Customer Reviews

Introductory Graph Theory

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This book is excellent, especially if you already have a pretty good background in math. I don't... high school math through calculus, almost all of which I've forgotten. But the appendix gets you up to speed on the basics of sets, functions, and proofs using mathematical induction. That was enough for me to get a lot out of all but the last chapter, which deals with matrices and groups. Although I have to admit that I occasionally needed to read an example four or five times before I really got it.

I definitely recommend this book for anyone interested in graph theory and to any serious software developer (which I why I picked it up). The ideas presented are directly applicable to that line of work.

This is, for all purposes, the Holy Grail of Graph Theory. It is older, but still very much applicable. As a computer scientist (instructor and Masters degree student), I highly recommend this for students studying Discrete Mathematics and Graph Theory.

It has several examples throughout and the presentation is excellent. Many books on mathematics from this 'era' tend to be overly wordy and full of poorly explained examples and topics. This book suffers very little from this problem.

I recommend this to anyone looking for a good introductory book on Graph Theory. It also makes an excellent reference book for even the experienced individual.

While working on my math degree I wanted some light reading on Graph Theory for completing some side projects. This book hit the spot, and the examples saved me.

Chartrand uses applications from every field of interest (e.g. finance, Chemistry, Physics, games, social psychology, computers, etc.) Who would have thought that while reading a math book that a friendly discussion of social psychology would pop-up? Well, that's how Chartrand is able to keep us moving through the pages; he uses the common to reveal the mysteries of Graph Theory. Who doesn't know about the Tower of Hanoi or the Knight's Tour or the one-boat-fox-and-chickens problems? All of these classics make for ready connecting points, leading us into profound restatements of well-known problems. Not much space is devoted to creating artificial problems for which we must be convinced need solving, and so the book is rather thin (a real bonus for those of us who don't want to spend a month in a math book).

Picking up the book after having read it so long ago, I was happy to find that the chapters are nearly autonomous and can be profitably read by themselves -- so keep it as a reference and jump in as the need arises, you'll be both entertained and mathematically illumined.

My only complaint is that the writing style is rather thick with mathematical lingo (seemingly) for the sake of being technically pithy. I am not convinced that such is necessary for a good math book.

This is a very well written introduction, suitable for undergraduates or ambitious high school students. As an added bonus, it explains how to read and write proofs, so it develops mathematical sophistication instead of assuming it. The only shortcoming is that it is too brief and only mentions group theory in passing at the end.

Most books assume that the reader has a month to carefully read the book. In reality, the reader often has a day or two and needs a solid understanding of the material but not a really detailed understanding. This book is great because it quickly and clearly covers all of the necessary concepts. What else can you ask for?

This book is great. I am a law student with dated mathematical background, and needed a primer on graph theory to work for a project. This book is just great, explaining every concept carefully, and even providing a tiny bibliography at the end of each chapter.
Just remember to go through the appendix on sets, functions, theorems and proofs (principle of induction).

This was the text used in my undergraduate introduction toGraph Theory. It is quite good, and cheap! It is the perfect text toget the flavor of the subject and spark interest in students to learn more. For a Prof. looking for an idea for a summer course, or an oppertunity to teach to non-math majors who need an upper level course, this is perfect. END

This book is great for a course in topics in graph theory. It gives some theory followed by applications. It requires some mathematical maturity since some of the exercises require proofs. I would recommend this book for junior and senior undergraduates, and perhaps some graduate students who need graph theory.

Chartrand's book strikes a truly excellent balance between rigor and exposition. This book is short, but the reader is introduced to interesting results surprisingly quickly. Furthermore, "Introductory Graph Theory" is quite accessible to readers with a basic math background and an understanding of sets, relations, functions, and proofs. I think this is a rare book that would be just as interesting for a motivated high school student as for an adult research professional.

Unlike many pure math texts, Chartrand motivates nearly every section with a model, puzzle, or real-world scenario. By transforming these problems into a graph-theoretic framework and solving them, the reader can see first-hand the power of the theory. For anyone who has read a pure maths book and struggled through a dense thicket of definitions, each more abstract than the last, this approach will seem like a breath of fresh air.

This solid book covers all of the basics and provides enough theorems and lemmas to satisfy the theoretical foundations of this topic. I would call this book a good preparatory work for students in a masters program prior to taking graph theory. The overview that it provides is both easy to understand and approachable to many levels including undergrad. Also, if you are a programmer, it is good for theories of A* pathing and networking.