The manual of general chemistry contains material traditionally included in the first part of the course: the atomic nucleus and radioactivity, the structure of the atom, molecules and covalent bond, chemical bond in the condensed state of the substance. Its feature is the presentation of all issues, starting from the zero level, without relying on the school curriculum. For all introduced concepts, including the most elementary ones, definitions are given. At the same time, a rather popular form is combined with sufficient rigor of presentation .. Each topic section ends with self-testing questions designed to assist the student in mastering the material. Somewhat deeper than is usually accepted in such courses, the issues of chemical bonding in crystals are presented, especially the classification of solids by electronic conductivity and non-stoichiometric compounds. This is due to the fact that the publication is primarily intended for students of general chemistry at the NSU of the Faculty of Geology and Geophysics, and for geologists chemical processes in the condensed state are more important. The manual can be useful for first-year students of the Faculty of Natural Sciences, for university and school chemistry teachers.