In this video I run through five textbooks that genuinely made a difference for me when studying physics and astrophysics at university. The idea isn’t “buy loads of books and feel productive” — it’s picking a small set that covers the core maths, builds physical intuition, and then takes you into the topics you’ll meet in a typical degree. If you’re currently studying (or thinking about studying) physics, these are the ones I think help you get ahead of the game because they’re the books I kept returning to when problem sheets got tough. I start with the maths backbone: Mathematical Methods for Physics and Engineering, which is basically a one-stop shop for the techniques you keep needing across the whole degree. Then I talk about Principles of Physics as a broad, reliable reference for the fundamentals. For quantum, I include Volume III of the Feynman Lectures — not because it’s the easiest, but because it’s brilliant for developing intuition and seeing why the ideas matter. I also recommend Concepts in Thermal Physics for a clear treatment of thermal/STATPHYS, and I finish with An Introduction to Modern Astrophysics as the big, comprehensive astrophysics text that’s incredibly useful as you specialise.