Customer Reviews

The Complete Idiot's Guide to Geometry

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I recently needed a book to review my high school geometry (not having seen that sort of math for over 15 years, and not having any other text on hand) and went to the local bookstore to look at the selection. One of the available choices was this book. I had always been wary of the "Idiot's Guide's" books, mainly because I expected that they were superficial hacks slapped together to get a quick buck from genuine idiots who didn't know any better. Well, I was wrong...

The material in this book was well laid out and thorough. Although she didn't cover everything you might find in a typical high school geometry course, Dr. Szecsei certainly aimed for the highlights, and left me quite satisfied with the results. I would expect that a typical buyer (high school or early college student?) would like this book as an explainable version of his or her assigned course textbook.

The reading pace was zippy and didn't get bogged down in gory details, but still laid the foundation to tackle more difficult geometric proofs. There were also some tantalizing highlights towards the end of the book for those interested in non-Euclidean geometry, which might inspire the occasional student in looking beyond the standard high school curriculum.

The format was geared towards examples and proofs, with a few problems at the end of each chapter for the adventurous student to work out on his or her own. Complete solutions to all the problems were provided at the end of the book. Also provided was a summary of all postulates and theorems. This is a handy feature that I wish a few more math textbook authors picked up.

The only flaw in the book that I found was some of the diagrams were completely incorrect. Although this could have lowered the rating from a "5" to a "4", having found just a few errors like this out of the hundreds of diagrams in the book does not really detract from its value, but I felt bound to mention it only for the struggling student that could accidentally waste valuable time re-creating the actual diagram to go along with the proof provided. An errata website would have been helpful, but I didn't see anything. Maybe next time.

All in all, this book was excellent, and completely changed my opinion of the "Idiot's Guides" series.

I bought this book so I could freshen up my geometry skills for the GRE. It is full of mistakes! Nothing like trying to check your answer to a problem and finding that the key is answering a different question. This was not a mathematical mistake. The problem restated in the key was different than the practice problem. Also, I found mistakes in some of the if-then exercises. Looked over it for about 20 minutes trying to figure out what was wrong, rereading the lesson and looking at the example. The example was wrong! They showed the correct answer, but the work to get to it was not completely correct. Awful editing. I finally quit using this book and used my ETS GRE prep book and focused on their math review.

This is a very poorly edited book, with dozens of misprints and mistakes that are essential to understanding. Angles and triangles can be labeled incorrectly, so you are trying to prove the unprovable theorem, or the wrong formula can be listed and you need to find the correct one in a different chapter. Sometimes mistakes are obvious when an acute angle is labeled obtuse, and sometimes they take a lot of time to figure out. Just a few examples (these are from the last test) - none of the multiple choice answers to the problem 41 are correct (the correct answer should be 6), the answer to problem 57 is wrong (the correct answer is C, or 1/2), the problem 58 is stated wrongly - impossible to solve, same for problem 59. The answer key to Chapter 19 is missing altogether. These are just a few from the long list of never-ending mistakes. Save yourself time and frustration, get another geometry textbook.

Despite the occasional cutesy dialog, this book is a solid introduction to the fundamentals of high school geometry. It begins with a definition of what geometry is and then presents a necessary review of some of the basic rules of algebra, in particular the properties of equalities and inequalities when objects are combined. The next step is to describe the fundamental objects used in geometry. Starting with the point, line, line segment, ray and plane, the basic objects used in geometry are explained and classified.

Once the fundamental descriptions of the objects is complete, the next step is to describe the nature of the mathematical proof. This is done using truth tables and explanations of the words that correspond to the symbols used to build propositions.

The next sections introduce additional geometric figures such as the triangle, quadrilateral, rhombus and circle. Proofs are used when needed and the standard objects such as the unit circle and the 30-60-90 triangle are explained. Three-dimensional objects, constructions, neutral and non-Euclidean geometry and transformations are the topics of the last chapters. A set of 64 solved multiple choice problems is also included. All of this material is presented at a level that the beginner can comprehend.

I applaud the inclusion of the sections on neutral and non-Euclidean geometry, it is often assumed that this is beyond the understanding of beginners, but that is not the case. Spherical geometry is in some ways easier to understand than plane geometry because a globe is all you need and the structure is finite. I also commend the author for including the set of problems. Mathematics is learned by doing and this gives the reader an opportunity to immediately test their level of understanding.

The explanations and guidance in this book are excellent -- clear and logical, with a very nice flow from one skill set to the next.

However, the number of incorrect diagrams -- and consequently incorrect proofs -- in this book is truly shocking. For example, practice problem #3 in Chapter 10 (p. 113, with solution starting on p. 340) is COMPLETELY wrong.

The question asks you to prove that exterior angles on the SAME side of the transversal through parallel lines are supplementary.

Meanwhile, the "solution" proof itself actually proves that the ALTERNATE angles (i.e., angles on the OPPOSITE side of the transversal) aare supplementary.

On page 95, the measure of angle CBD is given as being GREATER than 90 degrees (step 4), and consequently angle CBD is proudly declared to be acute.

By looking at the diagram, one can easily tell that angle CBD is acute, but the fact that the "greater than" sign is used instead of the correct "less than" sign in step 4 of the proof itself is bound to be confusing.

All I can say is, Huh...?

Up to this point, I was willing to accept that these were just sloppy typos, but in my opinion, these blunders mar a potentially excellent guide book.

This book needs to be thoroughly re-edited to correct the many, many sloppy mistakes in labeling and proving in order to achieve its potential.

This book is perfect, it has simple explanations, good diagrams, and lots of samples and problems to assist in your learning and development of Geometry.

Worth it if you need a refresher or if you are about to start studying geometry.

Good supplement to any traditional geometry text. Helpful insights and delightful humor throughout the book. Would be a great asset to any high school math teacher's personal library.