Pre-Calculus Demystified

I took a tough Precalculus class last year and found myself half-way through the semester totally and hopelessly confused. I couldn't afford tutoring (financially or time-wise - I work full-time and take night classes) and seriously contemplated dropping the class to save my GPA. I bought this book and ended up aceing the class. I know that sounds unlikely, but the author has a way of describing the concepts in a totally understandable way and it all just clicked. I enjoy math, but tend to be a little slow at picking things up, and the lay person approach of the book really worked for me.

Pros:

1. Excellent for the first semester of precalculus, especially the study of different families of functions.
2. Does a good job of explaining topics in detail and providing examples of problems.
3. Provides plenty of problems for practice of concepts.
4. Provides excellent end of chapter tests for review and feedback.

Cons:

1. Trignometry section is lacking. Needs more detail on trignometric identities.
2. Lacks information in the second semester of precalculus. Does not have anything on vectors, parametric equations, polar equations, statistics, or limits.
3. Does not have anything on rotating conic sections.

It was a great book, gave me what I needed at the pace I found acceptable. I also jumped into the middle of the book once to give a friend a hand and it was on polynomial functions. In ten minutes flat I was already calculating them! Amazing! If I continue at this rate, I can slack off in my Pre-Calculus college class and still pass! No, but seriously though, it's an awesome book and have recommended it to all my friends.

I received this book 2 weeks before my college entrance exam to smooth over what I momentarily learned in high school--I Do not want to end up in a lower than Calculus math class, paying for a class that does not give me any college credit.

So far I have been getting through a chapter each day, in about hour and a half of on and off study.

It is continuing to get me more comfortable with my math skills in a very short time. I Recommend it to anyone who fears there college entrance exam, or interested in learning Precalc on their own.

I am one of those pathetic cases who should have been a math major, but could not stay awake during the freshman pre-calc lectures conducted by bored and boring grad students. Now, nearly 40 years later I am determined to self-educate my way through calculus.

At first I took a crack at the Wiley "Precalculus A Self Teaching Guide". Holy cripes, what a disaster! Unnerving to find such an improbable number of errors, especially for student picking up after decades of non-study.

Then, I grabbed Rhonda Huettenmeuller's fine work, and am doing the practice at the end of chapter four. I actually remembered some of my advanced algebra and managed to work my way through the problems.

Well written and clear, she provides enough dimensions on problems to give you insight, then gives you room enough to have to think a bit. The answers are all provided, and are *correct*. Well, at least we agree, so that is certainly a good sign.

I especially appreciate how she teaches this from the perspective of tackling calculus as the next step, pointing out issues that particularly apply, and how, to more advanced mathematics.

Now, if we can just get her to write more books...