Basic algebra

Every abstract concept is motivated by many computational, concrete examples and the solutions and hints to the exercises are a great help for those who want to use it for self-study. The discussions and explanations are all at the right level and pace and never get stale or bogged down in overly technical details. That's not to say there aren't any nice tricks and technical details but the author takes great care and presents the tricks and technicalities in concrete examples before making use of them in a general proof. Highly recommended.