by Steve Bryson (in association with Amazon.com)
In the last several years there has been quite a deluge of books on relativity, both the Special and General theory, aimed at all levels of readership. For this book list, I am only listing those books that can be read (perhaps with work) by anyone in the class, and that approach it from a reasonably standard physical standpoint. Within special relativity, I am further distinguishing two categories, the classical (common sense) and modern (spacetime geometry) approaches. In the course, I am taking the modern approach, but some people prefer the classical approach, as it is founded on learning Relativity by thinking hard about common things. I think of the classical approach as harder, but some of my friends think that I just make common things harder than they have to be. In reality, of course, the two approaches are the same, just taking slightly different starting viewpoints.
I only mention books that I have recently held in my hands. Those that are omitted are not necessarily unrecommended, they simply weren't at Cody's bookstore the day that I was there. Those books that I know thoroughly are in bold type, and those in plain type I only looked at in the bookstore (Cody's in Berkeley).
Good bookstores to try:
SF: Clean Well Lighted Place for Books, opera plaza
Border's (of course!)
Stacy's on market
East Bay: Cody's in Berkeley
ASUC bookstore on UC Berkeley campus
South Bay: Stacy's in Palo Alto
Of course there's always Amazon.com
Modern Approaches
Relativity Visualized by Lewis Carroll Epstein, Insight press, 1985 $23.95
A delightful book full of pictures. The only book that takes the spacetime view yet never loses view of everyday things. Although it borders on being a little avant-garde (i.e. weird), it presents a nice balanced view and stays light. I highly recommend it. Easy to find.
Click here to buy Relativity Visualized from Amazon.com for 20% off.
Inside Relativity by Delo E. Mook and Thomas Vargish, Princeton University Press, 1987 $17.95 paperback
A very nice looking introduction via spacetime diagrams. Includes a derivation of the Lorentz transformation.
Click here to buy Inside Relativity from Amazon.com for 20% off.
Understanding Relativity - A Simplified Approach to Einstein's Theories by Leo Sartori, University of California Press, 1996, $22.50 paper
A slightly technical introduction, requiring no more than algebra. Very complete with a nice discussion of the paradoxes.
Click here to buy Understanding Relativity from Amazon.com.
A Traveler's Guide to Spacetime by Thomas A. Moore, McGraw-Hill, 1995 $26.90
A book written solidly from the spacetime viewpoint, using (as far as I could tell from examing it in the book store) nothing more than high school algebra. Recommended if you want to take a somewhat simple mathematical approach to relativity.
Click here to buy A Traveler's Guide to Spacetime from Amazon.com for 20% off.
Spacetime Physics (2nd Ed.) by Edwin Taylor and John A. Wheeler, W.H. Freeman and Co., 1963 $32.95
The technical introduction to the modern spacetime view of Special Relativity. It is an introductory text for physics students, but the text is so clear and concise I feel that anyone would find reading it (and ignoring the equations) worth the price. My inspiration for how I look at the subject. Recommended for those with either technical backgrounds or willingness to read a section ten times in order to understand it. Easy to find in college bookstores.
Click here to buy Spacetime Physics from Amazon.com.
Discovering Relativity for Yourself by Sam Lilley, Cambridge University Press, 1981 (out of print)
A purely modern approach book that was developed from a non-technical college course taught by Lilley for many years. It seems to be 415 pages of hard and heavy reading (I have not read it), but it is clearly a very thorough treatment. If you are willing to work very hard on a book, this is the perfect introduction to the spacetime approach to special relativity, no matter what your background. Lilley does not, however, make the subject fun. Somewhat easy to find.
Time and the Space Traveler by L. Marder, University of Pennsylvania Press, 1971 (out of print)
A slightly non-standard book that approaches Special Relativity by looking at the so called 'Twins Paradox'. Marder presents all the various versions of this paradox and shows how they are all misunderstandings of the theory. Done with a light tone, one learns a lot of relativity by looking at other peoples' mistakes. I like it as it spends time on where your understanding might go wrong. It gets rather technical sometimes, but the text sections are clear and somewhat independent of the mathematics. Recommended for those who have some technical background. Hard to find.
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Classical Approaches
Relativity: The Special and General Theory by Albert Einstein, Crown 1952 7.00 (common in used bookstores)
Hear it from the man himself! Still the clearest and most concise common sense introduction to the subject. A little dry, it does require concentration but is well worth the effort. Requires ability to work with high school algebra. Highly recommended, and easy to find.
Click here to buy Relativity: The Special and General Theory from Amazon.com for 20% off.
Relativity Simply Explained (formally The Relativity Explosion and Relativity for the Millions) by Martin Gardner, Dover 1997 $11.95
An old classic that never attracted me, though I know many people who read it and got a lot out of it. Repackaged as a new-age book (all the way down to the meditative woman's profile on the cover), this is squarely in the old-view common sense tradition. I do, however, recommend this as I like Gardner's writing in general, and the book has a solid reputation. Easy to find, look in used bookstores for the old version.
Click here to buy Relativity Simply Explained from Amazon.com for 20% off.
The Universe and Dr. Einstein by Lincoln Barnett (out of print)
Another classic, I read this book when I was a freshman in high school (it was the start of my interest in the subject), but I do not remember it well enough to put in bold print. I do remember that I got a lot out of it so I highly recommend it. Fairly easy to find used.
The ABC of Relativity by Bertrand Russell, (out of print)
Still another classic, I read this just after the Barnett book. I remember that it was not as much fun as the Barnett book but gave a somewhat deeper understanding of the theory. Again, highly recommended. Easy to find.
I view the above three books as more or less equivalent with their order indicating how accessible I feel they are.
Again, this does not pretend to be an exhaustive list. There are many good books not listed here.
A Book to stay away from:
The Meaning of Relativity by Albert Einstein. Though found in many a bookstore in the popular science section, This is a highly technical book! It is a series of lectures that Einstein gave to Professors at Princeton's Institute for Advanced Study. Why I see it so often in popular science sections I do not know.