Beginners Textbooks in physics Hello I am fifteen and I already know everything that my school has been teaching me so I have been going ahead.  I have already been studying mathematics far past where I am at school, but I am very interested in physics.  I want to learn everything up to advanced topics such as super-string theory.  But to get there, I obviously have to start at the beginning.  Any good textbooks out there for somebody like me?  Preferably something with a lot of practice problems and that has many applications.   
 A: You can read the utterly fantastic Feynman Lectures on Physics which is free for online viewing at the link provided. I would also recommend Feynman's Tips on Physics: Reflections, Advice, Insights, Practice - A Problem-Solving Supplement to the Feynman Lectures on Physics. My University uses Giancoli as well as the textbook for introductory physics, but I find regular introductory textbooks to be unreadable, endless, and unpalatable.
I would also recommend reading up on the history of Physics and some fun books that are meant for people your age. I would recommend:
Mr. Tompkins in Paperback by George Gamow, a Nobel Prize winner
$E=mc^2$: A Biography of the World's Most Famous Equation
From X-rays to Quarks: Modern Physicists and Their Discoveries  by Emilio Segre, another Nobel Prize winner
and,
Big Bang: The Origin of the Universe by Simon Singh which is an excellent historical development of what the Big Bang theory is and how it came to be.
A: I don't know how much you are adept at mathematics but before you begin physics, you ought to study calculus from Thomas' Calculus & Differential & Integral Calculus by Richard Courant.
Now, first of all, you'll come across Newtonian Mechanics. For this, I would recommend A.P.French's Newtonian Mechanics. Unlike Lectures of Feynman(though they are really good and one of their kind), here every concept is explained using necessary words; no beating about bush and of course its pictures are really intuitive. This book is designed to be a self-contained introduction to Newtonian Mechanics. Students with little or no grounding in the subject can be brought gradually to a level of considerable proficiency. 
Another book, I would recommend is the Berkeley Physics course- Mechanics. This is one of the best beginner's book for Newtonian Mechanics.  
And I would advise you that first study mathematics- binomial & multinomial theorem, function, real & complex numbers, transformation geometry & of course, calculus. When you are done, you are ready for your physics - adventure. First, be proficient in theory and then think about numericals. Best of luck!  
A: The textbook my school uses for my AP Physics 2 course is the fifth revised edition Giancoli textbook. Like you, I am reading ahead and trying to absorb as much information as possible. I am sure many high school physics books are a great starting place to go further in studying physics at your level, but do not forget there are many resources online too. Just pick up a used textbook for cheap and get reading. Good luck brotha.
