I was so glad to find that this book is still in print. It was wonderful and challenging and great fun to figure out some of the problems, learn a different way of looking at things, stretching your imagination... It taught me that things aren't always the way they appear to be. It taught me to think for myself and I used it over and over again, exercising the mind muscle. I lost mine from 25 years ago, and its one of the books that has stood out from my childhood. Now I'm thrilled to find I can still get a copy for my son and a few copies as unique gifts. Its not like any other childrens book I've seen.

Perplexing Puzzles and Tantalizing Teasers will definitely test your wits and best of all, it'll test your common sense. You'll realize common sense is not so common after all! The book is also full of word games, visual games, conundrums, jokes, palindromes, and some real stumpers. I was given my first copy 18 years ago, and I've been hooked ever since. The illustrations are great; and if you can't figure something out, the answer is always in the back.

There is nothing like a good paradox to sharpen the wits. Properly presented, they can frustrate you to the point of grinding off the sharp points of your teeth. The title selection from this collection of Martin Gardners' Mathematical Recreations columns from Scientific American is one of the better paradoxes that you will find. The solution is surprisingly easy, once the proper approach is taken.
The other entries are also vintage Gardner, who has no equal in the accurate rendition of mathematical curiosa. Other topics include gambling fallacies, a church of the fourth dimension, games and systems that learn by experience. There are also thirty-seven catch questions in a final chapter that are definitely groaners. Upon initial reading, the answer appears easy. However, the careful and precise wording of the problem often leads to an unusual but correct solution.
If you have a curiosity driven desire to learn mathematics, then Martin Gardner is an excellent place to begin or continue your exploration. Even though the articles collected here were written in the early sixties, the topics are timeless and will continue to intrigue new generations of the mathematically inclined.

I read this book in the early '70s, and it remains one of my favorites. You don't need to know much math to enjoy this collection of curiosities that are mostly math- or logic-related. The text is a combination of puzzles, instructive prose, and stories. The book is easy-to-read and informative, with many references for additional reading.

Mr. Gardner writes about: a drill bit for drilling square holes; different types of spiral curves; social behavior of the inhabitants of two-dimensional worlds; bar tricks; geometric dissections of polygons; peg solitaire games; the transcendental number "e"; cartoons that are read both right side up and upside down; game-playing machines; and more.

The following review was printed in Doubting Thomas #1 (reprinted here with permission):

I am a fan of Gardner's work, especially his 1952 Fads & Fallacies in the Name of Science which helped jump start the skeptical movement. Gardner's wit is always refreshing and the curious reader is never disappointed.

So, it was a great pleasure to see this book being offered again after its initial publication in the mid-80s, not long after the remains of Titanic were found by Dr. Robert Ballard....

I would recommend this book in two ways: to read a good critique on precognition on this specific case, and as a selection of century-old literature that cannot be found in many places.

Martin Gardner, acclaimed rationalist, debunks those who would call Robinson psychic. Some of the "amazing coincidences" regarding "The Wreck of the Titan" may in fact be explained by the White Star Line's own news releases! Gardner includes the Robinson story, plus lots of other related Titanic material. Great book.

This book is another pillar holding up the banner that proclaims the author to be 'the most ubiquitous man in the most ubiquitous of fields." He seems to have no mathematical weaknesses, attacking and explaining every topic with charm, wit, grace and thoroughness. It there is such a thing as mathematical savoir-faire, Martin Gardner possesses it.
In this work, Dr. Gardner explains fractal music, the Bell numbers and their uses, Egyptian fractions, packing circles and squares, mathematical chess problems, imaginary numbers, and tangent circles. He also discusses the career of Charles Saunders Pierce and the book Godel, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid, by Douglas Hofstadter. Negative comments on minimal sculpture and psychic research methods are also included.
Informative as well as entertaining, the works of this author should be part of every liberal education.

Published in Journal of Recreational Mathematics, reprinted with permission.

It is most certainly not an exaggeration to say that more people have learned more mathematics at the literary knee of Martin Gardner than from anyone else. His columns in Scientific American and subsequent collections in book form have been an inspirational and educational experience for millions. When he "retired" from writing the column, he was succeeded, not replaced.
Since his departure from the duties of writing regularly for Scientific American, he has kept busy writing occasional articles for many different publications. He also stays active in following advances in mathematics and how it is taught in the American society. This book is a collection of many of the mathematical articles as well as some of his comments regarding how mathematics is currently taught.
While reading the book, I was once again placed in awe of his ability to state the mathematical experience in clear terms. One point follows from another with little or no extraneous fluff. There are many writers of technical books who adopt the style of adding in cutesy dialog that supposedly makes it easier to understand. In keeping with his personality, Gardner simply explains it and is done. It is very refreshing to read material in this form.
The topics are generally recreational in nature, although some, particularly those about artificial intelligence (AI) are philosophical. He dismisses the success of the chess playing computers as an insignificant special case. This is true, but he misses what should be the real point of Deep Blue defeating Gary Kasparov. The fact that it took such a computational monstrosity that does only one thing and years of programming to defeat Kasparov shows us how efficient the human brain is and how difficult it is to mimic human intelligence.
The remaining topics, such as magic squares, tiling, dissections and word play all sum up recent advances in the field. My favorite essay is one that details how to program magic tricks on a computer. The strategies used are very simple and show how easy it is to perform tricks that seem impossible.
I thoroughly enjoyed the book and consider it a necessary read for anyone interested in recreational mathematics. An entire generation has arisen since Gardner ceased his regular writings and I encourage all math teachers to examine his essays for material to use in their classrooms. They are the best explanations of mathematics you can find and it has already been proven that they light a fire of enthusiasm for mathematics.

'Great Essays in Science' is a fantastic collection of great works of writing by some of the greatest thinkers of our time. This book is a definitely read not only for anyone who considers themselves to be any kind of scientist, but for anyone who has ever heard of people such as Darwin and Einstein. These are works by the men we all know, but here is a chance to hear their own thoughts on their science and it's implications. From discussing the amorality of nature to dream interpretation to talking about the implications of science for religion and vice versa this book covers all area of our lives and culture. This book should be considered required reading for anyone who considers themselves and informed member of our society!

This book contains many mathematical, and numeralogical puzzles and analyses. The author details all of his meetings and interveiws with Dr. Matrix. Dr. Matrix was a numerologist from the 50's to 1980, he was also a scam-artist involving mathematical scams.

This book has excerpted material also found in Gardner's mammoth "Encyclopedia of Impromptu Magic," and the material, as the title suggests, is limited to items performable in an after-dinner setting. This is the sort of magic, when one produces seemingly off-the-cuff miracles, that helped great magicians, such as Alexander Herrmann, Max Malini, Nate Leipzig and Dai Vernon become legends. For if you can do magic any time, anywhere, with anything, then the magic is not in the props, but in YOU!

The most recent person to take advantage of the power of seemingly casual magic is, of course, David Blaine. He has created the illusion that magic happens wherever he goes. And David Blaine is the magician foremost in the public's mind.

Do not be put off by the apparent simplicity of these magic tricks. Done well, at the right moment, they are reputation-makers. Gardner has a knack for finding excellent yet simple material. This simplicity is usually only achieved by rank beginners and hardened professionals. In this book, it can be yours.

Just one thing: show the author the respect he deserves, and rehearse these well and perform them excellently.

The late Paul Erdos was widely known as a disseminator of mathematics, and yet his impact on the progress of mathematics may not match that of Martin Gardner. For twenty-five years, he wrote a regular column on "Mathematical Games" for Scientific American and other articles have appeared in many other venues since his "retirement" from SA in 1982. Personally, it is a very rare occasion when I encounter an American mathematician who was not strongly influenced by reading something by Gardner. Many, like myself, read it religiously, considering it the high point of each issue. It is hard to underestimate the number of people who were steered towards a career in mathematics by Gardner or had their interest increased by reading one or more of his papers.
In 1993, the first gathering for Gardner (G4G1) was held in Atlanta, where he was honored for all of his work in making mathematics interesting and entertaining. As befits a gathering of this type, many people wrote papers in the areas of magic, puzzles and mathematics to be presented at the conference. Those papers, plus a few that didn't make it into the official list, have been gathered together to make this book.
The papers are split into three categories: Personal Magic, Puzzlers and Mathemagics. While none were authored by the master, they all clearly bear his stylistic signature. The presentation is clear, entertaining and all reach the point quickly and effectively. I was so intrigued by them that it was the only thing that I read once I obtained a copy, to the detriment of the quality of a lecture on the programming language Java.
This is the highest tribute that any professional writer can achieve, when others are motivated to write material similar to yours to be collected and presented at a conference in your honor. Gardner deserves that and more and every paper in this collection is comparable to his work in quality.

Published in Journal of Recreational Mathematics, reprinted with permission.

On first thought, one would expect a circus that lacks clowns and elephants to be dull, dull, dull, but in this case that thought is wrong, wrong, wrong. The difference is of course in the quality of the ringmaster. From the first sound of "step right up folks," to when the lights fade out in the bigtop, one is led from one exciting ring to another. For the author does what all accomplished circus acts do, he makes the difficult seem easy.
This material, like that of many of his books, originally appeared in the "Mathematical Games" column of Scientific American. Some of the puzzles explored here are optical illusions, eccentric chess, patterns of induction, dominoes, and matches. Along the way he also discusses artificial intelligence, the solar system, and the abacus. And all are of course in his simplistic, yet complete style that has made him a favorite for nearly forty years.
If you are a fan of Martin Gardner, you have probably already read this book. If you are unfamiliar with his work, then change that state at the first opportunity. You will be glad you did.

Published in Journal of Recreational Mathematics, reprinted with permission.