Introduction to Modern Algebra

For most people, mathematics is about balancing a check book or computing the stresses on a bridge. I consider this book to be the gateway to higher mathematics that goes beyond "number crunching". It introduces the modern subject of Algebra from first prinicples in a way accessible to all who wish to begin the journey. This book is so well written with hands on examples and problems that it can be used out of the classroom. It can be read for its own beauty or as an introduction to the more advanced texts like Herstein or Hungerford. As a young mathematican in training, it was the first ( and only ) text I have ever seen that actually attempted to define the notion of proof and the ways to go about constructing them. Loads of motivational material. A must read. Even today, it is still on my bookself and is handed to anyone who asks: "Just what is it that you do..."