BOOK REVIEWS OBERFLACHENAKTIVE ANLAGER- UNGSPRODUKTE DES ATHYLENOXYDS, by N. Schonfeldt. Wissenschaft- ]iche Verlagsgesellschaft m.b.H., Stuttgart. 1959. 452 pages, illus- trated. Price DM 68. Ethylene oxide came into promi- nence as an industrial material with the commercial development of the glycols. Later the polyglycols came into being. Eventually it was found that ethylene oxide reacted readily with polar groups, and a whole new series of surfactants came into being. These ethylene oxide adducts were manufactured in Germany prior to the war and made their apDearance in the U.S. A. during the late war. This book consists of six chapters discussing the chemistry of ethylene oxide, preparation of the adducts, description of the products so formed, then the pharmacology and dermatology of these materials, uses for the new compounds, sulfonation of ethoxylates and ends with the analysis of ethoxylated compounds. There is a comprehensive list of commercially offered ethoxylated surfactants and an excellent Datent section. This section would benefit from the addition of patent dates and complete names of inventors. There has been a need for such a book. It will find much use but unfortunately it is published in German. Finally, the price of the book seems a little high even by our standards. The cosmetic and pharmaceutical "application" section is very thin, although it is covered in a broad way throughout the text. The author is to be complimented on his classification of ethoxylated surfactants, but it would be more handy if this appeared with the listing of trade names. It is a good reference. Ifethoxy- lated compounds interest your com- pany, this is the book for you.-- M. G. DENAVARRE COSMETIC SCIENCE, bv A. W. Mid- dleton, Ph.D., F.R.I.C. Butter- worths Scientific Publications. Lon- don. 1959. 327 pages, indexed. Price :/ 12. Cosmetic Science edited by A. W. Middleton is a collection of papers presented at the International Con- gress of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists held in London, in April, 1959. In the reviewer's opinion the title of the book is unfortunate be- cause it may lead a buyer to expect a reasonably coherent presentation of scientific principles as they ap. ply to cesmetics. The inapproprmte title, however, should not deter cosmetic chemists from reading this interesting and stimulating collec- tion of papers. Sixteen papers are presented un- der four general headings: (1) Analysis of Raw Materials, (2) Assessment of Finished Products, (3) Manufacturing or Processing, (4) Biological Assessment. One third of the book reports the questions and answers on each paper and the reviewer was amazed at the quality' of both questions and answers, and found them in some instances much more interesting 508

JOURNAL OF THE SOCIETY OF COSMETIC CHEMISTS 509 than the papers themselves. Some presentations are elementary, but most of them discuss new and ad- vanced phases in the field. The reviewer liked especially: Analyti- cal Methods in Assessing the Value of Perfumery Raw Materials by van den Dool. Ultra-violet Spectrophoto- metric Procedures in Essential Oil Examination by J. B. Stenlake and W. D. Williams. Heat Transfer in Cosmetic Manufacturing Processes by V. O. E. Bryant, and the whole group of biological papers which together with their discussions high- light the fact that cosmetic chemis- try is at the cross-road of either rigidly limiting itself to make-up items and simple emollient products or to extend its energies into treat- ment items which have their effi- cacy fully substantiated by pharma- ceutical and medical research.-- H. HEInRiCH, Coty Products Corp. NoN-BENz•Nom AP, OM•_TIC COM- POUNDS, edited by David Ginsberg. Interscience Publishers, Inc., New York 1, N.Y. 1959. xii q- 543 pages, illustrated and indexed. Price $18. The expression "aromatic char- acter" has seen a. gradual evolve- ment in its meamng s•nce it was first applied to the odorous property of certain benzene derivatives. In its modern usage, "aromatic char- acter" implies the possession, by an organic compound, of certain unique structural factors and resonance energies. With this sort of defini- tion for "aromatic character," the term nonbenzenoid aromatic com- pounds is no longer a contradiction, and materials like azulene and pyrrole can take their place in the aromatic family beside the parent benzene. This book brings to- gether for the first time in a single volume the subject of nonbenzenoid aromatic compounds. Nine authors of five different nationalities: Wilson Baker, E. D. Bergmann, D. P. Craig, E. Heil- bronner W. Keller-Schierlein, J. F. M. McOmie, Tetsuo Nozoe, P. L. Pauson and R. A. Raphael--meet in this book under the editorship of Mr. .Ginsberg. Of particular interest •s the first chapter on aromaticity. It is the theoretical springboard to the following chap- ters on specific nonbenzenoid aro- matic compounds. Azulenes, hep- talenes, pentalenes, tropones, tro- polones and cyclopolyolefins are among the several classes of com- pounds which are discussed. Heter- ocyclic compounds are treated only scantily, but the editor admits to this omission and begs our apology by way of other volumes having been published on this subject. The book is well indexed and docu- mented over 1600 individual refer- ences are listed. "Non-Benzenoid Aromatic Com- pounds" is directed primarily to an audience of research organic chem- ists. The cosmetic chemist may see materials of interest to him mentioned here, but he is unlikely to find any reference to their use- fulness in cosmetic formulations. The book is highly recommended as a reference book for inclusion in your technical library and as a book for general reading by those with a keen interest in some of the newer aspects of organic chemistry. --H. C. MeD^m•L, The Procter & Gamble Co.