Differential Equations and Linear Algebra

I understand the frustration expressed by many reviewers who claimed this book to be too advanced. However, that doesn't make it a bad book. Quite the contrary, if you have some solid understanding of calculus, this is one of the best if not the best book on DE & Linear. I am a freshman majoring in applied math. I strongly recommend the book for several reasons: Firstly, this book "MAKES SENSE" out of math. It does not present math theory just for theory's sake, as has been done by most math textbooks. Instead, every section of math is put into context of real world applications. For example, the book starts with the famous Malthus model (which was the first of its kind that attempts to model population growth) to illustrate the meaning and usefulness of mathematical modeling. Moreover, along with the book, great online interactive tools are provided, giving beautiful illustrations and also many chances for the student to actually USE the math he just learned in a previous page. Secondly, the questions are well designed. They are not just problems that help you master the math skills; they give them meanings. Problems are introduced in settings of true models and real world problems. You will also be thrilled to know that MOST of the questions are answered in detail at the back. Therefore I strongly recommend this book to people who have some background in calculus. I even think that non math students should read it. It is not that hard to understand. And, seriously, it does not require a lot of background. Just some calculus. No mathematical analysis or real analysis, man. Just some calculus and you will be able to enjoy it.

There are other books that combine the topics of differential equations and linear algebra but this is the only one that does it well. My professor said this is the only book that covers chaos and control theory well and I believe it after looking at other books.

I found this book to be head and shoulders above the other books in its class. It is far more mature and is an excellent book for the serious student.