The central theme of Organic Chemistry II is to develop a thorough understanding of a variety of organic reactions. This book is organized into sections based on common organic functional groups and their properties and reactions. With nine chapters in total, the functional groups included in this book are alcohols, aldehydes and ketones, conjugated systems, aromatic compounds, carboxylic acids and derivatives, and carbohydrates. A notable obstacle that is consistently faced in the teaching and learning experience of Organic Chemistry II is the sheer number of organic reactions that is included in the curriculum, which can be overwhelming for students. An effective approach to learning this is to dissect and comprehend the underlying reasons behind these mechanisms, as well as identifying differences and drawing connections between reactions. Combining these aspects will form a strong foundational understanding of the complex topics included in Organic Chemistry II. Efforts are made in this book to enforce such an understanding. In the discussion of reaction mechanisms, for example, it is explained why a certain type of reaction applies to a specific functional group, why a certain reagent is required for that reaction, and how the different reaction conditions affect the mechanism. In the back matter of the book, a specialized section to explain the origin of reaction mechanism names is included, with the hopes of clarifying the meanings behind common organic reaction mechanism names.
