Math Without Numbers

'Meet Milo Beckman, the whizz-kid making maths supercool. . . A brilliant book that takes everything we know (and fear) about maths out of the equation - starting with numbers' The Times

'A cheerful, chatty, and charming trip through the world of mathematics. . . Everyone should read this delightful book' Ian Stewart, author of Do Dice Play God?

The only numbers in this book are the page numbers.

The three main branches of abstract math - topology, analysis, and algebra - turn out to be surprisingly easy to grasp. Or at least, they are when our guide is a math prodigy. With forthright wit and warm charm, Milo Beckman upends the conventional approach to mathematics, inviting us to think creatively about shape and dimension, the infinite and the infinitesimal, symmetries, proofs, and all how all these concepts fit together. Why is there a million dollar prize for counting shapes? Is anything bigger than infinity? And how is the 'truth' of mathematics actually decided?

A vivid and wholly original guide to the math that makes the world tick and the planets revolve, Math Without Numbers makes human and understandable the elevated and hypothetical, allowing us to clearly see abstract math for what it is: bizarre, beautiful, and head-scratchingly wonderful.

Genius: an entire book about mathematics in which the only digits are the page numbers. . . fresh, delightful and extremely accessible. I would love to give this book marks out of ten but then that would go against the spirit of the title -- Alex Bellos ? Guardian

Beckman's book is not only fascinating and enthralling but also one I actually kept my eyes open long enough to finish (in part because - and this is a massively underrated virtue in popular science books - it is short) -- Tom Whipple ? The Times

This guide to the maths we didn't get taught at school is full of fascinating revelations -- Manjit Kumar ? The Times

A cheerful, chatty, and charming trip through the world of mathematics and its relation to the world of people - and not a number in sight! Everyone should read this delightful book. Even mathematicians -- Ian Stewart, author of Do Dice Play God?

So delightful! Mathematics is playful, surprising, and enchanting, but those qualities are often obscured behind intimidating equations and formalism. Milo Beckman brings them out into the open for everyone to share. -- Sean Carroll, author of Something Deeply Hidden

With charm, unwavering enthusiasm, and a lot of cartoons, Math Without Numbers waltzes the reader through a garden of higher mathematics -- Jordan Ellenberg, author of How Not To Be Wrong

Math Without Numbers explores deep mathematical topics -- and shows how mathematicians think-in completely readable prose. The puzzles and games are bonuses. Very enjoyable -- Will Shortz, crossword editor ? The New York Times

A playful paean to the pleasures of studying higher math ... readers with an abundance of curiosity and the time to puzzle over Beckman's many examples, riddles, and questions, will make many fascinating discoveries ? Publishers Weekly

The book's accessible language and illustrations makes understanding some of the most complex (and possibly most intimidating) math concepts feel as effortless as breathing. Beckman's approachable writing and Erazo's delightful illustration combine to tell an insightful and entertaining story about math -- Giorgia Lupi and Stefanie Posavec, co-authors of Dear Data

This is the book for you if you've ever been curious about the wonderful ideas and concepts underlying modern math, but been too frightened to make a start. Milo Beckman gives us a friendly introduction to unfamiliar concepts and ideas that show why modern math is such a fascinating and rewarding branch of human thought -- Graham Farmelo, author of The Universe Speaks in Numbers

Milo Beckman is a maths prodigy from New York. His diverse projects and independent research have been featured in the The New York Times, FiveThirtyEight, the Huffington Post, Business Insider, the Economist, and others. He worked for three tech companies, two banks, and a US Senator before retiring at age nineteen to teach math in New York, China, and Brazil, and to write.