Literary Quote of the Month

"A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies," said Jojen. "The man who never reads lives only one." - George R.R. Martin, A Dance With Dragons

Monday, July 26, 2010

The Disappearing Spoon by Sam Kean... It's not a "Memoir" this Monday, but it's True Tales of Madness, Love and History !

True Tales of Madness, Love and The History of The World From
The Periodic Table of The Elements

We're all familiar with the Periodic Table of Elements, it's that big chart in the science classroom that has all the known chemical elements arranged by atomic number. We can find Helium (He), Oxygen (O), and Mercury (Hg)...Great, right?! Sam Kean writes, "Probably the biggest frustration for many students was that the people who got the periodic table, who could really unpack how it worked, could pull so many facts from it with such dweeby nonchalance... People remember the table with a mix of fascination, fondness, inadequacy and loathing." Sam Kean was one of the people who got the Periodic Table, but his love of those chemical elements developed into a love of history, and in The Disappearing Spoon Sam Kean mixes science with our love of a good story and the final product is a wonderful adventure! Here's what the publishers have to say...

The Periodic Table is one of man's crowning scientific achievements. But it's also a treasure trove of stories of passion, adventure, betrayal, and obsession. The infectious tales and astounding details in THE DISAPPEARING SPOON follow carbon, neon, silicon, and gold as they play out their parts in human history, finance, mythology, war, the arts, poison, and the lives of the (frequently) mad scientists who discovered them.

We learn that Marie Curie used to provoke jealousy in colleagues' wives when she'd invite them into closets to see her glow-in-the-dark experiments. And that Lewis and Clark swallowed mercury capsules across the country and their campsites are still detectable by the poison in the ground. Why did Gandhi hate iodine? Why did the Japanese kill Godzilla with missiles made of cadmium? And why did tellurium lead to the most bizarre gold rush in history?

The Disappearing Spoon by Sam Kean is written like a short story collection. Contained within the pages are these great, interesting stories, written in a way that it's like your favorite Uncle telling you a story - enjoyable and understandable. This makes sense because that's what Same Kean enjoyed as a physics major- the stories his professor shared with him,

" I realized that there's a funny, or odd, or chilling tale attached to every element on the periodic table. At the same time, the table is one of the great intellectual achievements of humankind. Its' both a scientific accomplishment and a storybook..."

What does Shakespeare and the first virus ever discovered have in common? Why did the Parker Pen Company hire a metallurgist? You'll read about Lewis & Clark, Madame Curie, Mark Twain. The stories are relatively short and can be enjoyed in bits and pieces. Hey, while you're enjoying the "tales", you'll probably learn something too! Read an EXCERPT of The Disappearing Spoon and see for yourself if Sam Kean has what it takes to make science interesting to you!

I want to thank Hachette Book Group for sending along a review copy of The Disappearing Spoon!

68 comments:

Anonymous said...

This sounds like a fun read.

page46@gmail.com

Anonymous said...

I'm a follower.

Anonymous said...

I put it on my blog to help spread the word.

Vidisha said...

Great giveaway!!

vidishamun@gmail.com

Vidisha said...

I am a follower

Anonymous said...

I already follow you.

Anonymous said...

I have blogged about the giveaway in my sidebar. http://readwithtea.blogspot.com

It leads back to you here at home.

Reading said...

Please count me in. Thanks for the chance.

lizzi0915 at aol dot com

nfmgirl said...

I'd love a shot at this book. Please count me in. Thank you!

nfmgirl AT gmail DOT com

Becca said...

Please enter me!

thanks
rebecca.bradeen(at)verizon(dot)net

Becca said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Becca said...

I'm a follower!

thanks
rebecca.bradeen(at)verizon(dot)net

Becca said...

I blogged here:
http://completepoppycock.blogspot.com/2010/07/disappearing-spoons.html

thanks
rebecca.bradeen(at)verizon(dot)net

Amy (ArtsyBookishGal) said...

Thanks for the giveaway!

Amy S.
artsyrockerchick at aim dot com

Renee said...

sounds like a fun book

ReneeSuz82(at)msn.com

Renee said...

I follow on google friends connect

Reneesuz82(at)msn.com

Alyce said...

I would love to be entered!

akreese (at) hotmail (dot) com

Alyce said...

I follow your blog.

akreese (at) hotmail (dot) com

skkorman said...

Sounds intriguing—please enter me to win!

skkorman AT bellsouth DOT net

Linda Kish said...

This sounds really interesting.

lkish77123 at gmail dot com

Linda Kish said...

GFC follower

lkish77123 at gmail dot com

The Insouciant Sophisticate said...

Please enter me: this book sounds totally awesome!

bookworm1858 AT hotmail DOT com

The Insouciant Sophisticate said...

I'm also a follower

Misusedinnocence said...

I would love to read this. :)

misusedinnocence@aol.com

Misusedinnocence said...

I follow on gfc/blogger.

misusedinnocence@aol.com

Anonymous said...

Already publicly following Chick with Books with Google Friend Connect [Cheryl F. {The Lucky Ladybug}]
theluckyladybug[at]gmail[dot]com

Abhishek Duggal said...

Thanks for the opportunity!

forsurveysonly at gmail dot com

Michele said...

Please enter me.

Thanks,
mmmtnbike09@yahoo.com

Michele said...

I follow your blog.

mmmtnbike09@yahoo.com

Steve Capell said...

This book sounds like an interesting read. Thanks for the opportunity.

steven(dot)capell(at)gmail(dot)com

Anonymous said...

I love reading also, just wish I could review as well as I read. This sounds like something right up my alley. addictionsfb at gmail dot com

Anonymous said...

I became a new follower: sunflowerinn
addictionsfb at gmail dot com

carla said...

This sounds like a great mix of science and mystery and fun.
Thanks for the chance!

cjay (at) iavalley (dot) edu

Tomi C said...

Science and mystery...sounds great!

Tclarkusa at gmail dot com

throuthehaze said...

Count me in please!
throuthehaze at gmail dot com

throuthehaze said...

I am a follower
throuthehaze at gmail dot com

janetfaye said...

This book sounds interesting.

janetfaye (at) gmail (dot) com

janetfaye said...

I follow.

janetfaye (at) gmail (dot) com

Anita Yancey said...

This book sounds really interesting. I would love to read it. Please enter me. Thanks!

ayancey(at)dishmail(dot)net

rhapsodyinbooks said...

I would love to be entered!

nbmars AT yahoo DOT com

lag123 said...

I have heard so much about this book. Thank you for the giveaway!

lag110 at mchsi dot com

lag123 said...

I am an old follower.

lag110 at mchsi dot com

Tara said...

Hi! I tweeted, I am now following and my email is teeazzo@gmail.com.

Thanks!!!

Dawn M. said...

This book sounds really interesting. Would love the chance to read it. :0)

Thanks!
librarygrinch at gmail dot com

Dawn M. said...

I follow.

librarygrinch at gmail dot com

Dawn M. said...

Tweeted!

http://twitter.com/librarygrinch/status/20118498717

librarygrinch at gmail dot com

Sue said...

Looks great. Thanks for the giveaway.

s.mickelson at gmail dot com

Anonymous said...

It's about time I learned the Periodic Table! Please enter me in the drawing. Thanks. 006andaHalf

laurielamb@comcast.net

mrsshukra said...

Please count me in, very interesting book!

delilah0180(at)yahoo(dot)com

mrsshukra said...

Google follower!

delilah0180(at)yahoo(dot)com

Meredith said...

Great giveaway! Please enter me!

meredithfl at gmail dot com

Meredith said...

I'm a follower.

meredithfl at gmail dot com

belindaannbennett said...

I'm a follower, too!

belinda.ann.bennett@gmail.com

And I tweeted!

k_sunshine1977 said...

i've heard about this book - throw my hat in the ring!

k_sunshine1977 at yahoo dot com

k_sunshine1977 said...

i am also a follower

k_sunshine1977 at yahoo dot com

PowerSweepstaking said...

excellent book!

PowerSweepstaking said...

following, and oh, because I forgot my email address in the last comment, here it is now

barracudaron@gmail.com

PowerSweepstaking said...

http://twitter.com/sweepstaking/status/20584819816

tweet

degood said...

I have been wanting to read this book since I read a review for it on another blog a few weeks ago.

kerrie@mayansfamily.com

degood said...

I follow your blog as degood with google friend connect.

kerrie@mayansfamily.com

weeziestoy said...

Sounds interesting....Please enter me to win

weeziestoy@centurylink.net

Terry Mac said...

This sounds like a really great collection of stories. Ones that we all should read!

Thank you for this giveaway.

terrymac1a at hotmail dot com

Terry Mac said...

I am a loyal reader and follower of your blog.
Thank you for hosting these great giveaways!

terrymac1a at hotmail dot com

Luvdaylilies said...

I think I would really enjoy this book~please count me in=)
Luvdaylilies at bellsouth dot net

Luvdaylilies said...

Blog follower~Luvdaylilies
Luvdaylilies at bellsouth dot net

Luvdaylilies said...

I tweeted~
http://twitter.com/Luvdaylilies/status/20669976645
Luvdaylilies at bellsouth dot net

Suzanne Yester said...

The Winner is... Tea! Congrats! And Thank you to EVERYONE for joining in on the fun by Entering, Blogging and Tweeting about the Giveaway!

I've edited this post to highlight the review! Thanks again for stopping by to enter the original giveaway!

Unknown said...

I was really glad to stumble upon another positive review. It seems like it's just one of those books everyone is raving about.

I just posted my review, if you'd like to see it. I am in love with this book, and I have to say I am a Sam Kean fant. I will be reading his new book very soon.

http://www.gonebookserk.com/2012/08/review-of-disappearing-spoon-and-other.html

FSB Media Book Blogger Directory
my read shelf:
Suzanne's book recommendations, favorite quotes, book clubs, book trivia, book lists (read shelf)
First To Read
Reviews Published
Professional Reader
Challenge Participant