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The Elements Book: A Visual Encyclopedia of the Periodic Table
Kids can go on a visual tour of the 118 chemical elements of the periodic table, from argon to zinc, with "The Elements Book."
Cataloged by type, each element's properties and atomic structure is explained. More than 1,000 full-color photographs showcase the natural forms of each element, as well as a wide range of unexpected everyday objects in which it is found, to make them relevant to a child's world. From hydrogen to sodium to nickel, kids will learn fun facts and be amazed.
Supporting STEM education initiatives and designed in DK's signature style, "The Elements Book" brings the periodic table to life.
Cataloged by type, each element's properties and atomic structure is explained. More than 1,000 full-color photographs showcase the natural forms of each element, as well as a wide range of unexpected everyday objects in which it is found, to make them relevant to a child's world. From hydrogen to sodium to nickel, kids will learn fun facts and be amazed.
Supporting STEM education initiatives and designed in DK's signature style, "The Elements Book" brings the periodic table to life.
208 pages, Hardcover
Published April 4, 2017
181 people are currently reading
851 people want to read
About the author
D.K. Publishing
9,022 books2,104 followersDorling Kindersley (DK) is a British multinational publishing company specializing in illustrated reference books for adults and children in 62 languages. It is part of Penguin Random House, a consumer publishing company jointly owned by Bertelsmann SE & Co. KGaA and Pearson PLC. Bertelsmann owns 53% of the company and Pearson owns 47%.
Established in 1974, DK publishes a range of titles in genres including travel (including Eyewitness Travel Guides), arts and crafts, business, history, cooking, gaming, gardening, health and fitness, natural history, parenting, science and reference. They also publish books for children, toddlers and babies, covering such topics as history, the human body, animals and activities, as well as licensed properties such as LEGO, Disney and DeLiSo, licensor of the toy Sophie la Girafe. DK has offices in New York, London, Munich, New Delhi, Toronto and Melbourne.
Source: Wikipedia.
Established in 1974, DK publishes a range of titles in genres including travel (including Eyewitness Travel Guides), arts and crafts, business, history, cooking, gaming, gardening, health and fitness, natural history, parenting, science and reference. They also publish books for children, toddlers and babies, covering such topics as history, the human body, animals and activities, as well as licensed properties such as LEGO, Disney and DeLiSo, licensor of the toy Sophie la Girafe. DK has offices in New York, London, Munich, New Delhi, Toronto and Melbourne.
Source: Wikipedia.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews
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April 21, 2017Review to come!
April 1, 2023
SOLID 5 STARS
Beautiful, fascinating and highly educational - this book represents DK at its very best. Reading just a couple pages a night - it's a great "nightstand book" - I have technically "finished it" but will certainly be revisiting again, (almost typed "will often be…," but let's be realistic - after five element-related books over the past month, I think I'm done for a while).
Now that I finally more-or-less understand the layout of the Periodic Chart in terms of its horizontal "periods" and vertical "groups," I was particularly impressed with the members of the Carbon Group. With it's super-important elements of carbon (diamonds, oil/coal/natural gas, graphite, etc.), silicon (sand, electronics, ceramics), lead (less popular these days but still a diver's best friend) and tin (cans, foil and many other things before aluminum came along), this is truly chemistry's "Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young"-style supergroup.* (Meanwhile, the Oxygen Group - with oxygen, sulphur, and not much else - would be "Blind Faith" at best…)
* For you die-hard CSNY fans, that probably makes the two remaining Carbon Group members - Germanium & Flerovium - the elemental equivalents of Dallas Taylor and Greg Reeves.
Beautiful, fascinating and highly educational - this book represents DK at its very best. Reading just a couple pages a night - it's a great "nightstand book" - I have technically "finished it" but will certainly be revisiting again, (almost typed "will often be…," but let's be realistic - after five element-related books over the past month, I think I'm done for a while).
Now that I finally more-or-less understand the layout of the Periodic Chart in terms of its horizontal "periods" and vertical "groups," I was particularly impressed with the members of the Carbon Group. With it's super-important elements of carbon (diamonds, oil/coal/natural gas, graphite, etc.), silicon (sand, electronics, ceramics), lead (less popular these days but still a diver's best friend) and tin (cans, foil and many other things before aluminum came along), this is truly chemistry's "Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young"-style supergroup.* (Meanwhile, the Oxygen Group - with oxygen, sulphur, and not much else - would be "Blind Faith" at best…)
* For you die-hard CSNY fans, that probably makes the two remaining Carbon Group members - Germanium & Flerovium - the elemental equivalents of Dallas Taylor and Greg Reeves.
October 14, 2020
Tags: 原版 词汇书
As an ESL reader, I spent a lot of time to find some textbooks to learn terminology words in some subjects like science, physics, chemistry, geography, history and so on. I considered American high school textbooks, international programs (like A-Level or IB) textbooks, or even Barun textbooks, but it was either too hard to get those textbooks or too complicated to study them. Luckily, I found out DK this brand through my first own book *English for Everyone: English Vocabulary Builder*. DK books is not only illustrative and comprehensive, but also covering catholic subjects, including The Periodic Table Book which has been read today, and analogous books like The Science Book, The Mythology Book, and even The Crime Book. So these series The Book are very useful for learning terms in any subject that attracts you.
Why did I learn the Periodic Table at first? Because I was playing *Oxygen not included*, involving numerous chemical elements and complicated reactions to make new things from scratch.
As an ESL reader, I spent a lot of time to find some textbooks to learn terminology words in some subjects like science, physics, chemistry, geography, history and so on. I considered American high school textbooks, international programs (like A-Level or IB) textbooks, or even Barun textbooks, but it was either too hard to get those textbooks or too complicated to study them. Luckily, I found out DK this brand through my first own book *English for Everyone: English Vocabulary Builder*. DK books is not only illustrative and comprehensive, but also covering catholic subjects, including The Periodic Table Book which has been read today, and analogous books like The Science Book, The Mythology Book, and even The Crime Book. So these series The Book are very useful for learning terms in any subject that attracts you.
Why did I learn the Periodic Table at first? Because I was playing *Oxygen not included*, involving numerous chemical elements and complicated reactions to make new things from scratch.
January 26, 2023
This was an awesome and simplistic guide to the Periodic Table. I loved the pictures and the way that the book was laid out. I learned so much from this book. I wish there was a continuation book dealing with just the radioactive elements. I found those elements to be particularly interesting.
dnf
June 16, 2025DNF - got on a chemistry kick? And for some reason really wanted to read about all the elements. I got to the alkali group and felt as I had better things to do/read…
July 27, 2017
This is a book I would have loved as a kid and am tempted to buy my own copy of anyway.
November 16, 2021
colorful pictures and good examples of where and how each element is used. love all the facts and trivia shared for each element.
March 24, 2025
This is one of the encyclopedias I got for chemistry, and it's definitely my favorite! I mean, just look at the cover! It's so pretty! Inside is even better!
The photos are of such great quality, and the diagrams are really clear!
I love that there's enough information to tell you what you need to know, but not too much to overwhelm and confuse you. It's very straightforward, which I like!
Every page or so is dedicated to a certain element, and contains its forms and uses in everyday life. It's really interesting to see where you can find all the elements in your daily routines! Like did you know that zirconium was used in 1960s camera flashes? And that Niobium is used in eyeglass lenses?
All in all, this is a great book if you're studying chemistry!
Thank you for reading my review! Follow @bronteandwilder on Instagram for book recommendations!
The photos are of such great quality, and the diagrams are really clear!
I love that there's enough information to tell you what you need to know, but not too much to overwhelm and confuse you. It's very straightforward, which I like!
Every page or so is dedicated to a certain element, and contains its forms and uses in everyday life. It's really interesting to see where you can find all the elements in your daily routines! Like did you know that zirconium was used in 1960s camera flashes? And that Niobium is used in eyeglass lenses?
All in all, this is a great book if you're studying chemistry!
Thank you for reading my review! Follow @bronteandwilder on Instagram for book recommendations!
April 10, 2024
The Elements Book: A Visual Encyclopedia of the Periodic Table by D.K. Publishing. This book is one of the best non textbook periodic table books I have ever read. It contains all important chemical elements. This book contains beautiful pictures and informative details. Sure, it's not a textbook, but it will give you concise details for every chemical element. This is also one of the best DK illustrated references DK has ever published. Normally, it explains each chemical element in two pages.
Kids will love this book, and adults will too.
10/10
Kids will love this book, and adults will too.
10/10
January 29, 2024
This is the perfect Visual Encyclopedia for those who want to visually learn Elements using Periodic Tables with images.
The images of the elements in this book are clear and easy to understand, making it much easier to understand than a Periodic Table that is just symbols.
The images of the elements in this book are clear and easy to understand, making it much easier to understand than a Periodic Table that is just symbols.
July 9, 2019
496 - 2019
Kecewa deh.
Tidak ada Vibranium, Adamantium, apalagi Badassium/Starkium.
Kecewa deh.
Tidak ada Vibranium, Adamantium, apalagi Badassium/Starkium.
August 29, 2021
In this book, I really know too many things about elements. I like it.
Read
December 29, 2021I'm dnf-ing this one. It is hard to read on Kindle. The pages are misplaced hence the content is all over the place and it doesn't follow a certain order. Hope they correct it soon.
March 16, 2022
A chemist's delight
Thorough formation about all the elements and their discovery. Beautiful pictures (what I love about DK). Useful for budding chemists.
Thorough formation about all the elements and their discovery. Beautiful pictures (what I love about DK). Useful for budding chemists.
July 8, 2022
Ultrasintetico.
June 25, 2023
Used for science project kinda confusing but good source for project would use again.
October 1, 2023
A great little book that takes you through the uses of the elements in the periodic table. Easy to read, well suited for school children and non-technical persons.
September 22, 2024
Lots of fun. But (understandably) very simple.
May 22, 2021
Essential Reading for young minds
I am an engineering teacher and the examples in this book are beautifully presented for young minds. Highly recommend to all curious individuals.
I am an engineering teacher and the examples in this book are beautifully presented for young minds. Highly recommend to all curious individuals.
July 4, 2021
70%
A good introductory resource on the elements of the periodic table. The elements were grouped by type (Alkaline Earth Metals, Carbon Group, etc), and the introductory page of each chapter gave a short description on the atomic structure, physical and chemical properties, and compounds of the elements in the group.
Each element had two sections: forms (what it looks like or how it's sourced) and uses, which were mostly labelled pictures (i.e. a picture of a diamond and graphite sample for Carbon). The pictures really helped bring a deeper understanding of the element by connecting it to things we are familiar with and see in every day life (or at least have heard of, in the case of space rockets and the such).
On the bottom of the page it would basically summarize the pictures - the part which I found most disappointing. I feel that this space could've been better utilized by expanding on some forms and uses rather than literally restating the picture's labels in full sentences. Every once in a while it would add a tidbit of information so I read them anyways, but if there's a labelled picture of a polyethylene bag on the page, I don't need it later restated that Carbon "can be used as fuels and as plastics for objects such as polyethylene bags". It's redundant.
Another thing that struck me as silly (though it's really not a big deal), is how often the book would say how extremely rare an element is....and then describe its usage in common items. For example, "Xenon is so rare that there is only one atom of this gaseous element for every 10 million atoms in the air". Sounds pretty rare, right? And then it's used in things like lightbulbs, car headlights, and anesthesia machines. Is it REALLY so rare at that point? This was a fairly frequent statement throughout the book, and personally I found it bizarre; it really left me wondering what is and isn't actually rare, as this book used the word willy-nilly.
A good introductory resource on the elements of the periodic table. The elements were grouped by type (Alkaline Earth Metals, Carbon Group, etc), and the introductory page of each chapter gave a short description on the atomic structure, physical and chemical properties, and compounds of the elements in the group.
Each element had two sections: forms (what it looks like or how it's sourced) and uses, which were mostly labelled pictures (i.e. a picture of a diamond and graphite sample for Carbon). The pictures really helped bring a deeper understanding of the element by connecting it to things we are familiar with and see in every day life (or at least have heard of, in the case of space rockets and the such).
On the bottom of the page it would basically summarize the pictures - the part which I found most disappointing. I feel that this space could've been better utilized by expanding on some forms and uses rather than literally restating the picture's labels in full sentences. Every once in a while it would add a tidbit of information so I read them anyways, but if there's a labelled picture of a polyethylene bag on the page, I don't need it later restated that Carbon "can be used as fuels and as plastics for objects such as polyethylene bags". It's redundant.
Another thing that struck me as silly (though it's really not a big deal), is how often the book would say how extremely rare an element is....and then describe its usage in common items. For example, "Xenon is so rare that there is only one atom of this gaseous element for every 10 million atoms in the air". Sounds pretty rare, right? And then it's used in things like lightbulbs, car headlights, and anesthesia machines. Is it REALLY so rare at that point? This was a fairly frequent statement throughout the book, and personally I found it bizarre; it really left me wondering what is and isn't actually rare, as this book used the word willy-nilly.
February 7, 2024
Koolis keemia mul lemmikainete hulgas ei olnud. Keemiliste reaktsioonide võrrandid tulid harilikult välja, ent lahuste ja protsentidega ülesandeid vahtisin kui hieroglüüfe. Seekord valisin lugemiseks entsüklopeedia-laadse raamatu, kus räägiti eraldi igast seni avastatud elemendist - kuidas avastati, milleks kasutatakse jms.
Minusugusele täiesti sobilik lugemine.
Palju ahhaa-momente oli. Milline element annab rubiinile punase värvi? Miks on astronautide kiivri visiir kaetud kullaga? Millest on tehtud sõrmejälgede võtmise pulber? Kõigile nendele küsimustele oleks mina valesti vastanud. Vast kõige enam üllataski see, et peaaegu kõikide elementide juurde oli raamatud toodud näiteid, kuidas neid igapäevaelus kasutatakse. Ma vist arvasin, et elemendid eksisteerivad küll tabelis, ent reaalselt kasutatakse neist äkki poolt? Üks näide, mida teadsin küll juba enne raamatu lugemist, ent mu aju ei suuda sellest ikka veel aru saada: F (fluor) on äärmiselt toksiline gaas, mis võib sulatada ka terast, ent samas kasutatakse seda hambapastas, et hambaid tugevdada. Nagu mida?!?
Ja siis veel inimeste valmistatud elemendid, mille aatomid püsivad koos vaid sekundeid! Nonde kohta oli ka mainitud, et „arvatavasti tahke“, „arvatavasti metall“ jms. Lihtsalt lagunevad enne koost, kui teadlased on nende uurimisega algustki teinud.
Ei tea, kas eesti keelde on tõlgitud. Mina lugesin inglise keeles ja mulle kui keemiakaugele inimesele oli parajalt huvitav lugemine.
Minusugusele täiesti sobilik lugemine.
Palju ahhaa-momente oli. Milline element annab rubiinile punase värvi? Miks on astronautide kiivri visiir kaetud kullaga? Millest on tehtud sõrmejälgede võtmise pulber? Kõigile nendele küsimustele oleks mina valesti vastanud. Vast kõige enam üllataski see, et peaaegu kõikide elementide juurde oli raamatud toodud näiteid, kuidas neid igapäevaelus kasutatakse. Ma vist arvasin, et elemendid eksisteerivad küll tabelis, ent reaalselt kasutatakse neist äkki poolt? Üks näide, mida teadsin küll juba enne raamatu lugemist, ent mu aju ei suuda sellest ikka veel aru saada: F (fluor) on äärmiselt toksiline gaas, mis võib sulatada ka terast, ent samas kasutatakse seda hambapastas, et hambaid tugevdada. Nagu mida?!?
Ja siis veel inimeste valmistatud elemendid, mille aatomid püsivad koos vaid sekundeid! Nonde kohta oli ka mainitud, et „arvatavasti tahke“, „arvatavasti metall“ jms. Lihtsalt lagunevad enne koost, kui teadlased on nende uurimisega algustki teinud.
Ei tea, kas eesti keelde on tõlgitud. Mina lugesin inglise keeles ja mulle kui keemiakaugele inimesele oli parajalt huvitav lugemine.
March 9, 2021
Fun to learn
Fun to learn, but difficult to read the small print. Hopefully, there will be audible so it may be both read and heard, next time. It was very educational and enjoyable.
Fun to learn, but difficult to read the small print. Hopefully, there will be audible so it may be both read and heard, next time. It was very educational and enjoyable.
July 12, 2017
I wish it had phonetic spelling.
July 9, 2017
Very good reference book on the periodic table. Easy to follow and with illustrations that don't cramp the pages for easy reading. Children and adults alike will find this entertaining.
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September 1, 2017546.8 J144 2017
March 5, 2022
Really interesting to see what all the elements look like and what they can be used for! I used this book to teach my brother the Periodic Table! What fun, huh?
October 16, 2019
Beautifully illustrated! I love all the pictures of the different elements and all of the explanations of their uses and how they are made up.
March 22, 2019
A book that makes the periodic table easier to understand and relate to- it shows what that particular element looks like, as well as examples of what it is used in/for. Awesome book!
March 4, 2021
The physical book would probably be good. The e-book didn't quite work. There were formatting issues making it unreadable in the kindle app and on the kindle fire.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews