This is one of the best textbooks I have ever used for any course. My college Physics professor required us to use it and let me tell you, if your college professor has you do the same, actually get and use the book, it will really help. But this book isn't just useful in giving you a very good understanding of Electricity and Magnetism (E&M); it makes E&M very interesting. I've looked at other major Physics textbooks, such as Sear's and Zemanski's University Physics , Tipler and Mosca's Physics for Scientists and Engineers, as well as Randall Knight's Physics for Scientists and Engineers, and none of them come close to Giancoli's book.
Giancoli simply has his book set up in the perfect way for a student or adult learning the material: he breaks his chapters into mini sections. After each mini-section, he has problems that apply only to that mini-section. Those problems in turn, are rated in terms of difficulty from one star to three stars. In contrast, most physics textbooks have a lengthy chapter followed by many difficult problems that involve all the concepts covered in that chapter. I found it far more useful and more fun to read each 2-3 page mini section and then immediately reinforce my understanding with several easy to medium problems. If you want hard problems that involve all of the concepts of a chapter, by all means you can still find them in Giancoli's book (at the end of each chapter). Giancoli's book is also filled with wonderful illustrations that make every concept crystal clear. University Physics has a similar format to Giancoli's book, and on the surface appears decent. But once you start to read through a chapter and do problems as you would do with the Giancoli book, you realize it is far inferior. It has fewer problems and the problems are all immediately tricky.
I think it comes down to two different philosophies of learning Physics. One philosophy emphasizes learning from your mistakes -- professor and textbooks show students trick questions highlighting non-intuitive concepts in Physics and students learn by first getting the question wrong and then learning from their mistake. Another philosophy, closer to how computer programming and mathematics are taught, is to start with easy intuitive questions and gradually build up to more tricky ones, each time getting the questions right. I've had professors and Physics textbooks that follow both philosophies, and I personally find the latter pedagogy to be much more enjoyable and efficient. I am a competitive person and I really like to get things right and do the thinking myself, rather than getting something wrong or not coming up with a solution and having to consult my professor or solutions manual. Giancoli's book by all means follows the latter philosophy, to learn by doing rather than being told, and to slowly build up in difficulty. To conclude: get this book! It is so good.
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Top reviews from other countries
- Joanne W.Reviewed in the United States on 15 July 2016
Best Physics Textbook on the market!
Verified Purchase - Alvin GeReviewed in Canada on 16 November 2019
New
Verified Purchase - Kindle CustomerReviewed in the United States on 26 January 2016
so this is perfect for my needs
Verified Purchase - Linjuan ZhangReviewed in the United States on 23 June 2020
very good condition book
Verified Purchase - DerekReviewed in the United States on 22 February 2013
Great book, great seller
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