Finding the Right Textbook for Self-Study GR

[Ja4Coltrane]

So I was thinking about getting some textbook for self-study GR. I don't need to master it, I just wanted to get a look at it for the first time. Is there a particular textbook that anyone would recommend for me?

Thanks!

 

[physlad]

Gravity: An Introduction to Einstein's General Relativity
by James B. Hartle

This book focuses on the physics rather than the mathematical construction of GR (but it doesn't ignore it, I think!)

There is also Sean Carroll's book: Spacetime and Geometry: An Introduction to General Relativity. The first draft of the book is available for free at:
http://arxiv.org/abs/gr-qc/9712019

 

[atyy]

I've liked J L Martin's "General relativity:a first course for physicists". It is accurate on equivalence principle and gets one doing simple calculations very quickly.

For free notes, apart from Carroll's mentioned by physlad, there are:

Matthias Blau, http://www.blau.itp.unibe.ch/Lecturenotes.html
NMJ Woodhouse, http://people.maths.ox.ac.uk/~nwoodh/
Blandford and Thorne, http://www.pma.caltech.edu/Courses/ph136/yr2006/text.html
Max Camenzind, http://www.lsw.uni-heidelberg.de/users/mcamenzi/
Gerard 't Hooft http://www.phys.uu.nl/~thooft/lectures/gr.html

 

[stevebd1]

I can recommend 'Exploring Black Holes: An Introduction to General Relativity' by E. Taylor and J. Wheeler, samples of which can be viewed at this site-

http://www.eftaylor.com/download.html#general_relativity

 

[tiny-tim]

Sean Carroll

There is also Sean Carroll's book: Spacetime and Geometry: An Introduction to General Relativity. The first draft of the book is available for free at:
http://arxiv.org/abs/gr-qc/9712019

Yes, Carroll's book is good.

 

[George Jones]

To what level have you studied mathematics and physics?