Math GRE: Calculus Textbooks - is Spivak + Stewart + Rudin sufficient?

Question

Recently, I splurged and spent $1000 in math textbooks in preparation for the Mathematics GRE subject test. So far, in terms of calculus books, I have purchased Spivak, Stewart, and Baby Rudin. Is this sufficient preparation for the Math GRE or do I need to get my hands on Apostol? FYI: I am extremely familiar with the univariate calculus and real analysis material. Multivariate, not so much.

Answer 1

Hey there,

50% of the exam is calculus and you managed to find the 3 most complete calculus texts. I personally have found that the exam is mostly computational (so do every problem in Stewart!). However, the exam also tests the basic assumptions underlying the major theorems in calculus, which is where Rudin comes in handy. I don't think you need Apostol (but I have a pdf copy if you're interested). I would tend to do extra practice with Simmon's text, which has some more abstract and difficult problems than the ones in Stewart, but are still largely computational.

Hope this helps!