Rating: 
Summary: Look for another book
Review: Leon makes a commendable effort to make this book readable with color figures and applied examples of his topics. Unfortunately his familiarity with the topic has caused him to make the common mistake of leaving out mathematical steps and explanations under the assumption that they are trivial and obvious. Additionally he often brings up a topic or theorem and leaves the proof as an exercise for the reader. Exercises for the reader are not supposed to be discussions in the text, they are called Exercises and are listed in the back of the section as homework.In summary it was a good effort, but he falls in the common trap of mathematical books that has the author write at their own level of comprehension.
Rating:
Summary: A very dull introduction to a beautiful subject.
Review: Let me start off by saying that I do not mean to offend the other reviewers with what I have to say. Also, admittedly, I have not read this text fully. But I am in a position to write this review since I turored students using this text. First, this text is not very difficult. The problems are very straight forward (including the simple proof exercises). The material is presented in a very "beginnerish" fasion. But since linear algebra is the class which provides a bridge to higher mathematics, the exposition must be mathematical to some degree. If this text disagrees with you for the reason that this book is too hard, you should not be majoring in mathematics, you do not have what it takes (or equally likely, you have not put enough effort into the class, i.e. studying the text)! My reasons for disliking the text are rather different, I very much dislike this text since it is so dull. The text, in some odd way, is very boring, as opposed to texts such as Strang or better yet Hoffman/Kunze (this is my preffered text for highly motivated students). I wish that I could eloborate more in words but I can not. For those of you who have read the text and do not find it too difficult, I am quite sure that you know what I am talking about. I am giving this text 2 stars because "it is just not fun," as vague as that sounds. It is not a good book for refrence, self-study, or as a class text. I feel guilty giving 2 stars without being able to explain just why, but I am going with my feelings on this one. note: sorry for any spelling errors, I am in a rush and do not have time to check. Please forgive my haste.
Rating: 
Summary: good book, but some sections difficult to follow
Review: many steps and explanations are left out because they are assumed to be 'obvious'. i did not find them to be that easy to figure out.
Rating:
Summary: Starts Off Great, Wears Down
Review: My background: Computer science / mathematics undergraduate with experience in calculus, discrete mathematics, and differential equations Leon's text on linear algebra isn't bad, but there is room for improvement. Chapters 1, 2, and 3 do a good job of introducing the basic concepts of linear algebra, including matrix row operations, determinants, and linear independence. The book seems to lose clarity beginning in Chapter 4. The concepts become more abstract and Leon's notation interferes with the ability to clearly understand what he is talking about when it comes to linear transformations and issues regarding R(A) and orthogonality. Very important results are frequently understated as well. In a few cases, there aren't enough examples to go around - especially in Chapters 4 and 5. It is ironic compared to the relative overexplanation found in Chapter 1, for example. Another qualm I have with this text is the chapter review sections, which are limited to MATLAB exercises and simple true/false questions. I think these sections need actual math problems devoted to them that force the reader to combine and use concepts learned in the preceeding chapter, rather than overly simple true/false questions. On the other hand, the homework problems the book offers for each section are fairly worded and interesting to solve. There is an answer section, of course, for the odd numbered exercises. Also, there are several "Application" sections that demonstrate how linear algebra is used in real-life scenarios that provide a relevance to this study, just so the casual student doesn't wind up wondering "Where am I ever going to use this?" The book is just okay, but it needs a really good professor to go along with it and elaborate on the concepts Leon either understates or fails to present clearly. On a side note, my book is only two years old (I bought it like new) and the binding is already falling apart.
Rating: 
Summary: Good Book for the Most Part
Review: Overall, I thought was well laid out. I would probably like to see more practical application of linear algebra to real world problems.
Rating:
Summary: Good Book for the Most Part
Review: Overall, I thought was well laid out. I would probably like to see more practical application of linear algebra to real world problems.
Rating: 
Summary: A Total and Complete Disappointment
Review: The preface clearly states that this book can be used by beginning students "with little trouble reading and understanding the material". This is both patent nonsense and a clear indication that the author long ago forgot that the beginning student is indeed just a beginner. From this particular beginner's viewpoint, the one star rating is one star too many. I'm a junior majoring in math and computer science with above average grades and only mention it as a prelude to my opinion that, at the sophomore undergraduate level, which this text purports to accomodate, the material, as presented, borders on incomprehensible. Time after time I read, re-read and re-re-read sections of text and was unable to glean the slightest bit of information from the extremely advanced presentations by the author. Explanations are often incomplete from the "beginner's" viewpoint and are made with the use of a very complex notation. After these laborious exercises, and with the help of my instructor's lectures, I would finally come to understand the material and wonder why it needed to be presented in such a ridiculously complicated manner. The very last straw was when I reviewed the text for exams and found errors. Mr. Leon seems to have the ability to take a difficult yet manageable subject and make it read like a foreign language. I discussed this with several members of my class who also admitted to being totally befuddled by way the material was presented. Even my instructor at one point claimed to have a difficult time with certain sections and had to write a different version so that it could be understood. I'm sure that this book must have some redeeming value for more advanced mathematical study, but it is definitely not what it is represented to be; a text to accomodate a beginners' class in Linear Algebra. I'm happy to say I did well in the course, but it was in spite of this textbook and certainly not because of it. Also, not nearly as important, but perhaps pertinent to those thinking of investing $69, the book literally fell apart after 4 months of reasonably careful use. It is poorly constructed of cheap materials and even the ink smears when you touch it. What a disappointment!
Rating:
Summary: perfect background for any linear alg. courses
Review: this provides a rather solid background for those in higher mathematics. id say it is suited for the advanced student due to the simplistic nature of explanations.
| 
