Limits: A Transition to Calculus (Two volumes: textbook, and teacher's guide and solution key)

This is the first (1966) edition of a pre-calculus textbook that was so popular it was revised twice into two more editions and stayed in use at least into the 1990s. More than that, our copy comes with the separate teacher’s guide as well as the standard student’s book, so the buyer will have the solutions to the many exercises the student book assigns. The introduction to the teacher’s guide makes the point that "Limits: A Transition to Calculus" is not intended to be everything a student needs for a pre-calculus course but instead covers particular concepts. It is designed as an approximately six-week course for students already prepared by three years of high school mathematics classes. A brief review in the journal "Mathematics Magazine" when the book was published said it is, "A leisurely treatment of limits and sequences with attractive illustrations which terminate with a chapter on infinite series. Applications include rate of change, area, volume and work problems." The author, O. Lexton Buchanon, Jr., said his intent was to fully prepare students for the limit concept when they take calculus in college or as an advanced placement high school course without making them feel they had already covered the material. Both of these volumes are softcovers and show some wear, but are well preserved for books issued in 1966. The textbook itself is worn at the spine along the joints, but those joints are still quite solid, and the binding is tight and straight, without any loose pages or cracks. Binding tape runs along the inside seam of both the front and back covers, but it appears to be original and not a repair. The pages show some age tanning, especially along the edges, but there are no creases, tears, or marks. Some shelf wear is evident to the corners and edges of the covers and some rubbing shows up on the back cover, especially along the fore edge, but none of it is excessive. The teacher’s guide was obviously not originally bound or printed with as much care, and its current condition reflects that, yet it is still in very good shape considering its age. It is stapled together at the spine, with one of the two staples rusting slightly in the interior but not staining the pages. The paper quality of this volume is not as good quality as that of textbook and exhibits more tanning, inside and out, as a result. No marks, loose pages, or tears. There is some wear along the front cover, especially the bottom right, and along the spine and close to the spine at the back. In these spots, the color of the paper is chipped off, yet the paper itself is intact and not torn. Photos are forthcoming or available upon request.…