Fantasia Mathematica by Clifton Fadiman (PDF)

Description

Clifton Fadiman’s classic collection of mathematical stories, essays and anecdotes is now once again available. Ranging from the poignant to the comical via the simply surreal, these selections include writing by Aldous Huxley, Martin Gardner, H.G. Wells, George Gamow, G.H. Hardy, Robert Heinlein, Arthur C. Clarke, and many others. Humorous, mysterious, and always entertaining, this collection is sure to bring a smile to the faces of mathematicians and non-mathematicians alike.

User’s Reviews

Editorial Reviews: From Scientific American …this anthology of mathematically oriented short stories and poems should delight a new generation of readers. Review Math can be a more rewarding source of fun and laughter than I thought possible. — New Scientist About the Author Clifton Fadiman’s prolific career as an essayist, critic, anthologist, and radio show host has spanned the last five decades. His books include The Lifetime Reading Plan and a collection of essays, Party of One. He served for many years on the board of editors of the Book-of-the-Month Club. Read more

Reviews from Amazon users which were colected at the time this book was published on the website:

⭐Published in 1959, these short stories, excerpts, and poems are culled mostly from the first half of the 20th century – although swatches of Plato and earlier thinkers do appear. All the items in this collection play on some mathematical theme, or at least contain references to some personified numbers.Most of the stories seem to be quick transcriptions of the authors’ imaginative forays into science fiction. Many notable authors are represented here though, in their more playful, impromptu moments. However, a couple of the stories do show a careful literary hand. These latter well-written stories include Aldous Huxley’s classic heartbreak of a narrative titled “Young Archimedes” and Nigel Balchin’s perceptive account that includes insight into some of the subtle abuses seemingly “nice” people can inflict on each other.A number of the stories here introduce readers to the amazing properties of the Mobius strip, and to its four-dimension counterpart, the Klein bottle. It was from reading this book and from some of George Gamow’s writings that I first acquired my fascination with the Mobius strip back in the 1960’s.One of these Mobius stories further introduced me to the semi-fictional adventures of Alexander Botts. Stories centering on Botts, the intrepid tractor salesman, appeared in “The Saturday Evening Post” from the 1920’s to the 1970’s. This entry in the series, involving Botts’ ingenious use of the principle of the Mobius strip, is particularly hilarious – and inspired me to get complete books of the Botts’ series.I was glad to recently revisit this entertaining collection that had launched me along so many further interesting paths.

⭐This book is a delightful collection of short stories — each based on an aspect of mathematics. A friend of my father’s gave me my first copy back in the ’50s. I read it cover to cover. Thirty years later, my daughter read the same copy with similar enthusiasm. The book worked as a spring-board that allowed us to dive into discussions about math.Sadly, I have lost that copy. When I saw the title for sale at Amazon, I purchased my second copy.Note that my father, my daughter, and I are considered ‘math’ people [but not mathematicians]. We are musical. We enjoy Martin Gardner’s books and ‘recreational math’ — a term that is an oxymoron to many. I hesitate to classify this as a book for ‘young readers’ since I am enjoying the re-read, and am no longer young. But I do believe that, for the middle-schooler who both reads and is ‘good at math’, this book hits a sweet-spot.I look forward to sharing my new copy with two of my grandchildren — and diving in once more.

⭐Love this book. Quirky stories and poetry, all based on some aspect of math. Have given a copy away, and then had to replace it.

⭐I was a mere child when this book originally came out, and have worn out my first copy – delighted to see it back in print. Contrary to your write-up, I, a certified math-phobic, actually learned a fair amount of “math stuff” from it. Some of the stories are poignant, some are wildly funny, some are terrific satires, some are quite predictive of the future, and all but one are very worth reading. (That one, the first in my old copy, has so much critical information in Italian, with no translation, that it was a waste of time to read it.) I intend to reread my old friend, and pass it around to like-minded new ones.

⭐You don’t have to be mathematically inclined to enjoy this collection, but it helps. On the other hand, if you take your math too seriously, this book may go right under your head. This anthology was first assembled in 1958, with some stories dating back to the 1920s, so some of the accounts of how machines could be used in the future now make one want to say, “If only you knew”. Some of the best stories, however, are timeless. Section 2 (Imaginaries) is the best; my favorites are A Subway Named Moebius, And He Built a Crooked House, A Botts and the Moebius Strip, The Captured Cross-Section, and No-Sided Professor. A science-fiction writer friend once pooh-poohed this collection as amateurish sci-fi, but the rest of us will love it. It’s great to have it back in print.

⭐The stories presented stretch the imagination where the world building is mathematically consistent or reflecting mathematical concepts.

⭐I bought the Kindle edition to replace a well-read and worn-out old paperback copy. The stories are good to excellent. However, there seems to be a formatting problem with the Kindle conversion — the copyright notice for each story is arbitrarily inserted somewhere in the story text instead of appearing in with the title and author.

⭐I read this as a teenager some 50 years ago. Gave it as a gift. It’s wonderful. It’s a classic.

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