I received a review copy of this from the publisher The Experiment ("Because every book is a test of new ideas") back in March. I'll answer the question no one is asking upfront...because I gave each of the 175+ problems the attention it deserved (the question that I answered was "Why did it take you two months to read it?") By that, I mean I solved most of them - some easily, some with a bit of knit brow, and some with a struggle - and skipped a few because I knew how involved the solution would be. Some of the solutions took stepping away to mentally regroup...thus two months...

I'm a fan of Martin Gardner (who Bellos gives a necessary, but genuine nod to) and his column/collections of Mathematical Games, logic puzzles, math puzzles, well, puzzles in general, and I'm grateful for the chance to dig into this delightful collection. I understand this has been previously published in the UK, and The Experiment is publishing it in the US for the first time. Bellos is a fun writer and his passion shows in this. The narratives are not always long, but he's put together the backgrounds and sources for all of the problems he's used. Aficionados will recognize Loyd, Dudeney, and true nuts will Nob Yoshigahara (I apparently number not among them, though I was aware of some of his works.) You might recognize the Zebra (logic) problem, the Counterfeit Coin, how many zeros at the end of 100!... I like to share puzzles after I've solved them, if explaining the solution isn't going to take up more of my time than I'm willing to offer, and I shared that Zebra puzzle once, years ago, only to have someone post the answers minutes later. Disappointing that I was expected to believe it was solved so quickly and that it spoiled it for others! Anyway...

Divided into five sections, with five sets of "Ten tasty teasers" preceding each, he grouped the puzzles by Logic, Geometry, Mathematics, Props, and Numbers. Within each, he's shared different types of the categories - the puzzles within each subcategory are arranged in rough chronological order, and not necessarily progressively (maddeningly in some cases!) more challenging, ... or so he says. See "maddeningly". Bellos says

This book is a curated collection of 125 brainteasers from the last two millennia, linked with stories about their origins and influence. I have chosen the puzzles that I found most fascinating, entertaining, and thought provoking. They are mathematical only in the widest possible sense: The solutions require logical thought, but they do not require advanced math. The problems come from ancient China, medieval Europe, Victorian England, and modern-day Japan, as well as other ages and places. Some are traditional riddles, others were devised by the top professional mathematicians of their day.

There is something here for everyone (even wordplay, in the second of his Ten tasty teasers). And many can be reworked ... recalling an answer doesn't guarantee one recalls the steps to get it.

Takeaway: Bellos mentioned Graham Farmelo's biography of Paul Dirac, The Strangest Man...adding to my short List.

Highly recommended. I plan to read Bellos' other math books soon. ( )

Puzzles of all sort have fascinated people for ages, they have varied from riddles, counting challenges, crosswords, logic puzzles and mathematical conundrums. Spending 20 minutes or so on a puzzle is not wasted time; it has been shown that they can in some instances improve cognitive ability. It is not fully conclusive, but the main draw for doing all sorts of puzzle is that they are fun. Some of our greatest minds including codebreakers and Nobel Prize winners have used puzzles to keep their minds sharp and as a distraction from normal life.

The popular maths guru, Alex Bellos has bought together all sort of different puzzles into one book. These 125 different puzzles have been grouped together into broad categories, like logic, geometry and of course the mathematical ones. Each puzzle has an introduction and a little history about it which makes for fascinating reading. Some of the puzzles that Bellos has found for us to stretch our grey matter are deceptively simple and there are some in here that are are fiendishly difficult!

Some of these puzzles date back millennia; Bellos has bought them right up to date with this collection. Most fascinating is the history and evolution of these puzzles. As brilliant minds solved one they then dreamt up even more complex ways to torment us. There is something for everyone in here, not just for fans of Sudoku, and the different levels of puzzles mean that you have some that intrigue, other that need a little more effort and some that may make your head hurt. It is an excellent book for encouraging mathematical exploration without out frightening some people.

Thank goodness though, the answers are in the back… ( )

Mi sono fatto regalare questo libro con un po' di timore, perché trovo che Bellos spesso si perda in digressioni che con la matematica hanno davvero poco a che fare. Per fortuna mi sono dovuto ricredere. Scrivere di problemi matematici è ormai diventato quasi mainstream, e non è facile uscirsene con qualcosa di nuovo; ma Bellos ha varie frecce al suo arco. Innanzitutto la ricerca per quanto possibile della fonte originale dei problemi; in genere essi si tramandano di bocca in bocca, e sono stato molto contento di sapere chi fu il primo a tirare fuori le idee che avevo sfruttato biecamente. Inoltre il suo stile di scrittura si attaglia bene a questo tipo di lavoro, e l'ordine di presentazione dei problemi è studiato per ottenere un flusso piacevole. Come lui stesso scrive, era inutile metterli in ordine di complessità, perché è una cosa troppo soggettiva; tanto vale allora trovare un filo conduttore. Alcune soluzioni sono spiegate direttamente nel testo, per dare un'idea di come ci si muove; le altre ci sono, ma alla fine del libro come da prassi; non preoccupatevi. Se vi piacciono i quizzini matematici, compratevelo senza esitazione. ( )