A Review of Gas! Gas! Quick, Boys!
by
Daniel
Gas! Gas! Quick, Boys! is comprehensive account of the role of chemistry in World War I (WWI) written by the chemist and author Dr. Michael Freemantle. This expansive coverage of topics that are either within chemistry, or directly related to chemistry, differentiates this book from other books about chemistry during WWI, which generally focus on chemical warfare, particularly poison gas. Books that cover chemistry as a whole during WWI are rare with Gas! Gas! Quick, Boys! and The Chemists' War: 1914-1918, both written by Dr. Freemantle, being the only two books that cover chemistry as a whole and its impact on the war.
Gas! Gas! Quick, Boys! provides an excellent summary of many chemical innovations, such as the Haber process; and high explosives based on ammonium nitrate, such as ammonal and amatol. Dr. Freemantle skillfully provides the reader enough detail to satisfy someone with a chemical background, but not so much to turn away a reader with no background in chemistry. An area of weakness in the book is that it does not read like a single narrative, and instead reads more like a reference book that is a collection of separate essays or short papers on various topics related to and within chemistry, with some topics being less directly related to chemistry than others, such as the discussion of food supplies and preservation in the section on tin, called The ubiquitous tin.[1] The book maintains continuity in topics for the first half discussing ordnance after the introduction, but afterwards takes a drastic turn to more traditional chemistry with metals, gas and dyes, then moves to biochemistry and a discussion of medicine, before concluding with a discussion about chemistry as a whole during the war.[2] Gas! Gas! Quick, Boys! has an fun and casual tone, allowing the reader to understand the concepts easily without having to focus on interpreting the text. The book also does an re job at giving the perfect amount of detail to satisfy general readers while simultaneously giving a thorough explanation, such as how the composition of phosgene is explained: “Each molecule of the gas contains just one atom each of carbon and oxygen, and two atoms of chlorine.”[3] Listing the composition of the molecule explains to someone who understands basic chemistry or biology why phosgene is so toxic, as it combines carbon monoxide and chlorine gas, both potentially lethal compounds, into one gas without writing out the chemical formula and possibly confusing less technical readers.
Gas! Gas! Quick, Boys! has several chapters on the manufacture, uses, and history of different explosive, such as lyddite, ammonal, cordite, nitroglycerin, ballistite, amatol, guncotton, black powder, and TNT. The book also discusses the history, use, and operation of chemical weapons, specifically mustard gas, phosgene, and chlorine, along with the prevalent respirators, such as the P helmet.
Gas! Gas! Quick, Boys! explains the importance of chemistry on the war, but also tends to wander off in order to help relate some of the chemistry it discusses with the greater war effort. An example of this is the book talks about the physical structure of high explosive shells, they benefited from high-strength carbon steel which allowed the walls to be thinner than those of shells made of cast iron, while maintaining adequate strength, allowing for increased amount of explosive filler. Another example of where Dr. Freemantle writes about a subject not as directly related to chemistry, is in the discussion about the mechanisms in fuses. He discusses the differences between burning-timed fuses and mechanical-timed fuses.[4] He also explains how impact fuses work: They use the deceleration of the impact to force a needle through paper and cause it to hit a primer, normally Mercury Fulminate, which ignites a booster explosive, which in turn ignites the primary explosive.[5]
Gas! Gas! Quick, Boys! has mixed reviews, with some reviewers, such as Alan Hawk from the National Museum of Health and Medicine,[6] saying that it has the perfect level of detail in all the right places and a good flow or structure, while other reviews state that it has some points where it gives information that is not useful or pertinent for both chemists and non-specialized readers.[7] However, most reviewers agree that the book provides an expansive cover of chemistry during the WWI.
Dr. Michael Freemantle has extensive experience in chemistry. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry and a chemistry writer. He is a former chemistry professor from Oxford, the former Information Officer for the International Union of Pure & Applied Chemistry, the European Science Editor/Senior Correspondent for Chemical & Engineering News, which is the weekly news magazine of the American Chemical Society, and the Science Writer in Residence at Queen's University Belfast and Queen’s University Ionic Liquid Laboratories. Gas! Gas! Quick, Boys! was commissioned by The History Press, which is logical, given how rare books on chemistry as a whole during WWI are. His experience as a chemistry professor is shown in the explanation of chemical concepts in a sound and understandable manner. His background as a correspondent is likely the source of the “engaging and conversational”[8] manner of the book.
Gas! Gas! Quick, Boys! is an ideal choice for a reader with some to no background in chemistry interested in learning about chemistry in the WWI. The book provides enough information to satisfy a reader with a fair amount of background knowledge in war and general chemistry; however I would have preferred a small increase in the depth of the explanations regarding the manufacture and power of explosives. I do not believe that there was a point in the book where the detail was overwhelming, although, some areas of the book may take some effort to understand if the reader is unfamiliar with the area of chemistry in discussion.
Sources
Footnotes
[1] Freemantle, Michael. Gas! Gas! Quick, Boys!. (Gloucestershire, The History Press: 2013). 103-105.
[2] William Bynum of University College, London presents a more detailed and accurate summary of the book in his book review for The Wall Street Journal.
[3] Freemantle, Michael. Gas! Gas! Quick, Boys!. (Gloucestershire, The History Press: 2013). 127.
[4] Ibid, 34-36.
[5] Ibid, 79.
[6] Hawk, Alan. “Review of Michael Freemantle, Gas! Gas! Quick, Boys! How Chemistry Changed the First World War” Michigan War Studies Review, March 13, 2015, http://www.miwsr.com/2015-023.aspx.
[7] Baum, Rudy. “Transforming Warfare.” Chemical & Engineering News, January 7, 2013 https://cen.acs.org/articles/91/i1/Transforming-Warfare.html.
[8] Hawk, Alan. “Review of Michael Freemantle, Gas! Gas! Quick, Boys! How Chemistry Changed the First World War” Michigan War Studies Review. March 13, 2015. http://www.miwsr.com/2015-023.aspx.
Gas! Gas! Quick, Boys! provides an excellent summary of many chemical innovations, such as the Haber process; and high explosives based on ammonium nitrate, such as ammonal and amatol. Dr. Freemantle skillfully provides the reader enough detail to satisfy someone with a chemical background, but not so much to turn away a reader with no background in chemistry. An area of weakness in the book is that it does not read like a single narrative, and instead reads more like a reference book that is a collection of separate essays or short papers on various topics related to and within chemistry, with some topics being less directly related to chemistry than others, such as the discussion of food supplies and preservation in the section on tin, called The ubiquitous tin.[1] The book maintains continuity in topics for the first half discussing ordnance after the introduction, but afterwards takes a drastic turn to more traditional chemistry with metals, gas and dyes, then moves to biochemistry and a discussion of medicine, before concluding with a discussion about chemistry as a whole during the war.[2] Gas! Gas! Quick, Boys! has an fun and casual tone, allowing the reader to understand the concepts easily without having to focus on interpreting the text. The book also does an re job at giving the perfect amount of detail to satisfy general readers while simultaneously giving a thorough explanation, such as how the composition of phosgene is explained: “Each molecule of the gas contains just one atom each of carbon and oxygen, and two atoms of chlorine.”[3] Listing the composition of the molecule explains to someone who understands basic chemistry or biology why phosgene is so toxic, as it combines carbon monoxide and chlorine gas, both potentially lethal compounds, into one gas without writing out the chemical formula and possibly confusing less technical readers.
Gas! Gas! Quick, Boys! has several chapters on the manufacture, uses, and history of different explosive, such as lyddite, ammonal, cordite, nitroglycerin, ballistite, amatol, guncotton, black powder, and TNT. The book also discusses the history, use, and operation of chemical weapons, specifically mustard gas, phosgene, and chlorine, along with the prevalent respirators, such as the P helmet.
Gas! Gas! Quick, Boys! explains the importance of chemistry on the war, but also tends to wander off in order to help relate some of the chemistry it discusses with the greater war effort. An example of this is the book talks about the physical structure of high explosive shells, they benefited from high-strength carbon steel which allowed the walls to be thinner than those of shells made of cast iron, while maintaining adequate strength, allowing for increased amount of explosive filler. Another example of where Dr. Freemantle writes about a subject not as directly related to chemistry, is in the discussion about the mechanisms in fuses. He discusses the differences between burning-timed fuses and mechanical-timed fuses.[4] He also explains how impact fuses work: They use the deceleration of the impact to force a needle through paper and cause it to hit a primer, normally Mercury Fulminate, which ignites a booster explosive, which in turn ignites the primary explosive.[5]
Gas! Gas! Quick, Boys! has mixed reviews, with some reviewers, such as Alan Hawk from the National Museum of Health and Medicine,[6] saying that it has the perfect level of detail in all the right places and a good flow or structure, while other reviews state that it has some points where it gives information that is not useful or pertinent for both chemists and non-specialized readers.[7] However, most reviewers agree that the book provides an expansive cover of chemistry during the WWI.
Dr. Michael Freemantle has extensive experience in chemistry. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry and a chemistry writer. He is a former chemistry professor from Oxford, the former Information Officer for the International Union of Pure & Applied Chemistry, the European Science Editor/Senior Correspondent for Chemical & Engineering News, which is the weekly news magazine of the American Chemical Society, and the Science Writer in Residence at Queen's University Belfast and Queen’s University Ionic Liquid Laboratories. Gas! Gas! Quick, Boys! was commissioned by The History Press, which is logical, given how rare books on chemistry as a whole during WWI are. His experience as a chemistry professor is shown in the explanation of chemical concepts in a sound and understandable manner. His background as a correspondent is likely the source of the “engaging and conversational”[8] manner of the book.
Gas! Gas! Quick, Boys! is an ideal choice for a reader with some to no background in chemistry interested in learning about chemistry in the WWI. The book provides enough information to satisfy a reader with a fair amount of background knowledge in war and general chemistry; however I would have preferred a small increase in the depth of the explanations regarding the manufacture and power of explosives. I do not believe that there was a point in the book where the detail was overwhelming, although, some areas of the book may take some effort to understand if the reader is unfamiliar with the area of chemistry in discussion.
Sources
- Baum, Rudy. “Transforming Warfare.” Chemical & Engineering News. January 7, 2013. https://cen.acs.org/articles/91/i1/Transforming-Warfare.html.
- Bynum, William. “Book Review: ‘Gas! Gas! Quick, Boys!”’ by Michael Freemantle.” The Wall Street Journal. November 22, 2013. https://www.wsj.com/articles/book-review-8216gas-gas-quick-boys8217-by-michael-freemantle-1385158983.
- Freemantle, Michael. Gas! Gas! Quick, Boys! Gloucestershire, The History Press: 2013.
- Hawk, Alan. “Review of Michael Freemantle, Gas! Gas! Quick, Boys! How Chemistry Changed the First World War” Michigan War Studies Review. March 13, 2015. http://www.miwsr.com/2015-023.aspx.
- Nicholson, John. “Gas! Gas! Quick, Boys!” Chemistry World. July 23, 2013. https://chemistryworld.com/culture/gas-gas-quick-boys/6408.article.
Footnotes
[1] Freemantle, Michael. Gas! Gas! Quick, Boys!. (Gloucestershire, The History Press: 2013). 103-105.
[2] William Bynum of University College, London presents a more detailed and accurate summary of the book in his book review for The Wall Street Journal.
[3] Freemantle, Michael. Gas! Gas! Quick, Boys!. (Gloucestershire, The History Press: 2013). 127.
[4] Ibid, 34-36.
[5] Ibid, 79.
[6] Hawk, Alan. “Review of Michael Freemantle, Gas! Gas! Quick, Boys! How Chemistry Changed the First World War” Michigan War Studies Review, March 13, 2015, http://www.miwsr.com/2015-023.aspx.
[7] Baum, Rudy. “Transforming Warfare.” Chemical & Engineering News, January 7, 2013 https://cen.acs.org/articles/91/i1/Transforming-Warfare.html.
[8] Hawk, Alan. “Review of Michael Freemantle, Gas! Gas! Quick, Boys! How Chemistry Changed the First World War” Michigan War Studies Review. March 13, 2015. http://www.miwsr.com/2015-023.aspx.