Landau series or Greiner Series - which one's better?

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The discussion centers on choosing between the Landau-Lifshitz series and the Greiner series for advanced undergraduate physics study. Participants emphasize that both series are generally considered graduate-level texts, but they differ significantly in pedagogical approach and usability for undergraduates. Landau's series is noted for its depth and reference quality, particularly in mechanics and quantum mechanics, but is criticized for being difficult to learn from without prior knowledge. In contrast, Greiner's series is praised for its clarity, abundance of worked problems, and accessibility, making it more suitable for those seeking practical learning. Some users mention issues with typos in earlier editions of Greiner's books but express hope that newer editions have improved. Ultimately, Greiner is recommended for those wanting a more hands-on approach with numerous problems, while Landau may serve better as a reference for deeper study after gaining more experience in the field. The consensus leans towards Greiner for its educational value and problem-solving focus.
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I am just going to step into undergraduate level physics.

I searched for books for all the topics and I found two great series of books namely, Landau-Lifgarbagez series of 10 books and Greiner series of 13 books.

As I want to have one of them, please advise which one of them is better. Please answer keeping in mind that I don't want any basic books and want to hit advanced ones with lots of problems.
 
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Neither is good for undergrad, they are considered graduate texts.
 
In my opinion Landau's course is much better pedagogically. Not all of the books in the series will be suitable for an average undergraduate, but the books on mechanics, quantum mechanics (nonrelativistic theory), and statistical physics should be accessible to sophomores and above.
 
Good god, man, stay away from Landau. I've been trying to learn Analytical Mechanics from his book and it is a complete disaster. Greiner is, in my opinion, ten times better than Landau.
 
Greiner's texts are much newer (and have thus benefited from the older texts) and have more worked problems than Landau's.
Unfortunately, some of my first-edition Greiner texts (i.e. the translated ones) have numerous typos in them. I hope the newer editions have fewer typos.

For your purposes, you are probably better off with Greiner.
However, I do value some of the L&L volumes.
 
I've enjoyed Greiners books on QED and QCD but I wonder if there is anywhere that sells all his books in one complete set. I've seen complete sets of Landau's books.
 
Qubix said:
Good god, man, stay away from Landau. I've been trying to learn Analytical Mechanics from his book and it is a complete disaster. Greiner is, in my opinion, ten times better than Landau.

Your attempt to learn from it may be a disaster, but the book itself is not. I found it one of the most useful go-to books when I was taking graduate mechanics.
 
Daverz said:
Your attempt to learn from it may be a disaster, but the book itself is not. I found it one of the most useful go-to books when I was taking graduate mechanics.

I will agree, I learned much more from the Landau series after I got my PhD, when I actually had time to sit down and read them from cover to cover at my own pace without the pressure of classes.
 
For me, the problem still remains there. Ok. I want to know which one is more advanced and challenging?
 
  • #10
I think Greiner is more of learning books, many worked out examples and detail information. L-L is more of rerefence character.

So if you want ones with lots of problems, go for Greiner. But there is no point of getting a complete series of books just for the case of having a complete reference. Get the best books in each area of physics instead.
 
  • #11
Thanks to all, who have contributed and answered my query.

I will be waiting for other views also.
 

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