Ordinary differential equations /

The book is meant for an introductory course for second-year undergraduates whose interest in the theory of differential equations is greater than that of the group of students normally taking the class. The number of exercises in the nine-chapter volume is fewer than in the most widely used competing textbooks, but Adkins and Davidson (both, Louisiana State Univ.) explain the theory in more detail, and they discuss both the geometric and algebraic meaning of theorems. The topical coverage is similar to that of other textbooks meant for this course, but the order of the topics is different: Laplace transforms are discussed in the second chapter, right after first-degree differential equations. The volume includes two optional subjects, power series and matrices, in separate chapters. Summing Up: Recommended. Lower-division undergraduates. M. Bona University of Florida