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Rating: 
Summary: Laboratory Aspects
Review: I borrowed this book from the library and am barely into it, but I thought I would look at some of the Amazon reviews before buying it. One thing I see missing from the customer and editorial reviews is no mention of the fact that it has laboratory experiments. I find that valuable. It seems that most reviewers miss the idea that the book is meant to be supplemental. Perhaps the editorial reviews suggest otherwise, maybe to increase sales, but it hardly seems like one should expect a full treatment of the concepts in this book. Returning to my laboratory comment, I think many books these days omit this aspect. That I think is unfortunate. Perhaps it's just harder to do independently because of limits imposed by 9/11 and our society's touchiness over chemical dangers. The availability of chemicals and labware are not so easily available as they once were. However, I suspect for those who might want to tackle lab exercises that such books exist, although they may be older ones. I don't really feel that I can give the book a fair review at this point, but thought I would at least express the above thoughts. Since Amazon doesnt' really provide a non-review way to comment (Yes, I know they have some supplemental comments form, but it really misses the comment but no review idea.) I've used the review form. My rating just reflects the average review. I'll update it after I've gotten into the book.
Rating: 
Summary: Chemistry the BORING way
Review: I bought a whole bunch of books to help me with my Chem 101 class in college, and the good news is that this book was the most complete and comprehensive of any of them. The bad news is that this book is crushingly dull, and sometimes hard to understand. While it was infinitely more comprehensive than "Chemistry for Dummies", it was so boring that I could barely keep my eyes open when studying with it. Perhaps that has something to do with my lack of talent for chemistry (as evidenced by my grade), but it seems to me that any good introductory chemistry book should at least be interesting enough that a relatively talentless student can keep their eyes open while reading it. I recommend this book for those who can follow boring texts or those who need something to help them with their insomnia.
Rating:
Summary: Chemistry the BORING way
Review: I bought a whole bunch of books to help me with my Chem 101 class in college, and the good news is that this book was the most complete and comprehensive of any of them. The bad news is that this book is crushingly dull, and sometimes hard to understand. While it was infinitely more comprehensive than "Chemistry for Dummies", it was so boring that I could barely keep my eyes open when studying with it. Perhaps that has something to do with my lack of talent for chemistry (as evidenced by my grade), but it seems to me that any good introductory chemistry book should at least be interesting enough that a relatively talentless student can keep their eyes open while reading it. I recommend this book for those who can follow boring texts or those who need something to help them with their insomnia.
Rating:
Summary: Chemistry the Frustrating Way!
Review: I recently needed to brush up on my Chemistry. (I had Chem 1 in college.) I could live with the boringness of this book. But I could NOT put up with the mistakes and poor editing. The chapter tests have questions on things that were never covered in the chapter, as well as wrong answers! That is not only INCREDIBLY frustrating, it also makes me wonder what else was wrong in what I was reading. I finally decided I had to give up on this book when I was having fits of complete rage and frustration. And let me tell you what brought me back to sanity -- The Complete Idiot's Guide to Chemistry. It is a FABULOUS book. Easy to read, easy to follow, everything is thoroughly explained, and it's funny!
Rating:
Summary: Chemistry the Frustrating Way!
Review: I recently needed to brush up on my Chemistry. (I had Chem 1 in college.) I could live with the boringness of this book. But I could NOT put up with the mistakes and poor editing. The chapter tests have questions on things that were never covered in the chapter, as well as wrong answers! That is not only INCREDIBLY frustrating, it also makes me wonder what else was wrong in what I was reading. I finally decided I had to give up on this book when I was having fits of complete rage and frustration. And let me tell you what brought me back to sanity -- The Complete Idiot's Guide to Chemistry. It is a FABULOUS book. Easy to read, easy to follow, everything is thoroughly explained, and it's funny!
Rating: 
Summary: This book will improve your grade
Review: I took accelerated Chemistry in 10th grade and made a B 1st semester. But then I bought this book and studied it 2nd semester and got an A in Chemistry. I started to understand Chemistry and took AP Chem the following year; I got an A in AP too. I recommend the AP Chemistry guide from Barron's to study for the AP exam.
Rating: 
Summary: Chemistry the HARD way
Review: Okay, while this book is a wealth of information, it does not meet the two most important elements of a self-teaching book - 1) to be slow, deliberate, repetitive, and concise, and 2) no errors in the formulas or answers! As far as the second, there is nothing more frustrating when you are learning on your own than to waste time trying to figure out if it is your error or a book error. My second problem with this book is that, while it started out slowly enough, by the second chapter it seemed as if the author got impatient having to explain everything. The diagrams in Chapter 2 (which is when I tossed the book) were the most eye-aching, confusing mess of drawings that I've seen in an introductory book, not to mention they came with only limited explanation. I've started another book that was recommended, called Chemistry Concepts and Problems, by Clifford Houk and Richard Post. I'm still in the first chapter, but I think I can comfortably recommend that book for chemistry beginners. Perhaps I will use Chemistry The Easy Way sometime in the future, when I know more about chemistry and would like another backup book. But as a starter book, I do not recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: Learn chemistry the easy way with this book.
Review: The book title says it all. There is simply no other way to learn chemistry in less time or with less effort. You will learn basic introductory chemistry as well as many more detailed aspects of chemistry. The chemistry essentials are developed in a simplified manner with the visual reinforcement of charts, graphs, lists, and simplified drawings. I recommend it highly.
Rating:
Summary: It Could've Been Easier.
Review: While this book offers clear explanations, its attempt to be succint may frustrate readers who are teaching themselves chemistry. The author assumes that the reader is taking a chemistry course and therefore does not always explain topics in enough depth to give the reader a clear understanding. This makes reading a bit more difficult. Furthermore, there are a number of errors in the problems and answers. However, considering some of the other books available, this book does a relatively good job of clarifying and summarizing essential concepts.
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