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katieinca's review against another edition
2.0
Halfway through this book I was pretty sure this was going to be a one star review summed up with "Save yourself the trouble and go Google gallium spoons."
The author has written for Mental Floss and too much of this feels like an extended Mental Floss piece. I think every Mental Floss article I've read has had at least one glaring factual error, so anytime I read anything that seemed cool here I felt like I needed a chemist friend to read the chapter over for me and verify its accuracy. The early chapters also felt like they'd been run through a vocabulary and syntax checker to make sure it was accessible to an eighth grade reading level, and I prefer my popular science at about 12th. There are certain narrative tics - extreme oversimplification, describing long dead people as though one knew them personally, drawing super flimsy connections for the sake of forcing a narrative thread - that really grate.
Wow, it's really coming back to me how annoying I found parts of this book. But either I got used to the tics or the book got better. It certainly got more challenging, while the characterizations of the scientists got less folksy and more grounded in attribution. In any case, by the end I didn't find it so painful, I started to lose track of the number of things I wanted to tell people to go Google from it (Bismuth crystals! Parker 51 pens!), and I appreciated his addressing the role of gender and national prejudice as barriers to success in science.
Still. If I had it to do over again I don't think I'd recommend it to my month-ago self as worth the time.
The author has written for Mental Floss and too much of this feels like an extended Mental Floss piece. I think every Mental Floss article I've read has had at least one glaring factual error, so anytime I read anything that seemed cool here I felt like I needed a chemist friend to read the chapter over for me and verify its accuracy. The early chapters also felt like they'd been run through a vocabulary and syntax checker to make sure it was accessible to an eighth grade reading level, and I prefer my popular science at about 12th. There are certain narrative tics - extreme oversimplification, describing long dead people as though one knew them personally, drawing super flimsy connections for the sake of forcing a narrative thread - that really grate.
Wow, it's really coming back to me how annoying I found parts of this book. But either I got used to the tics or the book got better. It certainly got more challenging, while the characterizations of the scientists got less folksy and more grounded in attribution. In any case, by the end I didn't find it so painful, I started to lose track of the number of things I wanted to tell people to go Google from it (Bismuth crystals! Parker 51 pens!), and I appreciated his addressing the role of gender and national prejudice as barriers to success in science.
Still. If I had it to do over again I don't think I'd recommend it to my month-ago self as worth the time.
kliaw's review against another edition
informative
slow-paced
3.25
Really interesting to learn about both the scientific aspects of the elements, as well as the social and geopolitical quirks that happened along the way of their discoveries.
It does drag a bit, particularly in the middle (weird because it’s not a narrative that experiences bloat in act two). And the writing style and structure can be a bit dense and unfocused at times.
They don’t say the title, but really how could they have?
It does drag a bit, particularly in the middle (weird because it’s not a narrative that experiences bloat in act two). And the writing style and structure can be a bit dense and unfocused at times.
They don’t say the title, but really how could they have?
a_reader_obsessed's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 Stars
I didn’t necessarily want a refresher in chemistry’s periodic table, and though my mind wandered a bit during the more technical parts of this book, I marveled at the fact that I once knew in detail all about atoms and what makes these elements so special, forming every single component of our lives.
Where this shines are the snippets of history scattered throughout, and I appreciate the wonders of scientific discovery and how that has shaped our understanding and advancement. Despite taxing my brain a lot, and despite my dubious personal understanding of the subject matter, I still feel enlightened no matter how fleeting it may be.
I didn’t necessarily want a refresher in chemistry’s periodic table, and though my mind wandered a bit during the more technical parts of this book, I marveled at the fact that I once knew in detail all about atoms and what makes these elements so special, forming every single component of our lives.
Where this shines are the snippets of history scattered throughout, and I appreciate the wonders of scientific discovery and how that has shaped our understanding and advancement. Despite taxing my brain a lot, and despite my dubious personal understanding of the subject matter, I still feel enlightened no matter how fleeting it may be.
book_concierge's review against another edition
3.0
Audiobook narrated by Sean Runnette.
Subtitle: And Other True Tales of Madness, Love, and the History of the World from the Periodic Table of the Elements
Who could have imagined such a volume written about that chart that hangs in every high school chemistry classroom? I’m an admitted science geek. I loved the “Mr Wizard” TV show when I was a kid. (He encouraged us to perform all sorts of experiments using our mother’s kitchen utensils and supplies.) I never wanted a Barbie doll, I wanted a chemistry set and a microscope! So, I’ve had this book on my TBR list since it first came out. And I have to say that I’m a little disappointed.
It’s not that Kean is a bad writer; he isn’t, and he’s quite thorough in exploring this topic. His enthusiasm and fascination for the periodic table comes through. But, it was just too much even for this science geek. Some parts were far more interesting to me than others. I loved the chapter on poisons, for example. I was less enthralled with the political infighting on what name to give to a newly discovered element.
Also, I made the choice to listen to the audio format. Sean Runnette did a fine job of performing the audio. However, the sometimes dry subject matter made for a more difficult listening experience. I might have enjoyed this more in text.
Subtitle: And Other True Tales of Madness, Love, and the History of the World from the Periodic Table of the Elements
Who could have imagined such a volume written about that chart that hangs in every high school chemistry classroom? I’m an admitted science geek. I loved the “Mr Wizard” TV show when I was a kid. (He encouraged us to perform all sorts of experiments using our mother’s kitchen utensils and supplies.) I never wanted a Barbie doll, I wanted a chemistry set and a microscope! So, I’ve had this book on my TBR list since it first came out. And I have to say that I’m a little disappointed.
It’s not that Kean is a bad writer; he isn’t, and he’s quite thorough in exploring this topic. His enthusiasm and fascination for the periodic table comes through. But, it was just too much even for this science geek. Some parts were far more interesting to me than others. I loved the chapter on poisons, for example. I was less enthralled with the political infighting on what name to give to a newly discovered element.
Also, I made the choice to listen to the audio format. Sean Runnette did a fine job of performing the audio. However, the sometimes dry subject matter made for a more difficult listening experience. I might have enjoyed this more in text.
miagoth's review against another edition
really really really fun and enjoyable during the first half however, it gets boring towards the end; too many theories and concepts tangled together and clutter of other stories feel jumbled to the extend that they end up losing their significance
badseedgirl's review against another edition
4.0
I'm a fiction fan. I like to read for escapism, and I'm not ashamed to admit it. But because I believe in being a "well-rounded" reader, every year I commit to reading at least 10, and preferably 12 (or one a month) non-fiction books. "The Disappearing Spoon" is my first for 2020. I was really interested in all the factoids in the book and I enjoyed learning how the elements effect all aspects of my life. I found it interesting to realize how "young" the periodic table really is an how many different ways there are to view the elements. A very good start for the 2020 non-fiction book list.
tophat8855's review against another edition
4.0
Quality popular-science-genre book. Warning: if you had to memorize the element song in high school and then you listen to the audio book here, it WILL be stuck in your head.
Kean tries to group the stories and merge them together in a flow, but the transitions are quick so you can kind of get lost in "what was the point of this section?" But the stories are great and it's fun to listen (used Hoopla for audio book) to them. Scientists are funny people.
Kean tries to group the stories and merge them together in a flow, but the transitions are quick so you can kind of get lost in "what was the point of this section?" But the stories are great and it's fun to listen (used Hoopla for audio book) to them. Scientists are funny people.
kiah_derriman's review against another edition
1.5
i dont think im the target audience but fuck it felt meandering and so boring. it took me so long to finish and i didnt care for it