<p>Hello!</p>
<p>I am a college freshman currently taking an advanced general chemistry that is focused on the physical chemistry. Our textbook kind of suck (lack of explanation and problems), so I decided to purchase another textbook. I am thinking of either Oxtoby's Principles of Modern Chemistry or Atkin's Chemical Principles: the quest for insight. I am also thinking of keeping it as a future reference. Which book is better?</p>
<p>Hi,
Personally I would pick Atkins because it is more thorough and rigorous as a reference for chem majors but you really can’t go wrong with either. They’re both top notch books.</p>
<p>Atkins and Jones is much more rigorous text. It’s calculus-based (Otoxby is not), and it begins with quantum chem and thermodynamics and explains other concepts in terms of these. For the great many students who struggle with quantum mechanics and thermodynamics, however, that means everything else is explained in terms of something they don’t really understand. IMHO, Otoxby is a better text for learning the concepts, and Atkins and Jones is a better text for reference when you already understand them. But personally, I recommend using the web as supplemental material instead of buying a second textbook.</p>