Penny Le CouteurRecensioni

loved the history-struggled with the structure.. but felt they were right to include it

ذلك الكون الخفي، المكون من الروابط الجزيئية بين الذرات، هو المسؤول عن بعض أكثر الأحداث أهمية في تاريخ البشرية.
يسرد الكتاب قصص هذه الجزيئات والمركبات مخرجاً إياها من مختبر الكيمياء ليضعها في سياق العالم المرئي الملموس.

"Napoleon's Buttons" had the potential to be a most interesting book, covering discoveries of new materials, chemicals, and medicines over the past several hundred years.
Examples of topics covered include:
--- How European demand for the spice molecule piperine (the basic molecule of pepper) not only fueled early exploration, but also inspired the practice of buying and selling shares in the modern stock market.
--- How a minor housecleaning mishap and an exploding cotton apron led to the development of modern explosive and contributed to the photography and movie industries.
--- Why isoeugenol is the reason people who live in Manhattan can call themselves New Yorkers instead of New Amsterdamers.

But as the book's subtitle indicates, the stories get down to real details of the molecules.
And unfortunately for me, since I listened to the book in audiobook format, the verbal descriptions of the chemical compounds, and detailing how the carbon, oxygen, hydrogen atoms are bonded to each other was hard to visualize, and my mind quickly drifted.

For example, in one section on Polysaccharides, the author writes: Though we lack the enzyme that breaks down a beta linkage, we do have a digestive enzyme that splits an alpha linkage. The alpha configuration is found in the storage polysaccharides, starch and glycogen. One of our major dietary sources of glucose, starch is found in roots, tubers, and seeds of many plants. It consists of two slightly different polysaccharide molecules, both polymers of alpha-glucose units. Twenty to thirty percent of starch is made up of amylose, an unbranched chain of several thousand glucose units joined between carbon number 4 on one glucose and carbon number 1 on the next glucose. The only difference between and cellulose is that in amylose the linkages are alpha and in cellulose they are beta. But the roles played by cellulose and amylose polysaccharides are vastly different.
Amylopectin forms the remaining 70 to 80 percent of starch. It also consists of long chains of alpha-glucose units joined between carbons number 1 and number 4, but amylopectin is a branched molecule with cross linkages, between the carbon number 1 of one glucose unit and carbon number 6 of another glucose unit, occurring every twenty to twenty-five glucose units. The presence of up to a million glucose units in interconnecting chains makes amylopectin one of the largest molecules found in nature.

To be fair, diagrams of these long chained molecules are shown in the book, which can aid in understanding the text, but you're on your own when listening to the book without the visuals, it's hard to follow.

So clearly, the format, audiobook vs. print, played a part in my loss of attention. However, on the positive side, I found that by listening to the book as I went to bed ended up being an excellent way to fall asleep. As the reader droned on, I rarely stayed awake for longer than 60 seconds. Therefore, unless you have a true passion for chemistry, I found this book, in audiobook format, would be welcomed by insomniacs, but few others.

A well-written discussion of molecules that have been important in human history: salt, olive oil, sugar, spices, all are discussed both in their historical significance and the way chemistry managed to synthesize these. A fun read even though it contains chemical formulae.

Everything on Earth is made from the same handful of substances with properties that vary dramatically based on the proportions and structure of their combinations. Tiny changes have had enormous effects on human history, and we often don't know whether those changes are positive, negative, or both until well after the fact. At times overly simplistic, overall this book provides an intriguing perspective on how chemistry shapes our world.

This is one of the many excellent books we've discovered thanks to the Build Your Library book lists assembled by Emily Cook. If you're looking for great reads on tons of subjects for yourself or your children, I highly recommend checking out the Build Your Library homeschool curricula.

A collection of stories about various groups of molecules that have impacted history, from spices, to foods, to medicines, to refrigerants, etc. presented without shirking away from the chemistry involved. It was engaging and interesting even to an organic chemist. One would not have to be an chemist to understand and enjoy the book

This is an informative and fun book about 17 molecules or compounds that have been pivotal in history and shaped the course of civilization. The author's descided to write this book to tell the stories of the fascinating connections between chemical structures and historical episodes, to uncover how seemingly unrelated events have depended on similar chemical structures, and to understand the extent to which the development of society has depended on the chemistry of certain compounds. In other words, a book about chemistry in history. Molecules such as spices, sugar, Vitamin C, antibiotics, aspirin, rubber, chlorine gas, cellulose, silk, dyes and narcotics are examined. This book also includes a large number of delightful molecular diagrams which help illustrate the role of molecular structure in function. The authors compare molecular structures to show how they differ and how they are the same, and they illustrate how extremely small changes to a molecule sometimes produce profound effects. Following the connections among the particular shapes and related properties of various molecules reveals the influence of chemical structures on the development of civilization.

For the most part the authors manage their objectives, though a few chapters are rather thin on the chemistry side of history. This isn't an indepth book by any means, but it does provide a wealth of interesting information and food for thought. The book includes a selected bibliography, however, a more specific referencing method would have been more helpful for more detailed research.

Extremely good book whether or not you are schooled in chemistry or not. Formulas and equations that accompany the stories are made less complex and easier to understand by circling molecular groups and having side by side molecules with arrows pointing out differences. This book should appeal to anyone with an interest in world history or science and especially for someone with an interest in chemistry. This book might well be required reading for anyone taking an organic chemistry course since it shows the relevance of things that in the classroom might otherwise seem pointless.

For those with relatively little background in chemistry, Napoleon's Buttons seems like a good bet. Each chapter covers a specific molecule or group of molecules that follow a set theme (e.g. a chapter on morphine also discusses caffeine, as both of these molecules are "addictive"), and the authors do a good job of presenting the chemical structures, showing exactly how the components are oriented and the subtle differences that can cause drastic changes to its toxicity or addictiveness. It is a medium-weight read: not incredibly *hard* science, but not for the complete beginner.

While the chemistry knowledge appears to be sound, I confess to feeling doubtful about some facts presented in other areas, primarily because of a statement on page 79 of my edition that begins "Rabbits and some other rodents…"

Rabbits are NOT rodents. Rodents are part of the order Rodentia. Rabbits are part of a completely different order, Lagomorpha. This error might have jumped out at me more readily than it would to someone else (as you might expect from my username, I love rabbits), but it seems like something that should have been easy to check and correct.

If this error had not been present, I would have rated the book at least a 4. I was considering going down to 3 stars, but a last-minute burst of interesting facts in the final chapter granted it an extra half-star.½

Chapters about the impact of various molecules on various facets of everyday life. Some really did change history. For more advanced students. Chapters are stand-alone.

Amazing! It is how science has changed the world like ripples in a pond

This is an interesting story that discusses the discovery and impact of chemicals in scientific advancement and changes in lifestyle. This is a unique book in that it discussed the importance of a number of chemicals in the history of mankind. I strongly recommend the book.

Yum. I love a good science book. This one had the perfect ratio of technical details to useless knowledge. It started to get a little repetitive towards the end, though, because when it comes down to it, there are surprisingly few compounds found in nature, especially since most of the ones in the book are organic.½

The cornerstone of the plot line is the interwoven story of human history and chemistry. The title is misleading since many more molecules are covered within each chapter. There is a definite author bias toward organic molecules and I wish other types of metals such as iron had been explored. I was very much disappointing with the title. The story of Napoleon’s button is mentioned as an anecdote in the prologue and as an afterthought throughout the rest of the book. The authors obviously know about chemistry even drawing clear picture of the compound listed. However, I found that they went into to too much detail about chemical reactions, for example isoprene. While at other times not explaining how chemicals worked, such as quinine. Overall I found the authors writing styles to be a bit dry and I would probably not read it again.

A description of 17 sets of molecules that have played crucial roles in our world both now and in the past. Interesting but not earth-shattering. Like most of this genre of popular non-fiction, there are lots of interesting facts, however there is ultimately no storyline. But an interesting blend of social history and chemistry nonetheless.½

The subtitle, 17 molecules that changed history is a bit misleading in Napoleon’s buttons, a book by Penny Le Couteur and Jay Burreson. There are 17 chapters, each covering a molecule or a group of molecules with chemical and historical information. For example chapter 1 deals with peppers, nutmeg and cloves; several molecules are responsible for taste in this group. The chemistry of spices as well as the history of the spice trade is covered. This chapter explains why we speak English in the United States instead of Dutch.

The introduction sets the stage for the book and also deals with basic chemistry. The authors explain what is necessary to know in easy to read language and the diagrams reinforce the concepts. However, those sections dealing with the chemistry of the compounds (an alternate term for molecules which contain at least two different elements) in each chapter can be easily skipped without losing the narrative of the stories.

From scurvy to synthetic fabrics to explosives, the authors take a new look at major events in the history of the world. And no, Napoleon’s buttons do not get a special chapter but are mentioned in the introduction. They may have changed history but I’ll let you read the book and decide.

It was interesting, but I resented this book for misrepresenting itself. Its title offers discussing 17 molecules that changed history- much too grand a claim to what it actually offers. In reality, it discusses natural and man-made compounds like, for example, quinine or polymers in history and their impact on the development on specific areas of life. It was interesting though for what it offered, and I found molecules of witchcraft, spices- peppers, nutmeg and cloves, dyes, morphine, nicotine and caffeine most interesting of the lot.½

Molecules change history? Yes, definitely. While the title refers to the fact that the Napoleon’s retreat in Russia might have been influenced by the failure of the tin buttons on his men’s uniforms (thus making the army more vulnerable to the cold weather), that’s actually a minor effect of chemistry on history compared to most of the other ones in the book.

The book starts with piperine, eugenol and isoeugenol, the molecules that give black pepper, cloves and nutmeg their flavor and kick. The quest for these molecules fueled world exploration and the discovery of the new world by Europeans. Ascorbic acid? That one made long ocean voyages feasible. Glucose and the lust for sweet things led to the enslavery of millions of Africans for sugar cane plantations. Cellulose not only helped fuel the slave trade (cotton plantations) but led to the discovery of nitrate explosives- TNT and dynamite. Phenol, as carbolic acid, acted as a germ killer than made surgery much safer.

This is a fascinating blend of history and chemistry. The discovery of each molecule is given in detail, as well as how this discovery changed life. The illustrations and explanations of the molecules show how one little change can lead to a whole different action. If chemistry had been taught this way when I was in school, I might have passed chemistry!

The title is a near miss. It's more like "17 kinds of molecules and their historical contexts".

The history parts are feeble (some of the references are Time-Life series!), sometimes even laughable. Basically it just comprises speculation and anecdotes.

The chemistry part, though, is great (I say this as one who knows almost nothing about the subject). The introduction explains, clearly, conventions of chemical representation, and the chapters make good use of that info. Without being more technical than necessary they explain critical differences and surprising similarities between different molecules. I might actually want this book.

The authors go through 17 different types of molecules (most of them organic) which had an impact on human history. They focus a lot of attention on how small changes in the molecular structure can have large impact, such as turning a colorless powder into a highly successful synthetic dye, or turning a folk remedy for headaches into aspirin. They do a good job of walking the reader through the representations chemists use to depict molecular structure, and then using those drawings to highlight the subtle differences that can have huge impacts, both good and bad, on humanity. In addition to the chemistry, they weave in quite a bit of historical context to the discoveries.

The one curious thing about the book is that, aside from a few paragraphs in the introduction, and a couple asides in the body of the book, neither Napoleon nor his buttons, are discussed.

A very good introduction to the chemistry of some historically important substances, with a reasonably good introduction to organic chemistry for non-chemists. Some of the chapters tie into others reasonably well, while others the link is a little strained, but each individual chapter is quite well done. Some of the claims of the historical importance of the various compounds are a little overstated.

This book has interesting historical anecdotes related to the development of the understanding of organic chemistry....from gun powder to dye stuffs and beyond. It was an interesting read, but bogged down somewhat by the emphasis on molecular structures if you're not a chemist.

Did Napoleon's army fail to invade Russia for want of a better button on their uniforms?

Chemisty has changed the course of history in ways that aren't always clear. Whether it be the chemicals that give nutmed its flavor or the chemicals that let women wear nylons instead of silk stockings, chemistry and chemical engineering have played a huge role in colonization, invasions, war, innovation, and leasure. If you are looking for a social history that's light on the science, you probably need to skip this one. LeCouteur sprinkles in lots of chemical symbols and ideas-not enough to loose a non-chemistry literatre reader, but enough to slow one down. Normally, she allows the story to get lost behind the beakers, though, to my disappointment.½

Did tin buttons that crumbled in the cold stop Napoleon's army? Or was it scurvy from lack of vitamin-C? Or lack of antibiotics for the wounded? Throughout history, there have been substances that have changed the world. The authors have chosen 17 types of molecules that have altered the course of nations, societies and cultures. Each chapter centers on one of the molecules, and it's very interesting that many of the molecules are interconnected.

The authors take us on a fascinating journey through history and chemistry - starting with piperine, the stuff that puts the 'hot' in peppers and ending with the molecules that have conquered malaria. Both natural and synthetic substances are studied. The impact of natural substances like salt, caffeine, and olive oil reaches far past daily life and into the fate of nations. The search for synthetic substitutes has led to diverse products such as nylon, artificial sweeteners, the Pill, and Styrofoam. The impacts of several live-saving substances like vitamin-C and antibiotics are explored. Some compounds, such as DDT and Freon, that were originally seen as near-miracles have proven to be rather disastrous to the environment. Napoleon's Buttons explores the consequences for better and for worse, sometimes all in the same substance.

The book starts with a very friendly overview of chemistry diagrams and terms. The authors provide a multitude of diagrams that show how various substances are similar and different. It's truly amazing how a tiny change in structure can completely alter the properties of a molecule. I think the diagrams are fascinating, but if you're not that interested in the actual chemistry, you can easily ignore them and concentrate on the stories that illustrate the effect of each substance. Le Couteur and Burreson entertain as well as educate with their well-chosen selection of anecdotes. Their writing is very understandable for the casual reader, but includes enough detail to satisfy someone with a stronger background in science.

I don't usually comment on the look of the text, but I thought it was just outstanding in this book. Both the text and the diagrams are exceptionally clean and easy to read. The information is very well organized - it's easy to read each chapter as a self contained unit, but there's enough of a framework tying it all together to make it a coherent whole.

5 Stars