Product Description
Teacher's Edition. This book has been written so that all students can understand geometry. The course focuses on the key topics that provide a strong foundation in the essentials of geometry. Lesson concepts are presented in a clear, straightforward manner, supported by frequent worked-out examples. The page format makes it easy for students to follow the flow of a lesson, and the vocabulary and visual tips in the margins help students learn how to read the text and diagrams. Checkpoint questions within lessons give students a way to check their understanding as they go along. The exercises for each lesson provide many opportunities to practice and maintain skills, as well as to apply concepts to real-world problems. ... Read more

Product Description
The learn-by-doing way to master Geometry

Why CliffsStudySolver™ Guides?

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Written by teachers and educational specialists

Inside you’ll get the practice you need to learn Geometry, including:

Basic Geometric Concepts

• Points, lines, and planes
• Postulates and theorems
• Line segments, midpoints, and rays
• Angles and angle pairs
• Parallel lines

Shapes and Measurement

• Measuring angle sums
• Triangles, polygons, and circles
• Determining perimeter and area
• Ratio and proportion
• Similar figures
• Solid figures and measurement
• Coordinate geometry

Problem-Solving Tools

• Clear, concise reviews of every topic
• Practice problems in every chapter--with explanations and solutions
• Diagnostic pretest to assess your current skills
• Full-length exam--with answers--that adapts to your skill level

We take great notes--and make learning a snap ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

Great book for learning and reviewing concepts - Some errors
I used this book to prepare for a ACT Compass Geometry test, to fulfill a graduation requirement. I am a 28 yr old returning student, and I'd been away from math in general for about 10 years. This was a great book for learning and reviewing the geometry concepts. I went through it quickly, in about 3-4 weeks. I just took the compass test and scored a 99 out of 100! Very nice. My one complaint is that there are a few random editing errors in the book. This definitely caused me some confusion as to why my answer was off, or how to do a problem. I've read the same complaint for other math books in their series. I am onto Algebra I next. Hopefully, I will be as succesful with that book as this one. Overall, a very good book.

Better than a teacher.
I'm a high school freshman-going-on-sophomore and I bought this to help prep myself for a get-ahead summer course I'm taking. So far, I've learned faster and better than I have with any of my previous math teachers.
Essentially a learning-by-example book, the description of new theories and postulates can be sketchy at first, but the multitudes of examples help to cement the ideas, and end of chapter tests ensure you don't forget.
If I had any gripes, they would be about the elusive problem 20, which I was instructed by the book to refer to a few times. Also annoying was the fact that the answers to the problems were often on the same page, making it hard to answer of your own skill, due to a wandering eye. Other than those minor issues, however, this book was a lifesaver.
I would definitely recommend this to anyone looking for prep, review, or even to help you pass a class if ever you're stuck with a truly horrible teacher.

Great for reviewing
I used this book to study for Middle School Math Praxis (20069) and was very pleased. I also used Cliff's Algebra I and II, which were also great

Excellent
This is a excellent guide in learning the fundamentals of geometry. The theorems and concepts are easy to grasp and the problems at the end of each theorem(s) make it easier to memorize. The only problem i have with this book is that some problems are easier than what can be expected on SAT II Math Level IIC or SAT I.I would suggest to buy Schaum's Outline Geometry to further your knowledge in geometry. Cliffnotes for easy explantations and Schaum's for the problems and extra concepts that are not discussed in cliffnotes. Overall, I was very satisfied to find a book that made geometry easier than I expected ... Read more

Product Description
The great work that founded analytical geometry. Included here is the original French text, Descartes’ own diagrams, together with the definitive Smith-Latham translation. "The greatest single step ever made in the progress of the exact sciences."— John Stuart Mill.
... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

Enormously important in the history of mathematics
Descartes' Geometrie, published in 1637, is possibly the second most influential book in the history of mathematics, after Euclid's Elements.In it, Descartes introduces analytic geometry, that is, the connection between geometry and algebra, in order to use algebra to solve geometric locus problems.The book's influence is reflected in the fact that Descartes' notation is far closer to the notation used today than anyone else's from that period (for example, Fermat or Viete).But it is not a book for someone who is not already knowledgeable.As Descartes himself wrote, (as translated and quoted in a footnote on page 10), "In my previous writings I have tried to make my meaning clear to everybody; but I doubt if this treatise will be read by anyone not familiar with the books on geometry, so I have thought it superfluous to repeat demonstrations contained in them."The 17th century mathematicians who read La Geometrie found it difficult, both because it was in French and because of its uncompromising exposition.Thus the book only became understood after the publication in 1649 of a Latin translation with commentaries by Frans van Schooten.

For the modern reader the book is a fascinating record of the state of mathematics in the early 17th century, and the format, with Descartes' 17th century French (readily readable to someone with some knowledge of modern French) opposite the reliable English translation, is very helpful for understanding what Descartes does in the book. How can it not have five stars?

Fabulous
This is a cheaply printed book with unquestionable value for any mathematician or liberal arts major.It has facing-page French with an English translation (which is fairly strict and literal), with great diagrams.It's difficult to read, and that's okay, because when other mathematicians at the time read it they thought it was impossible and that Descartes was insane.

Descartes, apart from this edition, is brilliant and worth the time to study.

This book is a bad choice for anyone not familiar with Euclidian and Apollonian geometry.Period.If you're not, you should find some commentary on Cartesian geometry instead of tackling this monster head-on.

has only limited historical value
The problems discussed in this book are very remote from our
present day geometry. The English translation uses a smaller font
than the French original, which makes the book even harder to read.

Great book to work through
This book contains a facsimile of the original version which runs nearly page for page with the English version.This is a true mathematical masterpiece.This was the supposed beginning of analytical Geometry(although it is now known that this was not true).It's a great book to work through that should be accessable to a high school student with some Geometry background. A Fantastic Book!

Enter Modern Mathematics
Using the locii problems investigated by Apollonius, Descartes employs the rules of his "method" in this treatise on geometry. By approaching geometrical problems with algebraic processes and vice versa, he manages to create point coordinate geometry. This work drastically changed the way in which we view conic sections as well as the very process of analytic inquiry. The math is mostly straightforward and more familiar to the reader than the works of the ancient mathematicians. It is not neccesary to have studied much previous mathematical works to gain a basic comprehension of Descartes' solutions. Attempting at most times to maintain the simple and straighforward presentation advocated by his method, Descartes will give you most of the basics that you need to understand the rest of the work. However, close concentration must be paid for the math to mean anything. It is easy to skip a step in a proof and find yourself completely lost. Given the proper patience, this work is invaluable for anyone who wants to see the origins of our method of thought today. Fascinating both as a mathematical treatise and as a perfect trial run for anyone wanting to follow the cartesian method of learning. ... Read more

Product Description
Although extensively revised, this new edition continues in the fine tradition of its predecessor. Major changes include: a notation that formalizes the distinction between equality and congruence and between line, ray and line segment; a completely rewritten chapter on mathematical logic with inclusion of truth tables and the logical basis for the discovery of non-Euclidean geometries; expanded coverage of analytic geometry with more theorems discussed and proved with coordinate geometry; two distinct chapters on parallel lines and parallelograms; a condensed chapter on numerical trigonometry; more problems; expansion of the section on surface areas and volume; and additional review exercises at the end of each chapter. Concise and logical, it will serve as an excellent review of high school geometry. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Great text for high school or college
I had used this text in a geometry class I took in college as a math major (class was not required, just needed hours to fill). After using this book and finishing the course, I found it to be much better than the geometry book I used in high school.

This book, like many high school texts, breaks geometry down into constructions using only a straight-edge and compass and then introduces definitions and theorems (some proved, some left to prove as exercises). The part that hooked me in was the fill-in-the-blank-step proofs that were partially completed but let the reader finish so that he or she will become familiar with "Statement/Reason" geometric proofs.

Finally, after ten chapters which deal with such topics as quadrilaterals, parallel lines, polygon areas, similar and congruent triangles, and circles, the authors introduce logic by methods of truth tables, Euler circles, and tautologies.

Last but not least, a chapter connecting algebra to 2-Dimensional (Cartesian) geometry offer the bridge between the "abstract" world of algebra and the "concrete" world of geometry. ... Read more

Product Description
Hirsch and Goodman offer a mathematically sound, rigorous text to those instructors who believe students should be challenged. The text prepares students for future study in higher-level courses by gradually building students' confidence without sacrificing rigor. To help students move beyond the "how" of algebra (computational proficiency) to the "why" (conceptual understanding), the authors introduce topics at an elementary level and return to them at increasing levels of complexity. Their gradual introduction of concepts, rules, and definitions through a wealth of illustrative examples -- both numerical and algebraic--helps students compare and contrast related ideas and understand the sometimes-subtle distinctions among a variety of situations. This author team carefully prepares students to succeed in higher-level mathematics. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

Understanding Elementary Algebra w/Geometry textbook
This text was easy to use and had good examples.There were some mistakes in the answers in the book but overall the text is good.Excellent for the beginning algebra student.There is a student solution manual available for purchase but be aware that like the text, there are only answers to the odd numbered problems. The solution manual does show step by step how to solve the problems.

Excellent refresher
This book does a fanstastic job explaining the principles of basic algebra and incorporates really helpful word problems with each section.Each section also has review problems from previous sections so that you don't forget the principles you just learned.
There are lots of exercise problems so that you can practice as much as necessary.

I studied more advanced math over 15 years ago, and this was the perfect book to help me get back into math mode.I highly recommend it for anyone who wants to self-study basic algebra.

Good examples
This book has good examples to work off of for algebra.

la_books
Very good serves and fast to. Book looks like new!! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (29)

Great for Test Review
I first purchased this book over 3 decades ago.I've used it several times, always the night before some sort of aptitude test or exam that included pre-calculus math.I used it to pass the math CLEP test, placement exams for college and grad school, and the ASVAB test to get into the Navy.Each time, I went through the entire book in one evening just before taking the test.It worked like magic.I totally aced the math every time!

Outstanding book.
As a professor who teaches Capital Markets in a Masters program in Finance, I only wish that all my students came prepared with this much math (let alone, basic calculus).

To answer criticisms first.This is not a book to learn pre-calculus math from, with no previous exposure -- the explanations are too condensed; the reader is expected to fill-in key steps from his/her previous knowledge.

However, for those reviewing topics for which they already have some understanding, I cannot think of a better book.It cuts down to the essence what often takes 500, verbose pages.It is a excellent summary that requires the reader to be active and think through the steps along the way.

Again, for those who have previously studied the topic, what would be a good follow-on for elementary calculus?Probably, either Spivak:

http://www.amazon.com/Hitchhikers-Guide-Calculus-Michael-Spivak/dp/0883858126/ref=sr_1_17?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1257190231&sr=1-17

or Kleppner and Ramsey:

http://www.amazon.com/Quick-Calculus-Self-Teaching-Guide-2nd/dp/0471827223/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1257190721&sr=1-1

Personally, I would slightly prefer Kleppner and Ramsey (because it goes a little further, without sacrificing understanding).

Best quick review I've seen
As a scientist (but not mathematician) I think that this book is an excellent review for students that have already taken these courses in high school in preparation for a college calculus class. It is a distillation of the key principles covered in high school that are necessary to succeed in calculus courses. It could also serve as a preview of upcoming material for motivated students (e.g. a high school student could read the chapter on algebra over the summer before actually taking algebra). It isn't suitable as a stand-alone text, but then it doesn't imply that it is one. I used it in conjunction with a couple calculus review texts ("for Dummies") to refresh after a twenty-year hiatus before successfully tackling differential equations.

all good stuff, no fluff
I love this book and refer back to it regularly.It has the most succinct explanations of many subjects in algebra, geometry, and trigonometry that I've seen.What a waste of paper all those other precalculus books are!

Inadequate
This book might be used as a quick reference to check formulas, but it's inadequate for learning or even refreshing.Perhaps it's unrealistic to expect much of a book with "in a nutshell" in the title.However, the author doesn't even bother to provide answers to all of the review exercises.Instead, only answers to "selected" problems are shown.There are quite a few superior books available which do a much better job of presenting this material. ... Read more

Product Description
Intended for upper undergraduate or beginning graduate students, this book introduces students to the modern theory of manifolds. Assuming a basic knowledge of the differential geometry of curves and surfaces the focus is on differentiable manifolds and the study of Riemannian manifolds. The book concludes with applications of manifolds to physics. Exercises at the end of each section and appendices on topology and linear algebra make this book ideal for self-study or as a textbook. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Nice! Very clear, concise, rigorous reader-friendly introduction to differential manifolds
Lovett provides a very nice introduction to the differential geometry of manifolds useful for self-study.It is very clearly written, rigorous, concise yet reader-friendly.The difficulty level is midway between O'Neill's Elementary Differential Geometry, Revised 2nd Edition, Second Edition and Tu's An Introduction to Manifolds (Universitext) (Volume 0), both of which I like very much.

The pace is nice.As you can see in more detail from the "search inside this book" function: Ch. 1 Analysis of Multivariable Functions [pp. 1-36] provides some background math; Ch. 2 [pp. 37-78] Coordinates, Frames, and Tensor Notation discusses some more applied topics needed for physics applications; Ch. 3 Differential Manifolds [pp. 79-124] and Ch. 4 Analysis on Manifolds [pp. 125-184] discuss essential standard topics including differential maps; immersions, submersions and submanifolds; vector bundles; differential forms; integration and Stokes' Theorem;Ch. 5 [pp. 185-248] provides an introduction to Riemannian Geometry, including vector fields, geodesics and the curvature tensor; and finally Ch. 6 [pp. 249-294] provides very brief discussions of some applications to physics including Hamiltonian mechanics, electromagnetism, string theory and general relativity.

My main gripe is that there are no answers to problems, which detracts from its value for self-study (but to fill that gap, cf. Analysis and Algebra on Differentiable Manifolds: A Workbook for Students and Teachers). This is especially annoying because Lovett refers to answers to some problems in his mathematical exposition, e.g., on p. 234 (section 5.4.1), he refers to problem 5.2.17 on page 217 in his discussion of connections that are not symmetric; moreover answers to some exercises depend on material in other problems, e.g., the answer to problem 5.2.17 refers to problem 5.2.14.This is a common practice I dislike because it seriously degrades from a book's value for self-study. It could well be that one star should be deducted for this despicable practice.Nevertheless, I have given it 5 stars because I like the fact that it covers Riemannian Geometry (including an exposition of Pseudo-Riemannian metrics in section 5.1.4 and 5.3.3) and in section 6.4, a short introduction to general relativity but mostly because it's the only book I know that can help one make the leap from very elementary books like O'Neill's Elementary Differential Geometry, Revised 2nd Edition, Second Edition, Pressley's Elementary Differential Geometry (Springer Undergraduate Mathematics Series) or Banchof and Lovett's Differential Geometry of Curves and Surfaces to graduate level books like Tu's An Introduction to Manifolds (Universitext) (Volume 0), John Lee's Introduction to Smooth Manifoldsor Jeffrey Lee's massive [[ASIN:0821848151 Manifolds and Differential Geometry (Graduate Studies in Mathematics), all of which I also recommend after Lovett.

All in all, this text is a welcome addition to the many books on differential geometry because of its refreshing, "no nonsense" clarity, rigor and conciseness as well as the various topics covered. ... Read more

Product Description
This book gives a rigorous treatment of the fundamentals of plane geometry: Euclidean, spherical, elliptical and hyperbolic. The primary purpose is to acquaint the reader with the classical results of plane Euclidean and nonEuclidean geometry, congruence theorems, concurrence theorems, classification of isometries, angle addition and trigonometrical formulae. However, the book not only provides students with facts about and an understanding of the structure of the classical geometries, but also with an arsenal of computational techniques for geometrical investigations. The aim is to link classical and modern geometry to prepare students for further study and research in group theory, Lie groups, differential geometry, topology, and mathematical physics. The book is intended primarily for undergraduate mathematics students who have acquired the ability to formulate mathematical propositions precisely and to construct and understand mathematical arguments. Some familiarity with linear algebra and basic mathematical functions is assumed, though all the necessary background material is included in the appendices. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Too Advanced for most
This is so rigorous it is only for the advanced mathematician. I was looking for something much more accessible. I'll have to keep looking.

Great math book
This book about euclidean and non-euclidean geometry is great! A must for researh or math class! ... Read more

Product Description
Since its original publication in 1990, Kenneth Falconer's Fractal Geometry: Mathematical Foundations and Applications has become a seminal text on the mathematics of fractals. It introduces the general mathematical theory and applications of fractals in a way that is accessible to students from a wide range of disciplines. This new edition has been extensively revised and updated. It features much new material, many additional exercises, notes and references, and an extended bibliography that reflects the development of the subject since the first edition.
* Provides a comprehensive and accessible introduction to the mathematical theory and applications of fractals.
* Each topic is carefully explained and illustrated by examples and figures.
* Includes all necessary mathematical background material.
* Includes notes and references to enable the reader to pursue individual topics.
* Features a wide selection of exercises, enabling the reader to develop their understanding of the theory.
* Supported by a Web site featuring solutions to exercises, and additional material for students and lecturers.
Fractal Geometry: Mathematical Foundations and Applications is aimed at undergraduate and graduate students studying courses in fractal geometry. The book also provides an excellent source of reference for researchers who encounter fractals in mathematics, physics, engineering, and the applied sciences. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

The Basic Text For Understanding Fractals
Fractal Geometry:Mathematical Foundations and Applications by Kenneth Falconer(second edition)is one of the most important mathematical books of this beginning of the 21-st century.It is a book of high mathematical level which can be very useful to non-mathematicians possessing a reasonable mathematical instruction and a logical mind.Mathematicians will find in this book deep and sophisticated notions and proofsand non-mathematicians will find all the concrete applications of the theory of fractals(see e.g.the new paragraph dedicated to fractals in finance).Prof.dr.Ion Chitescu
Faculty of Mathematics and Computer Science
University of Bucharest

A rare find
I agree with all that was said by the other reviews here but add one important point. The physical layout, (typeface, drawings, whitespace etc.) of this book is brilliantly done. This is often overlooked by the producers of technical works who do it "on the cheap", but it is vital if one is to use the book day after day, as I have had to.

While the subject matter is not easy, this is an excellent book to motivate one to get stuck into the underlying mathematics. The reward is a little insight into the often beatiful theorems and practical results found in this stimulating field of study.

What every student should know about fractals.
Fractals make headlines from time to time[--are they everywhere?], and and they make lovely color pictures; but they are also part of a substantial mathematical theory, one with an
exciting mathematical history. This very important book presents
the subject in a way that it can be taught to students, and it starts with the basics, systematically, step by step, building up the material. Or it can be used for selfstudy! It has great exercises too! In view of the many applications to geometric analysis, to PDE, and to statistics, it is likely that fractal geometry will soon be a standard math course taught in many (more) math departments. By now it is widely recognized that the selfsimilarity aspects of the wavelet algorithms are key to their sucess. The book came out in 1990, and the author has an equally attractive book on the subject from 1985[The geometry of fractal sets] with a slightly more potential theoretic bent.

Theoretical as well as practical insight
The first part of the book is essentially of a theoretical nature, with a thorough treatment of fractal geometry at a mathematical point of view. The second part on the other hand provides a flavour of the problems of fractal geometry in practice...so mathematicians as well as people interested in applications only should both find this book interesting. The maths are not easy but quite "understandable" for science undergrads...some notions of calculus or topology would help... but the introduction is excellent and allows anyone to follow the course of the book (but for understanding the proofs a good math background is required).

Excellent for understanding the geometrical properties of fractals.

Exposes fractal geometry as a real mathematical discipline.
I appreciate Falconer's books on fractal geometry because they show the topic as it really is: a whole mathematical discipline on its own right and not just a nice temporary fashion.

It begins introducing basictopological concepts and then proceeds to develop the theory for severalpossible definitions of fractal dimension, showing the relations betweenthem. Then it explores deeply the local geometry of different kinds offractal objects, and studies some other geometrical situations, like thepojection of fractals (ever thought of a DIGITAL sundial? Here it isdescribed!).

The book also includes a lot of applications to other areasof mathematics and physics, a great amount of graphics, and muchmore.

The text is suitable from third year undergraduate school and on.It is a larger but lighter version of "The Geometry of FractalSets". ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Long Journey - no damages
+: Product arrived without any damage.
+: Arrival date long before the promised, specified date
-: none

A Comprehensive Introduction to Differential Geometry, Vol. 2, 3rd Edition
Hours of reading fun!Well paced and twice the fun of Volume 1. Michael does it again!A spellbinding thriller from cover to cover. You gotta love it.

Wonderful exposition of the foundations of Curvature and Connections
This book is the second volume of the 3rd edition in a five volume series on differential geometry. The focus here is on the foundations of curvature and connections.

The only prerequisite for volume II is a careful study of volume I. In particular, you'll need a good understanding of the Riemannian metric and you'll need to be comfortable with manipulating differential forms. Also pay attention to the differential equations material used to establish Frobenius Integrability in Chapter 6 of volume I. In addition, you'll need the main concepts from the Lie Groups study of Chapter 10 of volume I.

The author begins the study of curvature with a review of the classical theory of curvature of curves and surfaces in Chapters 1 and 2. These chapters are written in style that helps the reader anticipate more general results for Riemannian manifolds. For example, the reader will notice the rotation index of a planar curve can be represented in terms of its total curvature; a result which foreshadows the Gauss-Bonnet Theorem. Both Euler's Theorem and Meusnier's Theorem for surfaces embedded in Euclidean 3-space are studied.

Chapter 3 details the geometry of surfaces as developed by Gauss. Spivak's treatment here is very unusual, and, in Part A of this chapter, the author actually gives an English translation of original paper of Gauss. Reading this is a bit unusual as the author alternates the translation of Gauss on a page with comments by the author on the preceding page. Part B of the chapter gives the accounting of the Gauss Theory in modern notion. Part B is delightfully geometric and includes all of the 'greatest hits' from the theory, including the Theorema Egreguim and the Triangle Excess Theorem.

Chapter 4 studies Riemann's theory of curvature of manifolds, and contains 4 parts. Part A and Part C are English translations of Riemann's foundational work, while Part B and Part D cast this work in the light of more modern notion. Riemann's curvature tensor is built up from an intuitive study of the second-order terms in the Taylor series expansion of the Riemannian metric. The author also introduces what he calls the "Test Case" for curvature theory: Flat manifolds are locally isometric to Euclidean space. Spivak uses this "Test Case" repeatedly throughout the remainder of the text to reinforce the various notion of curvature as he studies the work of Riemann, Ricci, Kozul, Cartan and Ehresmann.

Chapter 5 (the Debauch of Indices) studies the work of Christoffel and Ricci in developing the covariant derivative. The aim of this work is to simplify the somewhat cumbersome formulas for Riemann's curvature tensor. The reader quickly sees that effort, called absolute differential calculus, is not altogether successful and leads to an veritable explosion of multi-indexed quantities and even harder-to-penetrate formulas.Clearly a better way is needed if we are to move forward with our study of differential geometry.

The "way forward" is Kozul's concept of the connection and this is introduced in Chapter 6. First, note that the connection here is one of the versions of the introduced by Kozul as a map of pairs of vector fields to a vector field. Another useful version, not studied in volume II, is to consider the connection as a Hessian which maps any smooth function to a bilinear form on the tangent space. Second, note that Chapter 6 is usually the starting point for most treatments of curvature in differential geometry (e.g Do Carmo's "Riemannian Geometry"). Without the motivating material from the previous chapters, it would be difficult to understand the need for(or the point of) Kozul's connection.

Cartan's theory of curvature via a study of moving frames is detailed in Chapter 7. The author is careful to intuitively motivate Cartan's deviation from Euclidean concept as represented in the structure equations. Cartan's curvature tensor is shown to agree with Riemann's tensor, the "Test Case" is revisited, and the well-known fact that the curvature determines the Riemannian metric is established.

Building on the orthonormal frames from the previous chapter, Spivak now considers Ehresmann's theory of connections in principal bundles in Chapter 8. The main results here introduce the Ehresmann connection on the frame bundle, and gives the Kozul connection as a Lie derivative, thought of as the Cartan connection obtained from the Ehresmann connection.

My only complaint is that the author didn't include any exercises in this second volume. This is a real shame as the exercises in the first volume were very well-designed and one of the highlights of that text.
... Read more

Product Description

About the Contents:

Pretest

Helps you pinpoint where you need the most help and directs you to the corresponding sections of the book

Topic Area Reviews

• Basic geometry ideas

• Parallel lines

• Triangles

• Polygons

• Perimeter and area

• Similar figures

• Right angles

• Circles

• Solid geometry

• Coordinate geometry

Customized Full-Length Exam

Covers all subject areas

Appendix

Postulates and theorems ... Read more

Product Description
The latest edition in the highly respected Swokowski/Cole precalculus series retains the elements that have made it so popular with users alike: its exposition is clear, the time-tested exercise sets feature a variety of applications, its uncluttered layout is appealing, and the difficulty level of problems is appropriate and consistent. Mathematically sound, ALGEBRA AND TRIGONOMETRY WITH ANALYTIC GEOMETRY, CLASSIC EDITION, 12E, effectively prepares users for further courses in mathematics through its excellent, time-tested problem sets. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (7)

Avoid at all cost!

The text only introduces the basics of a concept before introducing much more complicated problems in the chapter practices. Very little detailed information to help understand concepts. I had to use other texts and online resources to supplement this POS testbook.

A really bad math book
Precalculus is hard enough without having to use a book like this. I thought that the prose was unreadable, the graphics confusing, and many of the exercises supercomplicated (our professor thought so too). In my opinion *Algebra and Trignometry* is a triumph of marketing over pedagogical competence. My advice? Not only should you not buy this book; you should avoid a class in which it is assigned.

Awful!
I teach a high school class for advanced mathematics in preparation for college maths, and I honestly have to say that this is the worst book from which to teach.Yes, I can understand it perfectly, but a student will be lost the moment he or she lays eyes on the first page.The only good thing about this book is the number of exercises it has in each section.

For mathematicians, by mathmematicians
Frankly, I found this text way too brief in its coverage of topics prior to being bombarded with questions. There isn't much good to say about this book other than providing lots of problems to work. Save yourself the money and buy a "10000 problem" text instead.

Solid math textbook
I'm a little torn on what to say about this book. On one hand, I have a huge amount of respect for this book. On the other hand, it's not an easy book to learn from.

I have no doubt that if people work through this book, they will be very knowledgable and skilled in the areas covered. It is, however, a slow, tedious, sometimes frustrating process. The authors are clearly proficient at math, but their style is pretty dry. It's a "just the facts, ma'am" approach to instruction. It would be nice to have perspective, interpretation, and helpful guidance in addition to straight math. It's kind of like reading a technical manual.I prefer a more engaging presentation. ... Read more

Product Description
The book has no illustrations or index. Purchasers are entitled to a free trial membership in the General Books Club where they can select from more than a million books without charge. Subjects: Mathematics; Geometry; ... Read more

Product Description
You, too, can understand geometry---- just ask Dr. Math ? !

Are things starting to get tougher in geometry class? Don't panic. Dr. Math--the popular online math resource--is here to help you figure out even the trickiest of your geometry problems.

Students just like you have been turning to Dr. Math for years asking questions about math problems, and the math doctors at The Math Forum have helped them find the answers with lots of clear explanations and helpful hints. Now, with Dr. Math Presents More Geometry, you'll learn just what it takes to succeed in this subject. You'll find the answers to dozens of real questions from students in a typical geometry class. You'll also find plenty of hints and shortcuts for using coordinate geometry, finding angle relationships, and working with circles. Pretty soon, everything from the Pythagorean theorem to logic and proofs will make more sense. Plus, you'll get plenty of tips for working with all kinds of real-life problems.

You won't find a better explanation of high school geometry anywhere! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Dr. Math Presents More Geometry: Learning Geometry is Easy! Just Ask Dr. Math.
Will be using to assist students in HS Geometry as well as passing their state graduation exam.

Four Pentagraphs
This is an interesting book to read through and gives clears information on the logic of proving or using various theorems. Information is separated into chapters on circles, triangles, quadrilaterals, etc. How much you will enjoy this book is probably dependent on how you want to use it. If you have a specific question you need help answering, it may not be of use to you unless you have time to skim through the appropriate chapter, and then you may or may not be lucky and find it. It is not intended to be a text and doesn't necessarily progress in that structured, complete form. It is a fun,math "read" with nice diagrams and clear explanations. ... Read more

Product Description
This is an EXACT reproduction of a book published before 1923. This IS NOT an OCR'd book with strange characters, introduced typographical errors, and jumbled words.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (7)

The Foundations of Geometry - Forgotten Books edition

The FORGOTTEN BOOKS edition of Hilbert's Foundations of Geometry isn't Hilbert's Geometry. Notice the number of pages (which I didn't when ordering it). This publication contains ONLY the diagrams in large format (with a very few absent) from the text of Hilbert's Geometry. There is no title page or author listed, but this is in fact what the content is from. It is clearly a scan from an old book, so there must be some historical context for it. Maybe someone can clarify the mystery. I give it 5 stars because these comments will probably show up among the reviews of Hilbert's full text and I don't want to skew the star rating of the book, but this particular reprint I don't find of any actual value, except that it's from Hilbert and there may be some interesting reason why it occurs as an independent publication.

Along with this reprint, I also ordered the FB Classic Reprint of Elements of Geometry and Trigonometry by Charles Davies. These two books are the first reprints I've purchased from any of the reprint publishers selling on amazon. For more on the quality of Forgotten Books reprints, see my review of Davies' book. The mysterious Hilbert-diagrams text they sell under the title of Hilbert's Foundations of Geometry is, I suspect, an anomaly. Besides, their honest page-count should raise questions about the content. Now you know what that content is.

Buy the Open Court edition - a better translation into English
For the best translation into English (not Townshend's translation) see Hilbert's "Foundations of Geometry" as extended by Paul Bernays, Open Court Publishing Co, second edition in English, 1971.(This should be a translation of the 10th and final edition in German by Bernays, which dates from 1968.)Bernays was Hilbert's assistant at Göttingen beginning in 1917 and his co-author of "Grundlagen der Mathematik" (1934-39).
Hardcover ISBN: 0875481639
Paperback ISBN: 0875481647

Incomplete
This is the first book ever to present the axiomatic foundations of euclidean geometry. The first edition appeared in the nineties of the nineteenth century.

Most of the book can be read and appreciated by someone who is mature in elementary euclidean geometry (in fact the material was originally conceived to be used in a summer school for mathematics teachers in Germany). If you expect to find a treatment that will fill up all the gaps in the elementary books you will be disappointed, it does not. If you are looking for a text that does fill all the gaps try to get a copy Forders' book The foundations of Euclidean geometry,.

This edition is not based on the last German edition that is available and does not contain the appendices by Hilbert and thesupplements by Paul Bernays, so as a text on the foundations of euclidean geometry it is not useless but it is surely crippled.

I do not dare to give a book with Hilberts name on it less than five stars.

Enjoyable
Hilbert gives his new system of axioms and studies their consistency, independence and necessity. Consider for example the theorem that the angle sum in any triangle cannot be greater than two right angles. We can prove it as follows. Consider a triangle ABC with the angles labelled so that ABC<=ACB. Let D be the midpoint of BC. Draw AD and extend it to E so that AD=DE. By SAS, ACD=BDE, so that angle CAD=angle BAE and angle DBE=angle ACB. Thus ABC has the same angle sum as ABE. ABC<=ACB means that AC=BE<=AB, so angle BAE<=angle AEB, so angle BAE<=angle BAC/2. In other words: for any angle A in any triangle we can construct a new triangle with equal angle sum that has as one of its angles A/2. By repeating this process we can make the angle A as small as we like. Thus, if the angle sum of some triangle was greater than two right angles, and we applied this procedure, we would get a new triangle where two of the angles are greater than two right angles, which is impossible. The "as small as we like" part gives away the fact that we are relying on Archimedes' axiom, which is necessary. "The investigation of this matter which [Max] Dehn has undertaken at my urging led to a complete clarification of this problem. ... If Archimedes' axiom is dropped then from the assumption of infinitely many parallels through a point it does not follow that the sum of the angles in a triangle is less than two right angles. Moreover, there exists a geometry (the non-Legendrian geometry) in which it is possible to draw through a point infinitely many parallels to a line and in which nevertheless the theorems of Riemannian (elliptic) geometry hold. On the other hand there exists a geometry (the semi-Euclidean geometry) in which there exists infinitely many parallels toline through a point and in which the theorems of Euclidean geometry still hold. From the assumption that there exist no parallels it always follows that the sum of the angles in a triangle is greater than two right angles." Another interesting topic is the connection between laws of algebra and the theorems of Pappus (which Hilbert calls Pascal's) and Desargues. Geometrically, we can multiply two numbers a and b using only the axioms of projective geometry as follows. We choose a line to be the "x-axis" and call one of its points the origin O and another of its points the unit 1. Mark Oa and Ob on this line. Draw another line, the "y-axis", through O. Pick some point i on the y-axis. Connect 1 and i, and draw the parallel to this line through b, meeting the y-axis at b' (as usual, "parallel to l" means: meets l at an arbitrarily designated line called the line at infinity). Connect a and 1 and draw the parallel to this line through b'. In Euclidean geometry this line cuts the x-axis at ab. In general, then, we may define multiplication in this way. The algebraic identity ab=ba now becomes a geometric theorem. This is the beautiful part: ab=ba is not just any old geometric theorem, it is in fact equivalent to Pappus's theorem: the construction of ab consisted of the line connecting 1 and i and three more lines, the construction of ba consists of the line connecting 1 and i and three more lines, each of which is parallel to one of the lines from the ab construction. Therefore, deleting the line connecting 1 and i, Pappus applies and says ab=ba. Similarly, Desargues is equivalent to a(bc)=(ab)c.

Available for Free
This historic book is available for free from Project Gutenberg http://www.gutenberg.org. Search for Geometry. This book is one of a few books available. This is the complete Open Court text. It is available both as a pdf file and a TeX file. ... Read more

Product Description
See geometry from all the right angles.

Here is a non-intimidating, easy-to-understand, and fun companion to the textbooks required for high school and college geometry courses. Written by a math professor who developed a geometry class for liberal arts students, this book covers all standard curriculum concepts—from angles and lines to tangents and topology. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (7)

Geometry for any idiot is true
This book is perfect, it has simple explanations, good diagrams, and lots of samples and problems to assist in your learning and development of Geometry.

Worth it if you need a refresher or if you are about to start studying geometry.

Excellent explanations, but many of the diagrams and practice problems are just wrong
The explanations and guidance in this book are excellent -- clear and logical, with a very nice flow from one skill set to the next.

However, the number of incorrect diagrams -- and consequently incorrect proofs -- in this book is truly shocking. For example, practice problem #3 in Chapter 10 (p. 113, with solution starting on p. 340) is COMPLETELY wrong.

The question asks you to prove that exterior angles on the SAME side of the transversal through parallel lines are supplementary.

Meanwhile, the "solution" proof itself actually proves that the ALTERNATE angles (i.e., angles on the OPPOSITE side of the transversal) aare supplementary.

On page 95, the measure of angle CBD is given as being GREATER than 90 degrees (step 4), and consequently angle CBD is proudly declared to be acute.

By looking at the diagram, one can easily tell that angle CBD is acute, but the fact that the "greater than" sign is used instead of the correct "less than" sign in step 4 of the proof itself is bound to be confusing.

All I can say is, Huh...?

Up to this point, I was willing to accept that these were just sloppy typos, but in my opinion, these blunders mar a potentially excellent guide book.

This book needs to be thoroughly re-edited to correct the many, many sloppy mistakes in labeling and proving in order to achieve its potential.

A solid introduction to the fundamentals of high school geometry
Despite the occasional cutesy dialog, this book is a solid introduction to the fundamentals of high school geometry. It begins with a definition of what geometry is and then presents a necessary review of some of the basic rules of algebra, in particular the properties of equalities and inequalities when objects are combined. The next step is to describe the fundamental objects used in geometry. Starting with the point, line, line segment, ray and plane, the basic objects used in geometry are explained and classified.
Once the fundamental descriptions of the objects is complete, the next step is to describe the nature of the mathematical proof. This is done using truth tables and explanations of the words that correspond to the symbols used to build propositions.
The next sections introduce additional geometric figures such as the triangle, quadrilateral, rhombus and circle. Proofs are used when needed and the standard objects such as the unit circle and the 30-60-90 triangle are explained. Three-dimensional objects, constructions, neutral and non-Euclidean geometry and transformations are the topics of the last chapters. A set of 64 solved multiple choice problems is also included. All of this material is presented at a level that the beginner can comprehend.
I applaud the inclusion of the sections on neutral and non-Euclidean geometry, it is often assumed that this is beyond the understanding of beginners, but that is not the case. Spherical geometry is in some ways easier to understand than plane geometry because a globe is all you need and the structure is finite. I also commend the author for including the set of problems. Mathematics is learned by doing and this gives the reader an opportunity to immediately test their level of understanding.

Idiot's Guide to Geometry
This is a very poorly edited book, with dozens of misprints and mistakes that are essential to understanding.Angles and triangles can be labeled incorrectly, so you are trying to prove the unprovable theorem, or the wrong formula can be listed and you need to find the correct one in a different chapter.Sometimes mistakes are obvious when an acute angle is labeled obtuse, and sometimes they take a lot of time to figure out.Just a few examples (these are from the last test) - none of the multiple choice answers to the problem 41 are correct (the correct answer should be 6), the answer to problem 57 is wrong (the correct answer is C, or 1/2), the problem 58 is stated wrongly - impossible to solve, same for problem 59.The answer key to Chapter 19 is missing altogether.These are just a few from the long list of never-ending mistakes.Save yourself time and frustration, get another geometry textbook.

Idiot's Guide to Geometry
Good supplement to any traditional geometry text.Helpful insights and delightful humor throughout the book.Would be a great asset to any high school math teacher's personal library. ... Read more

Product Description
This title will soon be available in kindle. Geometry is lots of fun and applies to so many things in the real world. Now is an excellent time to learn all about geometry the easy way! This is a new title by America's math teacher and author, Richard W. Fisher. This book will provide students with all the essential geometry skills. Vocabulary, points, lines, planes, perimeter, area, volume, and the Pythagorean theorem are just some of the topics that are covered. Each lesson contains built-in review and easy-to-understand instruction that introduces new material with lots of examples. There is plenty of real-life problem solving that shows students the importance of geometry in the real world. An excellent summer review prior to taking high school geometry. CHECK OUT THE REST OF OUR MASTERING ESSENTIAL MATH SKILLS BOOKS AND DVD'S! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

A bit overpriced, but still worth it.
It's a good basic book which will serve someone well for that extra bit of study.

Hole-Free Math Skills
In his customary succinct and painless way, Richard Fisher has written a series of skill specific math workbooks. Like an efficient patch kit, each book seals any holes that might exist in your student's math skills. I had the opportunity to look over these six, streamlined, no-fluff workbooks (just the way I like them). Fractions, Geometry, Percents and Decimals, Problem Solving, Whole Numbers and Integers, and Pre-algebra Concepts are individually and precisely targeted. Each subject is given a thorough yet simple treatment (a rare combination). First, by laying a firm foundation with the basics, building precept upon precept, and finally topping off the skills we have gained with final reviews to ensure hole-free mastery. With my limited understanding of math, I was able to easily comprehend the short lessons in the Helpful Hints section with examples. I could have used a little more explanation for the more complex concepts to nudge my brain to its grasping point; still, I was able to ascertain a concept by looking at the answer and figuring out how it was arrived at (I call it creative learning). I used Pre-Algebra Concepts with companion DVD for a review of Pre-Algebra and would unquestionably have used it as my son's primary text had I discovered this series sooner (the other books in this series do not come with a companion DVD). I recommend these books and will be using them for reinforcing any weak areas that crop up in my son's math comprehension.

Everything your student needs to know about geometry
I reviewed all six of the new Mastering Essentials Math Skills titles at the 2008 NCTM Math conference.As a math consultant, I have always been a big fan of Fisher's book. It is amazing how much geometry is covered in just 80 pages.Each lesson is short and self-contained.All of Fisher's books have built-in review, a helpful hints section for each new topic, and lots of real-life applications. An excellent book that will provide students with mastery of the essential geometry skills.Also, lots of real-life applications.Highly recommended. ... Read more

Product Description
This book offers a new treatment of the topic, one which is designed to make differential geometry an approachable subject for advanced undergraduates. Professor McCleary considers the historical development of non-Euclidean geometry, placing differential geometry in the context of geometry students will be familiar with from high school. The text serves as both an introduction to the classical differential geometry of curves and surfaces and as a history of a particular surface, the non-Euclidean or hyperbolic plane. The main theorems of non-Euclidean geometry are presented along with their historical development.The author then introduces the methods of differential geometry and develops them toward the goal of constructing models of the hyperbolic plane.While interesting diversions are offered, such as Huygen's pendulum clock and mathematical cartography, the book thoroughly treats the models of non-Euclidean geometry and the modern ideas of abstract surfaces and manifolds. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

An excellent transition for the beginning grad student
I agree that this work is bit to terse for those completely uninitiated with the subject. However, for a first semester graduate student (or anyone with about this level of maturity) who has at least a minimal acquaintance with curves/surfaces this is a wonderful book which fulfills a long standing gap. The divide between undergraduate differential geometry and graduate geometry is too great. A beginning graduate student walk into a course on differentiable manifolds and Riemannian Geometry with no undergraduate diff geometry and be fine (as I did). There simply doesn't seem to be anymore that a superficial connection (no pun intended) between the two. This may not trouble the student at first, but as Spivak notes in his tome: "this ignorance of the roots of the subject has its price." Eventually one needs to assimilate the intuition of classical geometry with the technical language of manifolds. This book very elegantly leads the student from his undergraduate education to the doorstep of modern global geometry. As an added bonus, the author also endeavors to bridge the gap between Euclid and differential geometry.

The only other successful attempt at this is in Spivak, but unfortunatelyhe goes backwards. Volume 1 is entirely devoted to manifolds. Then in volume 2 he explains the classical point of view and then builds the bridge. While these are beautiful books, this is not efficient for the beginning student. The prospective geometer should read this before a class on manifold theory.

I give 4 stars only because the author advertises this as a "first exposure", and this book is simply not suited for this purpose.

great history of geometry book, terrible introductory differential geometry book
Do not buy this inappropriately titled book if you are seeking an introductory text to learn differential geometry. It's not that the concepts in the book are so advanced, so much as not that much space is actually devoted to the subject. The author's real objective is to trace the development of geometry from Euclid to the (relatively) modern formulation of differential geometry, and as a book on that topic it succeeds admirably.

The core theme of the book is that efforts to prove the parallel postulate, or, equivalently, show that non-Euclidean geometries are impossible, inadvertently, through their failure, led to the discovery of many fascinating areas of mathematics, such as hyperbolic and Riemannian geometries, and to the development of philosophical ideas about what actually constitutes mathematics and how it is independent from physical reality. The book culminates with the results of Beltrami and Poincare that showed that hyperbolic and Euclidean geometries are logically equivalent, in the sense that if there is a self-contradiction in one then the other is also impossible, thus putting an end to all attempts to disprove hyperbolic geometry. (Unfortunately, Marilyn vos Savant is unaware of this, or at least she was when she wrote an article some years back criticising Andrew Wiles's proof of Fermat's last theorem because it used hyperbolic geometry.)

As an appendix, McCleary adds a translation of Riemann's lecture "On the hypothesis which lie at the foundations of geometry," perhaps the most influential single lecture in the history of mathematics (and physics), in which, in the mid-1860s, he presented to a general faculty a talk (involving only a single equation) on the foundations of geometry that anticipated the concepts of a manifold and Riemannian geometry as well as general relativity and even hinted at quantum mechanics.

I used this text as a primary reference when conducting an undergraduate seminar on the history of hyperbolic geometry 12 years ago. For this purpose it was suited perfectly, but if you want to learn differential geometry by all means buy one of do Carmo's books or Gallot, Hulin, and LaFontaine.

not for the uninitiated
I'm a master's student in math. I bought the book thinking I'd use it for an independent study. I was wrong.

The book has interesting historical tidbits and some classical proofs, including material I hadn't seen elsewhere. However, it takes little time to explain to the novice exactly what's going on. It comes off more as a set of lecture notes than as a text for self-study.

For instance, in ch. 8 McCleary breezes through the basics of regular surfaces--coordinate charts, differentiability, implicit/inverse function theorem, the tangent space, orientability, the first fundamental form in about 19 pages. This is the same foundational material that folk like do Carmo or O'Neill rightfully spend 60-70 pages to cover.

His treatment of the Gauss map and the second fundamental form is even more schematic.

If I hadn't already worked the other books, when I got to McCleary's treatment of surfaces I would've been completely lost.

This book is best for people who know basic differential geometry already but are curious about certain historical aspects of it, not for people who are trying to learn differential geometry.

a great book!
This is a great book.The author develops the differential geometry of curves and surfaces.The endpoint is the vindication of Euclid's parallel postulate.I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book.Very readable.

Excellent text connecting classical to differential geometry
This book is ideal for those with a long time interest in mathematics or the student just becoming interested in advanced topics.It successfully takes the concepts of classic geometry (Euclidean), clearly explains how the parallel postulate interacts with the other postulates and then introduces differential geometry as a natural outgrowth of hyperbolic geometry.McLeary's book succeeds by demonstrating the connection of modern differential geometry to the concepts in which we were educated.This is not a book for the casual reader, but includes many problems and solutions to the more interesting of them ... Read more

Product Description
Amal: the practical sister who digs up the "diamond key" that unlocks the mystery of Pakicetus, a whale-dog creature who once swam the ancient seas that are now Pakistan.
Mehwish: the blind younger sister, who moves with the sun and music inside her and thinks in "cup lits not fully legal."
Zahoor: their heretical grandfather, a scientist who loves variation and "vim zee" and his two granddaughters most of all.
Noman: the young man who steps into a lecture hall, decides "their triangle needs a fourth point," and changes all their lives.

These are the four shifting chambers who make the heart of The Geometry of God, the new novel from lauded Pakistani writer Uzma Aslam Khan. Through these vivid, contradictory, and original characters, Khan celebrates the complexities of familial and erotic love, the tug of curiosity and duty, the intersections of faith and longing. Her exuberant language draws from Urdu and Punjabi and invents one of its own for Mehwish, whose fractured English divides and slows and reveals.

The Geometry of God is a novel one can read greedily, following these characters as their lives unfold against the backdrop of General Zia's Pakistan, where religious fundamentalism gains ground and the mujaheddin is funded by gem sales and the Americans. Or one can savor, as the sisters show us: digging as Amal does toward the novel's deepest questions about love and knowledge and faith, moving as Mehwish does to the rhythms of an abundant and original language. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

Loved it
Loved this book. It is clever and insightful and brilliantly written. Was delighted that I was reading this on Darwin's birthday this year - it gave me much to think about.

A different view of Middle Eastern Women
With her latest book, The Geometry of God, acclaimed and outspoken novelist Uzma Aslam Khan brings us a fresh new viewpoint of peoples and places in Pakistan.

Two very spirited women, physically blind Mehwish and her older sister Amal, who acts as Mehwish's eyes, tell one tale through three perspectives: theirs and their scientist grandfather's. Beyond the physical, there is more than one way to be blind. Amal may be her sister's eyes, but her mind and heart need to be open to see as well. As we follow the various storylines told via the voices of these believable characters, we get a glimpse of their rich history, natural beauty, and religious beliefs. The reader discovers the country and its fundamental foundation as the sisters explore the messages left on and in the land with their eyes, fingers and feet.

During a difficult time of religious tension in the Middle East, The Geometry of God shares the feelings and personalities of the Pakistani people and how they are coping, growing and preserving their lives. The writing is vivid and rich. The reader is rewarded with new viewpoints, a welcome change from the sensationalized and often macabre portrayals of Pakistani people and the country they fight so hard to preserve.

by Rhonda Esakov
for Story Circle Book Reviews
reviewing books by, for, and about women

A richly layered book
A book of conflict-ridden Pakistan that's comical, sensory, tragic, defiant. The grandfather of Amal and Mehwish is believable, loving but irascible, brilliant but blind to the needs of others. He inspires the child Amal to look closely at the natural world and to the world of men, and gives her the training she needs to enter these worlds. Yet he doesn't "see" her when she does. He sees only the girl who received his knowledge.

I loved the parts in Lahore's Inner City, where Amal and Omar meet. The contrast between dead bodies (the fossils) and living bodies (the lovers) is deftly done. The physical aspects of both death and life are beautifully described. Amal teaches her blind sister Mehwish not only to see, but also to "taste", and taste has many meanings in the book. When Mehwish invents a playful language of her own, she's described as tasting. When the grandfather comes out of prison compromised, he's described as losing his taste. When Amal is with Omar, she "tastes" him "item by item". When at work Amal teaches her anatomy students to dissect a shrew, she describes skinning a dead thing as a "need to quantify with a thumb, to nourish a sensory chart, to taste, (it) becomes a primal pursuit, like Mewish's craving for depth and contour." There's an intensity, a primal hunger, in all the characters, a longing for a Paksitan that feeds the spirit as well as the flesh, instead of cramping and extinguishing these vital appetites. There's a suggestion that all realms need to be reinvented, the material as well as the divine, in order to live - taste - better.

The book forces you to think, yet it's wicked funny too. The scene where Amal shops for Omar's underwear is roguish, and reminiscent of an earlier one, when Noman's walking through the underwear alley in the Inner City with a Russian soldier. Characters keep chancing on absurd situations. We later find out the Russian's selling gems on a glacier in Pakistan to fund the Mujahideen in Afghanistan, i.e., his enemies. And in the heresy report against the grandfather, he's accused of writing the names of the caliphs on the "souls" of his feet. There's a breezy, matter-of-fact way the dark elements of the novel are told, all while hitting pretty big themes. Powerful stuff.

Its Own Creation
I'm a big fan of Khan's previous book, Trespassing,Trespassing: A Novel and was excited her new work is now out in the US so ordered it immediately. The Geometry of God is very different than Trespassing but I think I like them both equally. This one is part fiction, poetry, science, art. The drawings are cool. The story's told by three different characters in sections or "gateways." In the first gateway, The World, Amal discovers a whale fossil in the mountains of Pakistan. The discovery is the spark that starts the fire for the religious firebrands in the second gateway, The Man, told by Noman (get it, no man), the son of a right-wing politician. In gateway three, The Word, told by Amal's hilarious (and blind) sister, false charges of blasphemy have been put on their grandfather, a scientist and man of inquiry. It was chilling to see how creationism plays out in an Islamic country like Pakistan.

The characters collide, collude, and have to make a kind of peace in the mess of the blasphemy charges in the fifth and final gateway, the Afterlife, but it's the fourth one, The Love, that's my favorite. Its depiction of parallel loves finding and losing one another is beautiful and sensual. Scenes between Amal and her husband make me ask when I last read a hot scene between a husband and wife; who says they can't also be lovers? But it's what happens to the grandfather and his best friend that's the most powerful development of the book. It still makes me cringe.

This novel is its own kind of creation - really worth reading.
... Read more