This is a very unusual book. It is concise and well written on the one hand, with bewildering content on the other. If one steps back far enough, the book could be described as a tutorial on writing programs for modeling and simulation. And that would be a fair description. However, the chapters on programming cover both Python and MATLAB, which is a bit confusing, and the chapters on programming are interleaved with chapters on modeling and simulation.

For example, chapter 1 goes briefly over the modeling process. Chapter 2 introduces programming environments with material on both Python and MATLAB. Chapter 3 introduces linear models. Chapters 4 and 5 return to Python and MATLAB with matrix manipulation and plotting. The more conceptual chapter 6 addresses problem solving, while chapters 7 and 8 return to programming with control structures. And so on--there are 14 chapters.

The interleaving of chapters on modeling and simulation with programming chapters on Python and MATLAB can be a little confusing. So, it is not the best choice for a beginner. At the same time, it is not advanced enough for more experienced readers.

This is not to say that the book is without merit. However, it is best suited for a programming class on modeling and simulation, where the structure of the book guides the structure of the class and a very knowledgeable instructor fills in a lot of missing background.

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