Customer Reviews
Sounds cheesy but works brilliantly - By: Frank T, 31 Jul 2004 
Peter Atkins describes the features of the chemical elements using the idea of a "kingdom" as an extended metaphor. He draws relief "maps" of the periodic table with elements shown as different heights according to their properties - for example, in one "map" the highest peaks are the elements with the largest atomic diameters; in another, they are the elements with the highest ionisation energies.
It alll sounds a bit Mickey Mouse, but it works surprisingly well. As someone who gave up chemistry at 16, I welcomed a book which refreshed - & considerably augmented - my understanding of the subject with minimal requirement of imaginative effort on my part.
Obviously, this isn't a book for PhD students, but anyone else with a passing interest in this rudimentary field of science should find it very enlightening.
Original, factual and well written - By: , 09 Sep 2001 
A book which describes the periodic table as a country - I liked the idea. As a Chemistry student, the periodic table can seem a bit like a map of a strange foreign country, with a perculiar logic behind it's layout, & unpronouncable place names dotted around. This book is well written, & if you're interested in Chemistry then worth reading. It might be helpful to any student struggling with periodic trends & patterns, if they can be bothered to read through it!, as it has a novel approach to explaining things which may stick in your mind. Or totallly confuse you. There's an extremely comprehensive index & even a couple of diagrams. It's a good idea & not badly written, presenting a highly factual content in an accessible way. Worth a read if you're interested in science.
A truly magnificent book - By: , 23 Apr 1999 When asked to explain why a certain element behaves a certain way, chemists almost always reach for their well-worn periodic table. When asked to explain in more detail, sooner or later quantum mechanics enters into the discussion. At this stage, for the average person, the question has not been answered, since the answer is likely to be incomprehensible. Enter Atkins' book about the periodic table. Everybody will learn something from it, no matter how (in)experienced they are. Novices at chemistry will learn about the periodic table the right way, & will do so right from the start. Seasoned chemists & chemistry teachers will scratch their heads in amazement at Atkins' ability to turn something difficult into something logical. There's something in here for everybody; it's destined to become a classic.
An amazing book. - By: , 15 Nov 1998 This book ingeniously explains the fundamental, though often hard to understand, concepts of chemistry, & is very easy to read. It explains the periodic table as a map to a fascinating land: The kingdom of the elements.
The Periodic Kingdom is an excellent book. - By: , 18 Sep 1998 As a pharmacist, I've taken years of advanced chemistry courses. I wish that I'd had this book (The Periodic Kingdom) available during pharmacy school- it would have helped to elucidate some of the most fundamental, yet hard-to-grasp concepts in chemistry. Right now, I'm using Professor Atkins' insightful illumination of the atomic world to help explain these concepts to my 6th-grade son. It beats the dry 6th-grade text any day. I can't praise this book enough.
