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The Periodic Table (Abacus Books)
 
 

The Periodic Table (Abacus Books) (Paperback)

by Primo Levi (Author), R. Rosenthal (Translator) "There are the so-called inert gases in the air we breathe ..." (more)
3.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (17 customer reviews)

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Product details

  • Paperback: 234 pages
  • Publisher: Penguin; New edition edition (21 April 1988)
  • ISBN-10: 0349121982
  • ISBN-13: 978-0349121987
  • Product Dimensions: 19.8 x 12.9 x 1.5 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 21,409 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

    Popular in these categories:

    #2 in  Books > Fiction > Authors, A-Z > L > Levi, Primo
    #3 in  Books > Fiction > Authors, A-Z > P > Primo, Levi

Product Description

Amazon.co.uk Review
Writer Primo Levi (1919-1987), an Italian Jew, did not come to the wide attention of the English-reading audience until the last years of his life. A survivor of the Holocaust and imprisonment in Auschwitz, Levi is considered to be one of the century's most compelling voices, and The Periodic Table is his most famous book. Taking the knowledge he gained from his training as a chemist, Levi uses the elements as metaphors to create a cycle of linked, somewhat autobiographical tales, including stories of the Piedmontese Jewish community he came from, and of his response to the Holocaust.

Product Description
A chemist by training, Primo Levi became one of the supreme witnesses to twentieth-century atrocity. In these haunting reflections inspired by the elements of the periodic table, he ranges from young love to political savagery; from the inert gas argon - and 'inert' relatives like the uncle who stayed in bed for twenty-two years - to life-giving carbon. 'Iron' honours the mountain-climbing resistance hero who put iron in Levi's student soul, 'Cerium' recalls the improvised cigarette lighters which saved his life in Auschwitz, while 'Vanadium' describes an eerie post-war correspondence with the man who had been his 'boss' there. All are written with characteristically understated eloquence and shot through with deep humanity. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

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There are the so-called inert gases in the air we breathe. Read the first page
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What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

The Periodic Table (Abacus Books)
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Customer Reviews

17 Reviews
5 star:
 (8)
4 star:
 (3)
3 star:
 (4)
2 star:    (0)
1 star:
 (2)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
3.9 out of 5 stars (17 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars A Master Piece, 2 Dec 2004
By Daniel D. Errampalli (MERANO, BZ, Italy) - See all my reviews
This books brings forth the literay genius of Levi, though the title says "periodic table", it has very little to with compelx chemistry. What he is alluding to through this title, is that there is a purpose,a plan, and order for events in life - as the order of elements found in the periodic table.

He is a master stroy teller, you can feel the passion, the joy and the pain, he takes you along with him in his narration, you can litearlly feel the emotions, while you read, wonderful flow of the language and full of human emotions.

In simple words, its a must to read.

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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Moving, fascinatin, wonderful, 20 Aug 1999
By A Customer
A beautiful book, filled with a real fascination and amused respect for the intricacies of creation and the vagaries of humanity. Levi survived Auschwitz because of his knowledge of industrial chemistry, and here he takes 21 elements from the Periodic Table as starting points for fragments of autobiography and fiction. Touching and funny, and sometimes unutterably sad. Far, far more than "a good read on a train"!
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11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Eyes in the kingdom of the blind, 18 Nov 2003
In a largely autobiographical synthesis (fictional tales of mercury and lead are neatly slid into the melting-pot), Primo Levi assesses his life in terms of the chemical elements. And as Levi says, this story is not invented, and reality is always more complex than invention: less kempt, cruder, less rounded out.

Non-chemists have no fear. This is a wonderfully rich alloy of science and history, language and memory. Forget gold and iron: it was hard, grey, obscure vanadium that stood out like a thorn for the troubled, hopeful times in which we live. Vanadium’s is a story of the real world, where the armed exist and the honest and the unarmed clear the road for them, and where all men must later answer for mankind. Profound and life-affirming stuff indeed.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Memoirs of more than just chemicals
Loosely structured around a selection of the chemical elements, this book is a collection of short stories from the author's memories of a life working in chemistry, together with... Read more
Published 3 months ago by John Holland

5.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating and absorbing
A very neat and thought-provoking series of autobiographical sketches (plus a couple of short fiction pieces), each based around one particular chemical element. Read more
Published 6 months ago by Nicholas Whyte

5.0 out of 5 stars Carphone Warehouse Book Club's favorite read in 2007
The unusual form of the book, each chapter relating to an element of the periodic table (not every element is included), to tell the tale of a chemist's life is highly effective... Read more
Published 11 months ago by ajk77

5.0 out of 5 stars Autobiographical Stories, Beautifully Translated
I want to defend this book from a couple of unfair reviews. Not that the great Primo Levi should need me, but The Periodic Table is one of the books I have most enjoyed reading... Read more
Published 12 months ago by Jeremy Hawker

3.0 out of 5 stars A difficult book- review by 'Keyne Readers'
This turned out not to be a good choice for us. Many of the group did not manage to read much of the book. Read more
Published 13 months ago by G. E. Kirkup

1.0 out of 5 stars wrong book
This book with the title "The Periodic Table", "The best science book ever written" (comment by the London's Royal Institute) is completely misleading. Read more
Published 19 months ago by LEO DE CLERCQ

1.0 out of 5 stars Recommended for academic fairies.
The first few paragraphs seemed to cover a phenomenal sense of history, humanity and with beautiful prose, but the "Essential penguin" edition is printed with characters the size... Read more
Published 20 months ago by G. E. Pen

3.0 out of 5 stars A little disappointing
Levi's books about Auschwitz and its aftermath ('If This is a Man' and 'The Truce') are great works of twentieth century literature (and important documents of twentieth century... Read more
Published on 8 April 2006 by Depressaholic

5.0 out of 5 stars Not just a chemistry book...
Many people may be put off this book, just by the title. Infact this book is not just for chemists. It helps knowing a bit of chemistry, but it's all pretty basic stuff. Read more
Published on 13 Aug 2003

3.0 out of 5 stars Bad translation
There are some wonderful passages in this book, but you have to be pretty determined to get past the first chapter. Read more
Published on 3 Sep 2002

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