Introducing chemical principles in a way that should retain the interest of students, this textbook shows how ideas from biology, nutrition, environmental sciences, astronomy and geology affect their understanding of science in general.
I tackled this one over Christmas break and it still took me into February to finish, which I guess isn't too bad for 1120 pages. Not everyone will read a first-year college chemistry textbook, but they should. It stretches the brain and exercises the mind. The one thing I tell my students is that in ten years they may not remember how to draw a Lewis structure of a compound, but the practice of thinking will serve them well. This book covers all the main topics and has great illustrations. I give it five stars!