Essentials of Polymer Science and Engineering

[General]Each page has two columns of text (so like a bible) but the print is a normal readable size.[Pros]It's a polymer book that covers all the concepts that you would expect. Durable, full color pages with a slight glossy feel and look.[Cons]So this might just be personal preference, but I did not like the way the book was written. Its prose was too informal for my taste. I don't need super technical language, but I like books on these kinds of topics to give me the information I need and explain things well.This book feels like two authors just sat down and wanted to take a swing at a polymer book. Now, this book is exactly that, which is not a bad thing on its own, but sometimes the authors added too much dumb humor, exaggeration, or anecdotes that came off as childish and time-wasting.I don't need a polymer book to say things like, "The polypropylene looks like a mass of spaghetti that your authors would love to chow down on at their local Italian restaurant..." Like, why did they even need to say that?Even though that specific example and wording is not found in the book, it truly is the type of language used throughout the book. Enough that you will notice it. (And they actually do say "your authors" on more than one occasion.)Now, if noticing that stuff does not bother you, then this book is exactly what it needs to be and should be good for you. I am not cursing the authors for wanting to interject some humor, I'm just saying that it was a bit much for me.Second thing, the graphs, figures, and illustrations are a bit... lacking. Don't get me wrong, the images reflect the content and you will be able to understand trends and patterns fine, but it really does feel like the authors made their own images and figures in very cheap imaging software (I wish I took pictures, but had to return the rental). The book just feels a bit less professional overall.So that's why I gave it 3 stars.By the way, in writing this review, I was comparing it to a previous book I needed: Materials Science and Engineering: An Introduction by Callister Jr. and William D., in which all the same topics are covered (and even expanded upon).I realize that the authors put a lot of work into their book (the one for this review), but the other book I just mentioned above is honestly better written and feels like it gives much more information per page because it's not trying to make jokes or sound humorous. I reread that book when the polymer book (for this review) was occasionally unclear.

This textbook is absolutely trash. It does not even attempt to help you learn. Not only are there no solutions to the practice questions, but some questions ask you to use outside resources to answer them (wtf??). This has made my polymers course an absolute nightmare. It is impossible to learn using this waste of paper.

In terms of the fundamentals, it is a very solid book. You can get a very good idea of the material being discussed. However, there are many equations that are incorrect, including misplaced parenthesis and +/- sign changes that can leave you confused in terms of the math involved. Not really a good book for problem solving though but it would be a great reference.

Some of the math needs to be double checked I think, but the tone is very funny and readable. A very enjoyable read.

Funny

Everything was fine

Very good book.

I cannot believe that this book is being used for science and engineering classes. And that it was published in 2009! In addition to a lot of weird comments, it includes some inappropriate sexist comments! The worst: "How would you keep your pants up, your knickers on, your breasts from sagging? How would you make running shoes, panty hose or form fitting swimming suits? (Your authors, sexist curs that they are, would certainly miss the latter!)". It is a hard enough environment for women in the sciences, this type of material has no place in a textbook! Do not use this.