Is Basic Algebra I by Nathan Jacobson Suitable for Self-Study?

[Greg Bernhardt]

• Author: Nathan Jacobson
• Title: Basic Algebra I
• Amazon Link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/0486471896/?tag=pfamazon01-20
• Prerequisities:
• Contents:

 

[mathwonk]

This is an excellent book, by a master who has shown the discipline to rewrite the material of basic senior/graduate algebra decades after his first attempt in a 3 volume work which was in a much more formal and axiomatic style. The writing style is more paragraph oriented than the step by step outline style some of us would find easier to read, but the logical clarity and completeness is unusual at this level. For years it was out of print, and happily has returned to availability.

 

[IGU]

My kid self-taught algebra from Jacobson's Basic Algebra I. He turned to it after he found Lang's Algebra too dense and Herstein's Topics in Algebra problems too challenging. He went through the first five chapters over the course of about a year and then moved on to BA II. He likes Jacobson quite a bit.

He had no real algebra background when he started, but had self-taught calculus from Apostol's Calculus I & II.

-IGU-

 

[mathwonk]

geez kapeez, we all want your kid as student.

 

[IGU]

Let me know your address. I'll mail him to you (or anybody else who needs a summer project). I sure don't have much idea of what to do with him. He's pretty much just hanging around the house studying math all by himself.

He'll probably continue with Basic Algebra II at least through chapter 6.