Dynamics of Galaxies

Rating:
Summary: An excellent review of galactic structure and dynamics
Review: It is a difficult but inspiring book written by one of the leading world experts who, in spite of the relatively young age, has obtained an impressive record of new results in the field of galaxy dynamics. If compared to the standard reference in the field (Galactic Dynamics by Binney and Tremaine), the book stands out for conciseness, clarity and homogeneity of treatment. Bertin, in fact, puts emphasis on physics rather than phenomenology and succeeds in compressing the huge field of galaxy dynamics in a relatively short book structured in few chapters. Each chapter is focused on a different physical mechanisms which is then used to gain deeper and deeper insights into the structure of the stellar systems.The book is up to date and provides the reader with an exhaustive list of references. An excellent book to be recommended to graduate students as well as to researchers active in the field