Beginning Algebra

This book is perfect. It explains every problem, and unlike most Algebra courese, it prepares you for whats coming. Books like the MaGraw Hill Algebra books just give you a problem and expect you to know how to solve it. Margret L Lial works you up to it, so when you get to the big equations you will actually know how to do them. If uou are a Beginner, like me, I recommend Practical Algebra A self-Teaching Guide second edition, A great book alongside Begining Algebra. Those two combined, and your set for a while.

This Beginning Algebra book by Lial is, without a doubt, the best elementary Algebra book I have had the pleasure to use. As a tutor of middle school through college level, I have used several Algebra texts from the bigger textbook companies to several homeschool favorites. This text builds logically and has clear and accurate explanations. Concepts that should be learned by heart and rote are highlighted. There is also a plethora of practical application problems which, afterall, is what math is all about - one needs to be able to apply and use the concepts in everyday and career situations. In short, it is easily understood by the self-taught, as well as a delight to use in a teaching situation. There is ample drill and practice to solidify concepts and routines. I'm sticking with this one.

I home educate my 12-year-old son, so I need a textbook that gives clear explanations, includes plenty of worked examples, and provides answers to the exercises so I can check his work. This textbook is brilliantly clear and perfectly suited to independent study. Answers are provided for odd-numbered exercises only, but there are so many exercises at the end of each chapter that this has never been a problem for us: we just do all the odd-numbered exercises. Each chapter also has a chapter test and a set of cumulative review exercises at the end, for which answers to ALL of the problems are provided. This is an extremely useful feature for home educators. At the end of the book there is a cumulative test of the whole book, for which answers to every problem are provided, so you can do a thorough review with no uncertainty about marking. You could also use the final test as a pre-test to determine what areas you need to work on, if you're trying to fill in gaps from an unsuccessful school course. I only wish we could find textbooks of this quality for our other subjects!

My 8 year old son used this book for his Beginning Algebra course. He liked this textbook very much; especially the problem solving steps, examples, and summary tables in each chapter. He said that it is easy to understand and interesting to read. The only part he needed my help was real life problems such as interest rates. It is an excellent book for self-learners.

As an adult relearning algebra, I found this to be the best of the five introductory algebra texts I reviewed. It forces you to work through each step necessary for problem solving, and provides much needed repitition of concepts to ensure that they stick with you. A real confidence booster for a slow learner.