Cartoon physics: a graphic novel guide to solving physics problems

the primary literature which are included. The approach is non-mathematical, with numerous graphs and diagrams to emphasise the important points. Each chapter ends with a few short questions: these really amount to checks that the chapter has been read rather than deep probes of understanding. In terms of primary fuels, this volume focuses solely on traditional fossil fuels: nuclear fission is dismissed as an ‘outsider’ and nuclear fusion is not mentioned at all. Whether or not this is fair is debatable, but it is certainly true that to cover the challenging materials problems posed by those technologies would have required at least twice as long a book. Another aspect of new technologies which could be discussed in greater detail is their overall environmental costs, including manufacture and recyclability. This is a good introduction to the field of energy materials, giving a clear view of the state of the art (with references up to 2022) in many rapidly-developing areas. It is accessible to the non-specialist and would be useful as a text for a final-year undergraduate course.