Best inorganic chemistry books according to redditors

For pleasure:

• The Disappearing Spoon
  
• Periodic Tales
  
• Stuff Matters
  
• Molecules of Murder
  
• The Elements of Murder
  
• The Elements
  
• Molecules
  
• Molecules that Changed the World
  
• The Chemistry Book
  
  Undergraduate
  
  
• Organic:
  Organic Chemistry as a Second Language, The art of writing reasonable organic reaction mechanisms
  
  
• Inorganic: Inorganic Chemistry, Molecular Symmetry and Group Theory
  
  
• Analytical: Principles of Instrumental Anlsysis, Fundamentals of Analytical Chemistry
  
  Graduate
  
  
• Organic: Advanced Practical Organic Chemistry, March's Advanced Organic Chemistry, Greene's Protective Groups in Organic Synthesis, Purification of Laboratory Chemicals, Strategic Applications of Named Reactions in Organic Synthesis
  
• Inorganic: Advanced Inorganic Chemistry

https://www.amazon.com/Chemistry-Course-Online-Advanced-Placement/dp/0738611549

This is a good recap, I used it and cannot recommend it enough. The Barron's book for chem seems to also help people, but I haven't used it.

I have this one and really like it.

https://www.amazon.ca/Molecular-Inorganic-Organometallic-accompany-Chemistry/dp/0964883716/ref=mp_s_a_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1536412704&sr=8-4&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65&keywords=molecular+model+kit&dpPl=1&dpID=51%2Bdox7p-wL&ref=plSrch

It's a bit pricey on Amazon. I believe mine was $25 at my university. Maybe look around for different prices.

It's pretty clear that you are talking about science that you don't really know. I specifically recall a comment about water being harder to understand than wind, because water is fluid dynamics, when they are both fluid dynamics. Try to avoid that. More generally, there seems to be an overapplication of scientific concepts and an implicit scientific reductionism which doesn't reflect the practice of actual scientists. For a more realistic and more modern picture of what the essence of science is, I recommend the book Is Water H20. PM me and I can send a copy. It's a light and engaging read.

The reduction of martial arts to sequences of moves also seems unrealistic and impractical. If you reflect on the mindset which had you produce that as a solution to the problem of teaching martial arts, then I think you will see a bunch of other errors that you make, including some of the scientific ones I mentioned.

I guess it is this one?

Classes to consider should include:

• Math: up through partial differential equations. Many undergraduate programs in chemistry are happy to let you stop after taking multivariate calculus. But to get into the meat of quantum, PDEs is suggested.
  
  
• Chemistry: As /u/Kalivha said, computational chemistry, spectroscopy, solid state, and statistical mechanics. I'd go a step further and add inorganic chemistry to the list. You'll get a good smattering of MO theory, crystal lattice theory, and the like.
  
  
• Physics: a more intense variety of quantum mechanics would be offered in the physics department, so do check into this if you are semi-serious.
  
  
• Good texts: McQuarrie is a gold standard. My personal favorite is Atkins and de Paula's Physical Chemistry. They go into - in some places, at least - absurd detail, which tends to help people. For inorganic, look into Miessler and Tarr's Inorganic Chemistry.
  
  Happy hunting!

I just finished "Periodic Tales: A Cultural History of the Elements" by Hugh Aldersey-Williams. The focus is more on the elements, but there's lot of anecdotes about the chemists involved in their discoveries.

Here are my top three textbook choices:

This is a great book for how to actually do organometallic syntheses. I've followed several procedures in the book, and they work well / are quite descriptive.

I''ve taken two organometallic courses that use Crabtree. So I think this is a great book to learn organometallics. Definitely more organometallic than Miessler and Tarr.

A few of my friends have the new Hartwig book which looks awesome. I haven't read it yet, but in my opinion its going to surpass Crabtree as the textbook of choice for organometallics classes in the next few years.

John Hartwig's "Organotransition metal chemistry: from bonding to catalysis" (https://www.amazon.com/Organotransition-Metal-Chemistry-Bonding-Catalysis/dp/189138953X)

I've been using AP Chemistry Crash Course to self study. The Princeton Review Cracking the AP Chemistry Exam 2015 edition also got good reviews. If you have a textbook I would recommend really going through it and doing all of the chapter questions.

I would check out MIT OpenCourseWare. They have some pretty thorough entry-level college stuff, even though their chemistry is not as well developed as their math and physics. A really popular class they have on solid state chemistry: here.

If you're more of a book person, check out Oxtoby for general chemistry (linked on the right). If you're interested in learning about symmetry in chemistry, I would recommend this book. It's a pretty fun and simple introduction to group theory and its applications.

Also, I've been told the UC Davis ChemWiki is a pretty good resource, although I haven't really explored it myself.

A great book I used to start out was 'Molecular Symmetry and Group Theory' by Alan Vincent. It goes through a lot of the symmetry operations but eventually gets to their interpretation in the character tables.

So first and foremost, I would recommend this short workbook/text by Alan Vincent as a how-to on group theory applications, specifically in handling these types of things. It can be a bit of tedium in the beginning, but it's a nice tool to walk you through the whole shebang. Anyways, I'll try to help you out with your C4v conundrum

The Γirr you have is nearly correct, but you double counted E. The correct irreducible form is 2A1 + B1 + E; the E is doubly degenerate and is only counted once, giving you a total of 3 IR active vibrations. When I use the reduction formula, I like to copy the components of the character table that I will need to use in this format.

​

|C4v|1E|2C4|1C2|2σv|2σd|
|:-|:-|:-|:-|:-|:-|
|Γirr|5|1|1|3|1|
|A1|1|1|1|1|1|
|B1|1|-1|1|1|-1|
|E|2|0|-2|0|0|

We can then use the reduction formula to find how many of each representation there are in the final irreducible form.

​

nE = (1/h)*Σ(Xi*Xr*N)

Where nE is the number of E elements in the irreducible representation, h is the order of the group i.e. the total number of operations, Xi and Xr are the respective numbers in a column for the irreducible and reducible form, respectively, and N is the number of operations in the class.

So for nE, we would have = (1/8)[(1*5*2) + (2*1*0) + (1*1*(-2)) + (2*3*0) + (2*1*0)] = (1/8)[10 + 0 + -2 + 0] = 1

You got the rest correct, so now you should see that there are indeed 3 IR active modes.

Just as an aside, get in an F-element chemistry class somewhere along the line. The text is kinda pricey, but my class didn't require it.

It's some pretty interesting chemistry.

Yeah, sorry about that. I'm an idiot. I was reading on my phone and didn't scroll before I replied.

For organic, Solomons is good. I learned on that first and liked it quite a bit. I've also TAed using Carey/Giuliano which is a good book too. I liked Solomons more, but probably because I was more familiar with it.

http://www.amazon.com/Organic-Chemistry-T-Graham-Solomons/dp/0470401419/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1346010987&sr=1-1&keywords=solomon+fryhle+organic

http://www.amazon.com/Organic-Chemistry-Francis-Carey/dp/007735477X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1346011101&sr=1-1&keywords=carey+giuliano+organic
Prices are steep, so maybe look for an old edition, unless you're positive you can use a new one wherever you go.

If you're pretty confident in your organic stuff, you can look at Dave Evans organic class (he is a professor at Harvard and posted some great notes here http://isites.harvard.edu/icb/icb.do?keyword=k7863 )

It might also help to read up on some organometallic chemistry. I this book
http://www.amazon.com/Organometallic-Chemistry-Gary-O-Spessard/dp/0195330994/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1346011303&sr=1-1&keywords=organometallic+chemistry
It was ok, but there might be better out there. Maybe some other people will have some input.

A good physical organic book is http://www.amazon.com/Modern-Physical-Organic-Chemistry-Anslyn/dp/1891389319/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1346011407&sr=1-1&keywords=physical+organic+chemistry
It's a dense book. This book also doesn't focus a whole lot on reactivity if I remember correctly. It does a lot of explaining the underlying physics of what happens in organic reactions.

For biochem, I can't help you. I took intro bio and ran the other direction, so more power to you.

You could try Collman's book, http://www.amazon.com/Principles-Applications-Organotransition-Metal-Chemistry/dp/0935702512 that was sort of the classic for a long time, but of course it's missing the past 20 years or so of progress.

Hartwig's more recent text book http://www.amazon.com/Organotransition-Metal-Chemistry-Bonding-Catalysis/dp/189138953X/ is sort of supposed to be the successor to Collman's book but it's extremely dense and a bit hard to just sit down and read.

This book http://www.amazon.com/Synthesis-Organometallic-Compounds-Practical-Inorganic/dp/0471970700 could be fun for you if your library has it.

Another classic: http://www.amazon.com/Problems-Solutions-Organometallic-Chemistry-Kegley/dp/0935702237 that one's fun to go through.

In all cases if you find examples, etc that are interesting to you, go to the references and read the original paper!

I would also definitely recommend starting to follow relevant published research, the ACS journal "Organometallics" being an obvious starting point (http://pubs.acs.org/journal/orgnd7)

Advice from easy to hard:

1: Many of these software programs being suggested are rather expensive. Buy a real, hands-on modeling kit for less money than the software, I like this kind: http://www.amazon.com/gp/customer-media/product-gallery/0964883716

2: Don't worry about being TOO accurate with bond angles and lengths. Just use 109.5 for tetrahedral, 120 for trigonal, etc... no, water isn't bent at a 109.5 angle, but it's close enough.

3: learn to understand stereochemistry, including for tricky cases like allenes

4: Learn how to tell what an atom's hybridization will be in the skeleton diagram. Usually this is easy and quickly tells you if the angles are 109.5 or 120 or 180 degrees, but watch out for atoms with lone pairs next to double bonds: the Nitrogen in pyrrole is planar with 120 angles, but the nitrogen in the very similar-looking pyrrolidine is tetrahedral with 109.5* angles.

5: conformations matter... many molecules are flexible and can sit in different positions, but have a strong preference for one position over another, like this: http://imgur.com/aNTgr

The top skeleton structure can be drawn in 3D as either of the two structures below - they're exactly the same molecule, but in different positions, and one is MUCH worse than the other due to steric interactions (molecules bumping into each other). Most hydrogens have been omitted for clarity.

Two good books to have would be:

For Organic: March's.

For Inorganic: Cotton and Wilkinson.

Elements of Modern X-ray Physics, by J. Als-Nielsen

Solid state chemistry and its applications, by A.R. West

Macdonald's Impedance Spectroscopy

I am first year Chemistry at Manchester. You've mentioned your GCSE grades, I'm not sure how relevant they are but I got 2A* 7A and 2Bs. I don't think they really look at these grades, your a levels are more important but I guess it gives a general idea on how you might perform in your A-levels.

1. It's generally good, I enjoy it for the most part. I will say that its quite lab intensive so make sure you enjoy the practical sides of chemistry and being in the lab.
   
   
2. I think a lot depends on which exam board your A-level is from. Some people seem to have more of a jump compared to others depending on which exam boards they had at A-level. Also I missed the grades for chemistry at Manchester so i ended up doing a foundation year which involved taking courses that were tailored to getting you to the level expected of someone who is about to begin first year, so this helped decrease the gap for me.
   
   
3. for extracurricular things to do i would suggest trying to keep your options open. There probably aren't that many things you can do to help prepare specifically for undergraduate chemistry. I did some voluntary work for a charity, these sort of things look good on your personal statement and help with getting a place on any course rather than just chemistry (especially as it seems that you aren't 100% sure about chemistry). But by all means see if you can find anything with more relevance to chemistry (it can't hurt can it).
   
   4)books useful for chemistry at manchester:
   book from previous years: Chemistry^3 https://www.amazon.co.uk/Chemistry%C2%B3-Introducing-inorganic-physical-chemistry/dp/0199691851/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1482622808&sr=8-1&keywords=chemistry+3
   main text book for my year: Chemical Structure and Reactivity
   https://www.amazon.co.uk/Chemical-Structure-Reactivity-Integrated-Approach/dp/0199604134/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1482622982&sr=8-1&keywords=Chemical+Structure+and+Reactivity
   
   
4. I think i want to go into finance, although I'm still not sure. Keeping my options open although i am in the process of applying for summer placements at places like HSBC and RBS
   
   
5. I did the same A levels. I also mostly enjoyed maths and chemistry. Maths was probably my strongest subject but at the time i didn't really want to take it any further. So for my 5 choices I applied for 4 chemistry courses and 1 Maths. Chemistry is a great degree to have (especially a degree from Manchester)and has many job prospects. Although if you have specific careers in mind that you’re sure about it might benefit you more to get a degree specifically for that career e.g. accountancy
   
   Overall just go with what you enjoy most and hope you get a place at your desired uni.
   Feel free to ask any questions or the same ones if you don’t feel I answered them. Good luck.
   

i assume you hace read this book... though I imagine it might feel as though it contains spoilers for your hobby...

I'm assuming you're sure you're not looking for "Basic SSC" by West, right? Different book... much cheaper...

Also, the one you're looking for... http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/0471908746/ref=tmm_pap_used_olp_sr?ie=UTF8&condition=used

Well I posted this in another thread, but here you go.

Greenwood and Earnshaw Chemistry of the elements - This is pretty much prefect for main group chemistry.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Chemistry-Elements-N-N-Greenwood/dp/0750633654/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1345966730&sr=8-1

Atkins Physical - This is okay and pretty useful as it is full of questions. There's a smaller version called 'Elements of Physical Chemistry'
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Atkins-Physical-Chemistry-Peter/dp/0199543372/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1345966803&sr=1-1

Clayden Organic Chemistry - A very good guide to organic chemistry, however the lack of questions in the new edition is a bit annoying.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Organic-Chemistry-Jonathan-Clayden/dp/0199270295/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1345967204&sr=1-2

Hartwig Organotransitional Metal Chemistry - Very good but goes a little beyond most chemistry degrees if not focussing on organometallic chemistry.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Organotransition-Metal-Chemistry-Bonding-Catalysis/dp/189138953X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1345967182&sr=1-1

For cheap and detailed books on a very specific subject the Oxford Chemistry Primers are extremely useful.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=oxford+chemistry+primers&x=0&y=0

Organometallic Chemistry by Spessard and Miessler. I used it in my graduate Organometallic Chemistry course.

AP Chem is one helluva ride—but provided you have the right resources, you’ll get through it. A lot of the chem relies on building off of the basics—stoichometry, periodic trends, etc—and the rest is pretty self-teachable.

The AP Chem crash course book really helped me. It’s best to read it when reviewing, or after you’ve finished a unit and are not quite sure. You can get is here. The same company makes a killer APUSH book, too.

Edit: if anyone wants my APUSH and chem crash course books for like $7 shipping hmu

Two more, less directly on the elements and more on the figures that discovered them.

https://www.amazon.com/Last-Sorcerers-Alchemy-Periodic-Table/dp/0309095077/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=the+last+sorcerers&qid=1574340861&sr=8-1

I particularly enjoyed reading that book for a class on the history of chemistry, largely relevant to history prior to the 20th century.

https://www.amazon.com/Superheavy-Making-Breaking-Periodic-Table/dp/1472953894

This one is on the synthesis of elements and more modern discoveries. Haven't read it yet but it's gotten good reviews.

Not sure if there's a test coming up, but just for studying, this book is a godsend and covers virtually all the content in both Chem101 and Chem102, with the exception of the final ligens chapter in 102.

Bozeman Science (http://www.bozemanscience.com/ap-chemistry/) videos and getting a review book such as Barron's or Crash Course can help you greatly. Good luck!

Maybe you should look at THW crystal field again first. This is the pattern you use to fill in the electrons. I learned it that that you Start at the octaedral complex and remove the ligands and look at the orbitals and their energy. And then you test in which conformation you geht the besteht energy by filling in the electron.
Maybe you should try this [book] (http://www.amazon.com/Inorganic-Chemistry-Edition-Catherine-Housecroft/dp/0273742752 ). I think it explains it quite good

I like this one: http://www.amazon.com/d--f-Block-Chemistry-Tutorial-Texts/dp/0854046372/

It is basic but a good starting point.

As much as I absolutely loved that book, I would not suggest it for OP if they are not familiar with relatively end-stage calculus (there are a number of partial derivatives in there) and quantum theory. It is true that the thermodynamics might help, but even people within my own class of chemistry students at my university struggled to grasp the text. Again, this depends entirely on what OP's learning style.

If, on the other hand, OP is desiring some stimulation from the world of physical chemistry, especially from the aspect of organic chemistry (which I assume to be the next step in OP's studies) would be the Anslyn text Modern Physical Organic Chemistry. It is advanced mind you and assumes some understanding in organic and physical chemistry, but it is a very stimulating approach to both and I would highly recommend both as future reading and as a book simply to keep around - it is quite good.

Again, if OP has a solid mathematical background, the McQuarrie text really is great - one of my favorite texts until my current program.

If OP is looking for something truly interesting that, again, will help to solidify everything they learn as they progress, I would recommend (against most everyone's opinion, partially including my own due to Housecraft's overabundance of fluff) the Inorganic Chemistry by Housecraft. Again, some of this is relatively advanced, but it contains information that is extremely satisfying and, personally, helped to solidify many of the concepts I had learned leading up to that point in my undergraduate career.

If you have some desires, please post more, OP! Nice to hear people in those years are interested in stimulating their own education! Best of luck!

https://www.amazon.com/Chemistry-Course-Online-Advanced-Placement/dp/0738611549
If your looking for a resource to actually teach you the content you need, this is also a really good one that is very organized and has great practice tests and questions.

This is a cool question and I'm glad you asked it again. Here are some that come to mind for me:

• Four Laws that Drive the Universe by Peter Atkins is a really enjoyable and informative discussion of thermodynamics. I think it has a similar feel to Feynman's QED. This is the same book as A Very Short Introduction to The Laws of Thermodynamics.
  
  
• Solids and Surfaces by Roald Hoffmann introduces some solid state physics ideas from an molecular orbital/chemistry perspective. This book is basically a transcription of some papers he wrote (which I can share if you want), so don't pay lots of money for it.
  
  
• Chemical Bonds: A Dialog by Jeremy Burdett is my favorite physical chemistry book. If you are interested in chemical physics and the bonding and structure of molecules, this is a must read introduction to the models chemists use to describe these things.

This one is OK, its what we use at my school

Yeah, amazon does

​

https://www.amazon.com/Chemistry-Course-Online-Advanced-Placement/dp/0738611549