In 1963 Walter Feit and John G. Thompson published a proof of a 1911 conjecture by Burnside that every finite group of odd order is solvable. This proof, which ran for 255 pages, was a tour-de-force of mathematics and inspired intense effort to classify finite simple groups. This book presents a revision and expansion of the first half of the proof of the Feit–Thompson theorem. Simpler, more detailed proofs are provided for some intermediate theorems. Recent results are used to shorten other proofs. The book will make the first half of this remarkable proof accessible to readers familiar with just the rudiments of group theory.

‘This book is written well … the authors have succeeded both in simplifying the proof of the Odd Order Theorem and in making it accessible to a wider audience.’

Paul Flavell Source: Bulletin of the London Mathematical Society