I found the textbook was actually quite good too when I took 1B03/1BA3, for reasons all stated above, so I won't bother repeating all of that.

Just because the book isn't popular on Amazon doesn't mean it isn't a good one. You should probably reserve your judgment on things until you've experienced them for yourself - and not just in the context of textbooks or school.

I just took both of these courses and I recommend the book as well. Several reasons: A good chunk of the CAPA questions are directly from the Knight book (but then again, you might find the problems in other textbooks too since 1st year physics is pretty standard in terms of content). Also, 90% of the iclicker questions Hughes tested on were directly from "Stop to think" questions from the textbook. But other than the fact that Hughes follows the book directly and might take a questions directly from the textbook, you'll do just as well with another textbook given you put enough time into the courses and you understand the material (critical).