Reviews

“Robert Beezer's free textbook, A First Course in Linear Algebra (FCLA), is an excellent textbook. FCLA includes all of the major and requisite topics plus a nice selection of optional topics, and Beezer's style of writing is friendly and enlightening.”

Mike Daven, Mount Saint Mary College
Tanya Leise, Amherst College

Daven and Leise's full review at the
Mathematical Association of America's
MathDL digital library

“Instructors who wish to teach a pure linear algebra course that emphasizes rigor and formal mathematics will be able to make good use of this material and feel secure in the knowledge that the book is not going to go out of print. Finally, the price is right.”

David Watkins, Washington State University

Watkin's full review from SIAM Review
December 2007, Volume 49, p. 726-727

“An excellent book written by an experienced teacher. Highly recommended.”

David Joyner, US Naval Academy, Annapolis

Joyner's full review, one of five
at The Open Textbook Catalog

“The author (as well as his university) is to be commended for devoting the time and energy to creating this book and more importantly of unselfishly making it freely available to the mathematical community. This gesture represents a significant step in the campaign currently under way to alleviate the problem of the runaway cost of textbooks.”

Bernard Russo, University of California, Irvine

Russo's full article from
Notices of the American Mathematical Society, August 2007

“This book is clear, rigorous and thorough. Don't be put off by the length. One can get through it quickly.”

David Nickerson, University of Notre Dame

Syllabus, Math for Political Scientists
Political Science 60833, Fall 2011

“One of the things I like best about your book is that it works well for a class with non-math majors in it. For our majors, we require at least concurrent enrollment in our "intro to proof" course but do not require that of majors from other departments. The book's approach has worked well for strong math majors, math majors who still need lots of practice with proofs, and science majors who have no proof-writing experience.”

Jane Long, Stephen F. Austin State University, Texas

Personal communication, October 2011

“The last time I taught this course I used A First Course in Linear Algebra by Rob Beezer, and students understood the material better than from any other book I had used previously. Even seeing students in later courses, it was clear that they really had a good understanding. Our course is for majors in many fields, and for mathematics minors as well as majors. This book is open-source, so can be modified to fit whatever course you are teaching, or whatever your students need. Best of all, it's Free!”

Nancy Neudauer, Pacific University, Oregon

Project NExT mailing list, October 2011

“I am using FCLA this semester for the first time, and I love it. The reading questions at the end of each chapter are a fabulous touch, as they easily allow me to assign sections and check if the students are really reading. My students who do read diligently not only aced the midterm, but each one of them at different times has told me that they really appreciate this book.”

Dave Perkins, Luzerne County Community College, Pennsylvania

Project NExT mailing list, October 2012