25, Carbohydrates; Chapter 26, Amino Acids, Peptides, and Proteins; Chapter 27, Lipids; Chapter 28, Synthetic Polymers; and Chapter 29, Heterocyclic Compounds) continue t o offer flexibility in presentation. Many of these topics can be presented earlier or independently of other chapters. While the chapter on heterocyclic compounds gives a good introduction both t o aromatic and aliphatic heterocycles, i t is a hit unusual to find such a treatment that omits completely a mention of thiophene or the Chichibahen reaction. The appendices provide brief answers t o many of the prohlems and excellent charts of NMR chemical chifts and infrared group frequencies. There is also a fairly detailed tahle of infrared absorptions. Several features make this hook attractive. A glossary of terms, which not only defines terms but also includes formulas and reactions, appears after each chapter. The glossary also gives page references for the topics. In addition, there are summaries of reactions and of syntheticmethods printed on a blue background. Extensive use is made of four-color printing. This is a great help in the presentation of reaction mechanisms by "electron pushing". Throughout the chapters, problems are outlined in blue; and solved examples are outlined in red. This hookcontains a large number of various types of problems. Chapter I a A l d e hydes and Ketones-for example, has some 71 prohlems many of which have several parts. Despite its length of 1336 pages, I feel that Wade has been successful in writing a readable and manageable hook for organic students. I would recommend that anyone seeking a text far a full-year organic course seriously consider this volume. W. Preston Reeves Texas Lutheran College Seguin. TX 78155 General, Organlc, a n d Biochemistry, Third Edltlon William H. Brown and Elizabeth Rogers. BrookslCole: Monterey, CA, 1987. xx 850 pp. Figs. and tables. 19.1 X 24.1 crn.
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$42.00.
According t o the preface General, Organic, and Biochemistry is a text "written for students of the life sciences, particularly those planning careers in one df the many health professions". The material covered is consistent with this theme. The 27 chapters of the hook areclaasirally orgnnized mtc four parts: General Chemis-
try (9 chapters), Organic Chemistry (9 chapters), Biomolecules (5 chapters), and Metabolism (4 chapters). The topics are presented in a loeical order. and the writine is clear and &to read. There are 16 delightful mini.esrayr interqpersed amung the vhapters that "demonstracrsomeof thecreativity and excitement inherent in chemistry". The problem with these essays is that there are not enough of them. Improvements over previous editions include a better treatment of acid-base chemistry and the addition of two mini-essays. The inclusion of the separate acid-base chapter is particularly welcome. The illustrations and figures throughout the book are sufficient to reference and reinforce the corresponding text. The produetion values are average; there are no color photographs or figures. The end-of-chapter prohlems are representative of the material covered in the chanter and are adeouate in number. These are particularly wpll done for n book of this t).pr and represent m e of its strongest ieatures. Allan R. Burken Dillard University New Orleans, LA 70122 Principles of Descriptive lnorganlc Chemlstry F. Wulfsberg. BrookslCole: Monterey, CA, 1987. xviii 481 pp. Figs. and tables. 18.8 X 24.6 cm. $35.25.
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This text was prepared for an elementary course in inorganic chemistry which meets the recommendations of the ACS Division of Inorganic Chemistry. Physical chemistry is not a prerequistite. I t is an unusual text, and teaching from i t will require achange in thinking of t h e professor teaching t h e course. Indeed, it might require changes in a department's curriculum. It deoarts from the traditional format of presenting descriptive chemistry element erouo. hut ~-~ instend ~. it hvelement or emu0 bv ~, interweaves chemical principles with the descriptive chemistry. This is an advantageous approach for a text, because reading large doses of descriptive inorganic ehemistry can be tedious. Then, however, future discussions in other courses of many of the topics covered will have t o be either revised or omitted. Though the hook could be used in a course following physical chemistry, i t would require supplemental material, and therefore might not be a suitable choice for such a course. There is little coordination chemistry here, and no ligand field theory. There are several pages devoted to nuclear theory, however, a subject missing from most recent inorganic texts. Other unusual topics include several pages devoted to relativistic effects on orbitals and another section on industrial processes for extracting elements from ores. The little-known (at least to me) and complicated Pourbaix diagrams (which display the redox properties and composition of a particular solution as a function of pH) are discussed, hut the common and useful Latimer redox diagrams are not. This illustrates one of the prohlems of the text. It (Continued on page A170)
Volume 65
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Number 6
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J u n e 1988
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