<p>I'm planning to self-study AP Chemistry... Is the Brown/LeMay (Chemistry: The Central Science) or the Zumdahl book more appropriate for the AP Chem curriculum? I've only used Brown/LeMay before, which was easy to understand, but I've heard that Zumdahl covers things in greater detail.</p>
<p>Hmmm I have the Brown book, but I haven't read it yet. Our school uses Zumdahl; however, it is more expensive. I believe the general consensus at our school is that Zumdahl is better.</p>
<p>I self studied and I used Brown/Lemay, I thought it was excellent. Got a 5. Supplemented it with PR.</p>
<p>Zumdahl is excellent. Things are very clearly explained, and you can even use it to prepare for the Olympiad. I have no clue about Brown.</p>
<p>i personally liked the text and the way of explaining in brown but the zumdahl has great practice probs</p>
<p>Zumdahl is definitely better than Brown.</p>
<p>Zumdahl for sure.</p>
<p>im using zumdahl in my class</p>
<p>Zumdahl if you have a good background in the physical sciences and can grasp problems quickly. Brown if you prefer to have things organized step by step. I personally like both and you can't go wrong with either. Both if used effectively will get you a 5 on the AP.</p>
<p>Looks like I'm following Zumdahl... I know that things like new, current developments is an issue with subjects such as biology, so is it better to get the newest edition of Zumdahl, or will an used one be just as scientifically recent as a new one?</p>
<p>If you've taken AP Chemistry already, is Brown good for review for the ACS?</p>
<p>Our school uses The Central Science, which I believe is brown. We got the special AP Edition that tells which chapters will be on the test, and how to study for them. Zumdahl has a pretty looking cover though. Not that that has to do anything with it...</p>
<p>We use Zumdahl. It's decent, some concepts could be explained in easier ways.</p>
<p>If you want to really learn chem, get either. But if you just want a 5, I'd recommend using Barron's for concepts and Zumdahl for the problems.</p>
<p>our school has brown and i really like it. all the problems are explained really well, and the concepts are easy to understand. i dont know about zumdahl though. but i think PR with brown would get you a 5.</p>
<p>Samuelc asked whether recent editions matter - for chemistry no. Chem doesn't change as rapidly as bio does. Our school used to use the 3rd edition of Zumdahl, then upgraded to the 6th edition a couple of years ago - there is virtually no difference. The writing has improved (Zumdahl has a better cowriter than he used to have), but the technical information is virtually unchanged.
I assume you realize not all the Zumdahl chapters need to be covered?</p>
<p>We use Brown/Lemay in my class and it's very good. There are example problems that guide you but also practice problems that make you think. Answers to odd are in the back of course... It covers everything well in my opinion.</p>
<p>We have Brown, LeMay, Bursten but don't really use it.</p>
<p>zumdahl is one of the worst textbooks out there</p>
<p>princeton review is enough</p>
<p>use the zumdahl book.</p>
<p>We use both books. :)</p>