Most Helpful Customer Reviews
71 of 74 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The best algebra book ever, July 6, 2004
By A Customer
This review is from: The Complete Idiot's Guide to Algebra (Paperback)
I am a Ph.D student from Sweden that was looking for a book that I could use to brush up om my mathskills. Believe it or not but math was not my favorite subject when I studied because I always found the subject a bit boring and blurry. This book is a splendid book since it deals with the subject in a easy way. This doesn't mean that the author ignores the difficulties of algebra but instead he explains them very well. There are not a lot of excercises in the book but the explanations of the subject makes this book a best buy.
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31 of 31 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Look & Think no Further or Longer!!, August 20, 2006
This review is from: The Complete Idiot's Guide to Algebra (Paperback)
Michael Kelley's books', that is the ones that pertain to both algebra and calculus, are written so well it's nearly to good to be true. If you're like me, you've been looking and nearly afraid to actually buy a book about algebra or calculus because you've also probably spent a ton of money on that so called "teach yourself" series or style only to slam the cover shut and toss it up on a bookshelf.
Not with Michael's books you wont!
Michael really did a fantastic job with his books and breaks everything down to a very simple step-by-step approach. For example; with Fractions, I'd be able to do fractions with a calculator and even then it was sketchy and adding fractions with a ruler could work for me as well, sometimes. Now I can pretty much look at a fraction and tell you what the answer is going to be and I'm talking about them in addition, subtraction, multiplication and even division of fractions. Its all so simple its almost stupid guys and gals.
It truly is in the Method of Instruction.
If you were also like me with wanting to learn algebra but those pesky X's and Y's got in the way and didn't make sense? Forget about that too partner, its actually small stuff. Again, Michael breaks it down to a very easy to follow format.
I think the hardest part for people with Michael's books is to memorize the power rules. Math has specific rules, and that's really all it is that you're doing, is learning a new language with its own rules on how to do things. For me, I simply re wrote the first few chapters in MS Word and printed it out, I then simply looked at the power rules while I was reading forward and looking at the equations I was able to see every little change and detail taking place. Sure Michael explains it as he goes, that's just a funky way that I learned, for you it might be something else. Besides writing it down in my own words helps me retain it as well.
If you learn like me, simply having someone tell you, "we'll just do it this way and you'll get the right answer" will never ever work! You probably need to know why you're getting the answer right and you probably need to know why you have to do it a specific way!
Michael lays out all these so that there is no confusion, no frustration, and nothing is left in doubt. You will learn algebra, and you will learn calculus if you put in the small amount of time and effort to do so.
Get Michael's books, They're money well spent & you'll not regret it. And unlike most other books on math, Michael has little jokes in the book to break up the "serious" stuff. I was NOT disappointed in the least bit when I got his books!
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27 of 28 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Very good book! However, works better if you have background knowledge first., May 21, 2007
This review is from: The Complete Idiot's Guide to Algebra (Paperback)
I just finished this book and plan on continuing by finishing the others. However, I feel it's best used after having a little background knowledge first. I found this book much easier to follow after working problems beforehand. I use these books not really for solving problems, but for learning math methods and math terminology.
If home studying, an excellent addition to this book is the "Math Tutor" dvd series. Algebra 1 and 2 of that series cover topics in this book. Plus, you get practice solving actual problems in a "step-by-step" way.
This book includes a nice bonus: it not only covers Algebra 1, but also covers functions and other topics from Algebra 2.
If you're into flakey comedy, you might also want to give "Standard Deviants: The Series" a whirl. They're fun to watch one or twice for picking up tidbits and study tips (even one very powerful mnemonic on the Trig. set). "Youtube" also has some excellent materials and lessons.
I personally find that I best learn Math syntopically. Basically, do problems from a variety of sources and read from a variety of sources. Things you didn't pick up from one source you will from the others. It's like a puzzle and starts to piece itself together. It's good practice for picking up different teaching styles too! It sounds like a lot of work, but I notice it actually cuts my time down compared to reading from only one source.
Some of the "Demystified" books are suppose to be very good. I haven't tried them yet. However, read reviews because there are a few clunkers (different authors).
I love this method of learning math; for me, it works so much better than the average textbook -- and it's more fun.
Caution: You really should have a strong fraction-solving knowledge base before entering Algebra. Having that will save you tons of time later. Kelley's book includes a chapter on it, but if you need practice, "Painless Fractions" is an excellent source.
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