Precalculus : Mathematics for Calculus: 5th Edition (with CD-ROM)

Brief biographies of prominent mathematicians are introduced in the margin sometimes. Occasionally refers to external sources that you may find interesting.

I'm giving it 5 stars because this book is rather non-traditional. The authors undoubtedly wanted to introduce it as an interesting subject and does cover needed preparatory material for calculus.


One of the top two precalculus texts available   March 14, 2005
 29 out of 31 found this review helpful

There is a mind-numbing sameness to precalculus and calculus textbooks, and this book is more of the same. The coverage starts with real numbers, exponents, expressions and solving equations. The basic principles of functions, polynomial, exponential, logarithmic and trigonometric functions, solving systems of equations, sequences, series, counting and probability, analytic geometry and limits follow this. I personally can do without the chapter on limits, when I teach precalculus, I am hard pressed to cover the other material. There is plenty of time to cover limits in calculus and it provides a better context. There are a large number of exercises at the end of each section and solutions to the odd-numbered ones are included in an appendix. As appears to be the case with many books, some of the exercises could have been left out with no decline in quality. At times I suspect there is the mathematical equivalent of an "arms race" to see how many exercises can be included at the end of a chapter.
The previous paragraph could be used to describe nearly every precalculus text on the planet, so it fits into the category of obvious, but necessary. Therefore, the key point is what makes this book different from the competition. The answer is not much. The approach is the standard statement of the new material followed by a series of worked examples, which is also the fundamental strategy used in all lower level math books. Short biographical asides of some of the major historical figures in mathematics are interjected on a regular basis. I like that, but wonder how often the students read them. What is different about this book is that the quality of the writing is somewhat better than most. In a field where there is very little to differentiate the texts, that is enough to make me rank this book in the top two precalculus books that are available.



Very understandable and interesting, a rarity in math texts.   June 15, 1999
 16 out of 20 found this review helpful

The book is easy to read and interesting. I am able to teach high school students out of this book, but it has enough depth to still be useful to a first year university student. It has good write-ups on the predominant mathematicians. It's the best pre-calc book I've come across.


Precalculus: Matheatics for Calculus: 5th Edition (with CD-rom)   February 26, 2008
 1 out of 1 found this review helpful

I have never used the CD, but the book is okay. If you are going to take calculus in the future than you should get a cheaper precalculus book and save some money. This is essentially the same as the 4th edition, except the price tag. Only get if you absolutely must for a class.


Fantastic!   June 19, 2008
 0 out of 1 found this review helpful

One of the best online shopping experiences I've ever had. I placed an order and the book was at my home in 1 week in the condition listed. I will definitely look to buy from this person again!