Part I

Introduction

This book contains 19 chapters. Chapters 1–9 may be thought of as an introduction to Part II. The first-five chapters deal with the structure of organic compounds. These chapters discuss the kinds of bonding important in organic chemistry, the fundamental principles of conformation and stereochemistry of organic molecules, and reactive intermediates in organic chemistry. Chapters 6–9 are concerned with general principles of mechanism in organic chemistry, including acids and bases, photochemistry, sonochemistry and microwave irradiation, and finally the relationship between structure and reactivity.

Chapters 10–19, which make up Part II, are directly concerned with the nature and the scope of organic reactions and their mechanisms.