Mathematics for Those Who Fear Mathematics: Yet Another Book with Silly Drawings

Mathematics is said to be a universal language. But what if we take this idea literally? What if mathematics is a language in the same way that Spanish, Arabic, or Dothraki are languages: a means by which a group of people expresses their thoughts? And why, if languages unite, does mathematics make many of us feel almost like outcasts? In his new book, Ben Orlin explains how mathematics works, offering a fresh perspective on the subject. He searches for and finds in mathematical language nouns (numbers), verbs (mathematical actions), grammar (algebra), amusing idioms (“squaring”), and as a result, this language becomes accessible even to those who thought they could never master it.