Math Smart II: Get a Grip on Algebra, Geometry, and Trigonometry

This book is good for brushing up on skills or teaching yourself some things before a test, I liked it alot and brought more books in the "smart" series.

I love using this book to present my daughter with sample problems for test review or when I think the school is not teaching at the level of my expectations. My daughter is in 7th grade, I think this book may be elementary for high school students, however. Still could provide good review problems at test time.

This book provides the basics required for higher level mathematics. It breaks down the concepts so that they can be better understood, without simplifying them beyond use. Good for a high school review, and preparation for pre-calculus. The style of the prose is easy going, upbeat and contains even a hint of humor, which makes understanding the sections more enjoyable. It should be noted that a mathematical background, pre-algebra, is assumed, and answers are not given for all questions. Not meant for those interested in reviewing pre-calc or calculus.

I decided to review my math with the intent of making a second assault on The Calculus. I started out with Barbara Lee Bleau's nearly perfect "Forgotten Algebra," which took me up along a very smooth gradient. After thereby acclimating myself to mathematical thinking, I was able to use Math Smart to fill in some blanks. Lerner's discussion of plane and solid geometry was fast and effective, saving me the long reviews required by other books. Her coverage of trigonometry in degrees is probably the highlight of the book, and her explanation of radians made me really GET it for the first time. This book might be a little too rapid to stand alone, but as a supplement it saved me weeks or months.