Elementary Quantum Chemistry

Most students entering their first quantum chem book will not enjoy the text--nor the teacher because of the difficulty of remembering all of those concepts learned 3 years ago in undergraduate physics and calculus. Not to worry, Dr. Frank Pilar, the author, does that for you in this text!! He consistantly assists you moving from the classical to the quantum world, reminding you where you once were, and where you are now headed. I do wish he had more exercises and problems at the end of chapters, but overall this is a fantantisc textbook for those who grind their teeth hearing the phrase "quantum chemistry." As the author presents subjects such as approximations to Schrodinger's equation or Hunds rules, he reminds us of where we used to be in chemistry, and now where we are headed. The challending nature of a topic such as this usually brings about headaches, and reviews of old books we discarded in other classes. But not this one. Dr. Pilar guides us through with ease, and makes Q chem quite the enjoyable subject matter or material it should be, instead of the nightmare it can be. The chapter on molecular structure is particularly well written for such a terribly complex subject although the ending with Raman spectroscopy of diatomic molecules is a little short. Overall this book is worth every penny you spend. Read it first, then the text your instructor is using. That will assist you alot as you progress. Some of his references are slighly dated , but that is because of the nature in which this is written. His illustrations are very good and unique for a text like this. guyairey