"Protons give an atom its identity, electrons its personality." Bill Bryson. (Subatomic fate and temperament conundrum
)
Other cool metaphors that help me to understand science courtesy Bryson are:

1. If an atom where the size of a cathedral than the nucleus would be only the size of a fly but the fly would be a thousand times heavier.

2. The Big Bang represents a kind of transition phase, where the universe went from a form we can't understand to one we almost can. (It is what caused the transition that is the question that looms)

3. A singularity is when you take everything in creation squeezed into a spot so infinitesimally compact that it has no dimension at all. (Then apparently it pops like a pimple in the sun and you have the big bang.)

4. DNA's job is to make DNA upon which all life depends but DNA is not alive. You have about 6ft squeezed in to almost every cell. Each length of DNA is composed of some 3.2 billion letters of coding. That is why you are you and not an Owl or your next door neighbor.

5. Zinc oxidizes alcohol. (Hangover cure??) Cobalt is necessary for the creation of vitamin B12. (Also for the creation of beautiful skies in painting.)

6.