Without Words: Mathematical Puzzles to Confound and Delight

All real life mathematics is problem solving. And all those fascinated by puzzles are problem solvers at heart. But thinking mathematically is a skill we have to learn and one which it is easy to forget. Recreational mathematicians and students can practise problem solving in different ways. In this book solving puzzles is practised in a different way from most books they will have seen before: • Readers get no clues to what the puzzle is about • They may take hours or even days to work out what is being asked of them • Even after that, some problems may have no solution The result of this challenge is a really challenging book that will fascinate anyone interested in puzzles and recreational mathematicians in particular. This volume contains 36 puzzles ranging from quite easy to more difficult. The sister volume More Without Words: Mathematical Puzzles to Confound and Delight is also available – containing 36 more puzzles with more easy and fewer testing ones.

James Tanton is the MAA's roving mathematician and is a regular speaker across the USA.