$The Boy Who Loved Math by Deborah Heiligman$

A Kirkus Reviews Best Book of 2013 A New York Times Book Review Notable Children's Book of 2013 With a simple, lyrical text and richly layered illustrations, this is a beautiful introduction to the world of math and a fascinating look at the unique character traits that made a noted mathematicianN'Uncle Paul'Na great man. With a simple,lyrical text and richly layered illustrations, this is a beautiful introduction to the world of math and a fascinating look at the unique character traits that made 'Uncle Paul' a great man. Instead, he traveled around the world, from one mathematician to the next, collaborating on an astonishing number of publications. But he didn't learn to butter his own bread until he turned twenty. At the age of four, he could ask you when you were born and then calculate the number of seconds you had been alive in his head. But Paul Erdos never followed the usual path. Most people think of mathematicians as solitary, working away in isolation. 'About this title' may belong to another edition of this title.īook Description Hardcover.

This excellent picture-book biography celebrates a man little known outside his field, but one well worth knowing. Heiligman appends a lengthy note about writing the book, while Pham offers a more extensive note on creating the illustrations, in which she comments on the mathematical ideas and mathematicians depicted in the art. The wonderfully vivid artwork, where ideas from the text are clarified, also uses decorative elements to support the idea that Erdos saw the world differently-numerically. Math is woven into the lively writing (Mama loved Paul to infinity. Unable to do common tasks such as cooking, laundry, or driving, he spent his adult life flying around the world, staying with other mathematicians, and working collaboratively on challenging math problems. He was fascinated by numbers from an early age, and by the time he was 20, he was known as The Magician from Budapest. Growing up in Hungary during WWI, Erdos tried school but chafed at the rules and convinced his mother that he should study at home. *Starred Review* Though eccentric mathematician Paul Erdos might seem an unusual subject for a picture book, his story makes for a memorable biography.