Download the Golden Book of Chemistry Experiments

by Anne Marie Helmenstine, Ph.D.
Dr. Helmenstine holds a Ph.D. in biomedical sciences and is a science writer, educator, and consultant. She has taught science courses at the high school, college, and graduate levels.
Updated June 14, 2017

The Golden Book of Chemistry Experiments, written by Robert Brent and illustrated by Harry Lazarus, is a 1960s children's book that tells kids how they can set up a home chemistry lab to conduct simple chemistry experiments. Supposedly the US government had the book removed from libraries and banned for sale on the grounds that the projects were too dangerous for kids. I don't know whether the banned-book story is true or not, but The Golden Book of Chemistry Experiments remains one of the best do-it-yourself chemistry experiment books around. This book is now available to the public. You can download the pdf of The Golden Book of Chemistry Experiments to save on your computer, print, or distribute.