The Disappearing Spoon...and other true tales from the Periodic Table

"Kean has Bill Bryson's comic touch... a lively history of the elements and the characters behind their discovery" New Scientist "A wealth of fascinating stories with a dazzling cast of heroes and villains. Written with gusto and backed by a mind-boggling amount of research, this is a real page turner" -- Robert Matthews Daily Telegraph 20111115 "One of the most readable and entertaining books about science yet published ... [Kean] is master of enlightening metaphors" Daily Express "The periodic table meets the best-seller list with Sam Kean's Disappearing Spoon, an engaging tour of the elements... with the eclat of raw sodium dropped in a beaker of water" The New York Times "the anecdotal flourishes of Oliver Sacks and the populist accessibility of Malcolm Gladwell" Entertainment Weekly