The Complete Idiot's Guide to Precalculus

by W. Michael Kelley

Polynomials, functions, and trig, oh my!

From the author of two bestselling Complete Idiot's Guides comes a book aimed at high school and college students who need course help or a brush-up. It follows a standard precalculus curriculum, includes sample problems, and will help students make sense of their textbooks. Difficult topics, such as quadratic equations, logarithms, graphing trig functions, and matrix operations are presented with W. Michael Kelley's signature wit and wisdom.
College enrollment is projected to increase 23% between 2000 and 2013
According to figures released by ACT Inc., nearly 75% of all college-bound students take precalculus or calculus in high school
Author is an award-winning math teacher recognized for his ability to make intimidating math topics approachable for even the most terrified students

Author Biography: W. Michael Kelley is an award-winning teacher and the author of The Complete Idiot's Guide to Calculus and The Complete Idiot's Guide to Algebra. The Maryland Council of Teachers of Mathematics recognized him as an Outstanding High School Mathematics Teacher and his students have named him Most Popular Teacher for four years. After he took over the Advanced Placement Calculus program, enrollment increased by 350% and the number of students receiving college credit by passing the Calculus AP test increased by 1,200%.

Genres: Mathematics, Research

352 pages, Paperback

First published June 7, 2005

About the author

The author has written a bunch of books about math (like The Complete Idiot's Guide to Precalculus, The Complete Idiot's Guide to Calculus (Second Edition), and The Humongous Book of Calculus Problems).

His website, www.calculus-help.com, hosts over a thousand unique visitors a day, even though it features an unflattering animated graphic of him dancing at his wedding.

(from the back of one of his books)

Reviews

[Clark Lyons · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book covers almost everything in precalculus. It was great to read before learning precalculus. I recomend it to anyone who wants to learn precalculus.

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written, but you need a strong background to understand what he is saying.

[Wojtekwalczak · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not sure if it's complete, but I am certain it's for not very gifted math adepts. Too introductory if all you need is a remainder.