Tag Archives: Non-Fiction

THE ART OF BASIC DRAWING – REVIEW

March 6, 2020 Nemo Leave a comment

Litercurious Book Review

Title	The Art of Basic Drawing
Author	William F. Powell, Michael Butkus, et. al.
Publisher	Walter Foster Publishing; Revised ed. edition (March 3, 2020)
Format	Paperback
Pages	128
Language:	English
ISBN# 10 /13	1633228320 / 978-1633228320

THE AUTHORS

William F. Powell and Michael Butkus, et. al. are the accomplished authors, artists, and writers of a plethora of publications. Together the authors have created a splendid tutorial for all those who want to increase their skills and abilities.

WHO IS THE TARGET AUDIENCE

The Art of Basic Drawing provides a guided tutorial, style self-help book based on Quarto’s Walter Foster imprint style. Although it is described as basic, there are techniques described within the pages that will appeal to those with an intermediate skill level. For this reason I believe most artists or aspiring artist will benefit from the valuable information in this print.

SYNOPSIS

This book is skillfully illustrated and resplendent with invaluable insights as well as tips, tricks, and techniques. The magnificent tutorials enclosed will guide you through methods to improve your skill-set and assist you in producing more satisfying results from your efforts.

This artists manifesto is attractively presented and most important easy to follow in step-by-step instructions. The presentation gives the viewer confidence to try out the techniques in the comfort of their own home or studio.

The structure of the book allows the reader to move from chapter to chapter or section to section with equal ease, whilst maintaining full comprehension. The phased sequence transports the beginner through the drawing methods: from getting started, to how to approach still life subjects, followed by animals, landscapes and people.

CONCLUSION

The Art of Basic Drawing made a considerable impression on me, and it reminded me of the depiction and style of more traditional artists of previous decades. It has the feel of a quality product written and published by those who possess genuine experience and love for the subject. For the price of a night out at the cinema you could have this manual that will give you a lifetime of pleasure. I heartily recommended this book for both beginners and intermediate artists.

WHO IS WALTER FOSTER

Walter Foster Publishing is one of the most recognized names in art instruction. The timeless drawing and painting techniques found in Walter Foster titles have assisted people around the world discover their creative talents. Walter Foster Publishing has developed a full library of titles for the modern artist: from traditional pencil sketching; to acrylic, oil, and watercolor painting; to mixed media, hand lettering, and DIY crafting.

SEE MORE BOOKS IN THIS STYLE HERE: Walter Foster Imprints

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I would like to thank the authors William F. Powell and Michael Butkus, Netgalley, and Walter Foster Publishing for affording the opportunity to review The Art of Basic Drawing.

Art & Design, book review, Non-Fiction

OIL And ACRYLIC FLOWERS – REVIEW

March 5, 2020 Nemo 2 Comments

Title	Oil & Acrylic: Flowers: Learn to paint step by step (How to Draw & Paint)
Author	Marcia Baldwin
Publisher	Walter Foster Publishing; Revised ed. edition (March 3, 2020)
Format	Paperback
Pages	40
Language:	English
ISBN# 10 /13	1633228487 / 978-1633228481

AUTHOR

Marcia Baldwin MFA., BFA., is a lettered professional fine artist in Florida. She hosts her own art studio where she practices her skills in oil painting. As well as oil painting she has worked as an advertising designer, an art teacher, an art consultant, and now as an author.

WHO IS THE TARGET AUDIENCE

Artists who have limited expertise and practical knowledge may find this work helpful. Those just wishing to learn the basics of oil and acrylic painting could benefit from some or all of the tricks, tips or techniques explained within.

SYNOPSIS

Baldwin has produced a useful introduction to oil and acrylic painting for those early in their painting adventure. The book is concise at only 40 pages and colorfully illustrated with botanical subjects. The layout and format is necessarily precise. Contents include the following:

Tools and Materials
Painting Techniques
Color Basics
Working from photos
Working from sketches
Creating Textures
Under painting
Taking artistic liberties
Creating texture and
Enhancing backgrounds

The book is easy to negotiate, and the tips easily aid the comprehensible tuition. Baldwin uses painting in the abstraction method to illustrate her manual. Painting the abstraction begins with the largest shapes of the subject moving to the smallest fine detail in stages.

CONCLUSION

In conclusion, this book is an attractive yet brief sojourn into oil and acrylic painting for new students of art. The color plates are enhanced by the brief but helpful dialogue and tips. The illustrations were colorful and vividly depicted, although cartoonish.

My only disappointment is the absence of any index or reference section made the book feel as though it ended prematurely. In its favor, it left me wanting more.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

My sincere thanks go to Marcia Baldwin, NetGalley, and, Walter Foster Publishing for affording me the opportunity to review Oil & Acrylic: Flowers: Learn to paint step by step (How to Draw & Paint).

Art & Design, book review, Non-Fiction

JUST DRAW BOTANICALS – REVIEW

March 4, 2020 Nemo Leave a comment

Litercurious Book Review

Title	Just Draw Botanicals
Author	Helen Birch
Publisher	White Lion Publishing (March 3, 2020)
Format	Flexibound
Page	208
Language	English
ISBN #10 /#13	0711251320 / 978-0711251328

AUTHOR

Helen Birch is the collator of this unique compendium of magnificent literary work of art. She lives in Manchester, United Kingdom. You can find her blog here and here. Her Pinterest page can be found here, and her Twitter is located here.

WHO IS THE TARGET AUDIENCE

This is suitable for any epicurean of exceptional artistic expertise.

SYNOPSIS

This work is far more than a coffee table book. It is of Gallery quality in its presentation and content. The publication consists of a corollary of disparate international artists, united in their ability to illustrate 90 plants and flowers to an extraordinary level.

The book has full-page spreads of incredibly detailed botanical subjects, from a broad range of subjects. The professional expertise shines through on page after page. This level of artistic skill requires many thousands of hours of practical and theoretical application; with each painting requiring days or weeks of work to complete.

Whilst this is not a training manual for aspiring artists, it would make for an invaluable tool for anyone wanting to attain a higher competency in their craft.

The artistic styles and objects vary throughout the literature, thereby presenting a diverse and interesting presentation across the book. The author includes descriptions of each piece and suggested methods should the reader wish to attempt a similar subject. The format of the display pages has illustrations on one page and the previously mentioned tips and information on the other.

The fulcrum of the work is the Gallery. Alongside the gallery is a student to professional resource where there is some guidance on how to get started in botanical painting. The author includes reference pages and bibliographies for further study.

CONCLUSION

This is a stunning treasure of skill and ability created by a collection of global painters. It would increase the beauty and visual value of any bookcase or home library. Just Draw Botanicals has elevated the standard of botanical drawing compositions exceedingly high, forsaking many others.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

My sincere thanks go to Helen Birch, NetGalley, and White Lion Publishing for affording me the opportunity to review Just Draw Botanicals.

Art & Design, book review, Non-Fiction

Life Drawing For Artists – REVIEW

March 2, 2020 Nemo Leave a comment

Litercurious Book Review

Title	Life Drawing for Artists: Understanding Figure Drawing Through Poses, Postures, and Lighting
Author	Chris Legaspi
Publisher	Rockport Publishers (December 24, 2019)
Format	Paperback, Kindle
Pages	176
Language:	English
ISBN-10/ISBN-13	1631598015 / 978-1631598012

AUTHOR

Christopher Legaspi has taught at some of the top art schools in America, including the Gnomon School of Visual Effects in Hollywood and the New Masters Academy.

His design and drawing classes are some of the most popular and exciting classes offered. Along with his classroom experience, he’s held workshops and lectured at the world-renowned Art Center College of Design, the Concept Design Academy, and LucasArts in Singapore.

If you would like to find out more, you can read all about the author on his own blog page by clicking here. You can find his portfolio here. He has a blog that you can visit here.

WHO IS THE TARGET AUDIENCE

Artists who are committed to improving their life study skills, and students who are still finding their favorite subjects to draw will find this book essential. In addition, any amateur artist who wants to see improvements in their work through study may benefit from the years of knowledge and experience contained within the 176 pages of this magnificent book.

SYONOPIS

In Life Drawing for Artists, Legaspi informs us of his technical approach to life drawing. As any professional artist will know, life drawing is best done with an actual artist’s model in good lighting. The costs of employing a live model can be prohibitive and this is where books like Legaspi’s come in to their own.

The author starts where all art creation begins, with the materials and tools. Chris goes on to discuss how important quick sketches are to capturing the moment. Quick sketching is a conventional method used in every place where art is taught. The brevity of producing drawings in limited time forces the artist to make hard decisions quickly. This method forces the artist to identify the lines, shapes and forms of the body often without allowing the pencil to leave the page for the greatest speed.

In later passages Legaspi refers to the various elements that make up the body arms, legs, head and torso. Most important for those learning life drawing is how to assess the proportions of the body correctly. Learning the anatomical proportions is central to the improvement in any artist’s work. He further explains poses and positions that are more esthetically pleasing to the eye. The perspective of the body and how to achieve the correct depiction I believe will remain a favorite of many readers.

The reader is left in no doubt that Chris Legaspi is a practiced and professional lecturer in art and design. His experience is palpable as you traverse the pages and are confronted with page after page of pure artists gold.

CONCLUSION

Life Drawing for Artists is in every way a university level course. The author takes the student on a journey similar to a class in academia. You get to choose how quickly you move forward. You have time to consider, assess, and control your own learning rate. The pages are replete with helpful and useful information from an expert with many years of experience in the industry.

In this text you will find many techniques to aid in improving your skills and take them to the next level. Among these techniques are: Increased knowledge of the human body and its structures, methods to develop exciting poses, a focus on drawing methods and how to enhance them, and how to use basic forms and shapes to aid in sketching methods.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

My sincere thanks go to Chris Legaspi, NetGalley, and Rockport Publishers, for affording me the opportunity to review Life Drawing for Artists: Understanding Figure Drawing Through Poses, Postures, and Lighting.

Art & Design, book review, Non-Fiction

The Urban Sketching Handbook

February 28, 2020 Nemo 1 Comment

Litercurious Book Review

Title	The Urban Sketching Handbook: 101 Sketching Tips
Author	Stephanie Bower
Publisher	Quarto Publishing Group (Nov. 3, 2019)
Format	Kindle, Flexibound
Pages	112
Language	English
ISBN-10/ISBN-13	1631597655 / 978-1631597657

AUTHOR

Stephenie Bower is the author of The Urban Sketching Handbook. If you would like to find out more, you can read all about the author on her own blog page by clicking here.

WHO IS THE TARGET AUDIENCE

Anyone with an interest in learning the fashionable new trend in artistic expression known as Urban Sketching will find this text an invaluable addition to their knowledge base. Whilst the work is intended for artists looking to engage in urban sketching and painting, other artist could benefit from the many and varied tips, tricks and techniques. This book is great if you have been considering taking up urban sketching and didn’t quite know what to expect or how to start. This text would also be useful as a reference for any aspiring the artist from beginner to intermediate level.

SYONOPIS

Urban Sketching has grown in recent years and now has a strong global following. This type of art has seen increased participation and is a popular hobby for aspiring and accomplished artists worldwide. Amateurs and professional artists participate together in the enjoyment of the architecture of the built environment.

Bower’s manual is the answer to many uninitiated urban sketchers looking to get a foot hold on the tools, tips and techniques necessary to become competent; or just to have fun and make new friends whist painting or sketching.

The text is brief and concise at only 112 pages, but within these pages you will discover 101 tips to aid in improving your artwork. The book is filled with beautiful illustrations by a variety of artists including the authors own works. It is written in a style that is easily accessible to those who like to read a little or who wish to jump from section to section. Whichever method the reader chooses to peruse this book, it is still comprehendible. The book is comprehensive enough to be useful to intermediate artists and basic enough to inform even the most primary beginner.

Amongst the tips included are: the use of coloring; different painting methods, the variety and uses of brushes, how shading can enhance any work, how different line widths add interest to your work and the use of methods for perspective.

Bower’s book is inspiring and esthetically pleasing. A great book to have in your artist’s reference library.

CONCLUSION

If you were looking for an art theory book based on urban sketching and painting look no further. The text is full of utility, and this tiny book is jam packed with skills, techniques, and tools to get you started in the new and exciting world of urban sketching. Beautifully illustrated throughout and with helpful dialogue to assist the reader for Improving their creative skills. Bower’s work leaves the reader believing that they too, with time and application, can become as accomplished as those artists featured within the book.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

My sincere thanks go to the Author, NetGalley, and the Publisher, for affording me the opportunity to review The Urban Sketching Handbook: 101 Sketching Tips.

book review, Humor, Litercurious Archives, Medical Science, Medicine, Non-Fiction, Science

THIS IS GOING TO HURT – REVIEW

November 6, 2019 Nemo Leave a comment

Litercurious Book Review

Title	This Is Going To Hurt
Author	Adam Kay
Publisher	Picador (Feb 20, 2020)
Format	Kindle, Paperback, Hardcover, and Audiobook
Page	80
Language	English
ISBN #	1509858636 ISBN #-13 (9781529034035)

Author’s Bio

This is Going to Hurt was written by Adam Kay. In this book he shares his personal anecdotes as a doctor working in the British National Health Service (NHS) during early 2000s. His recollections come from a diary he kept, detailing the ups and downs of life on the wards. Kay was inspired to write this book after a senior member of the government had made a claim that junior doctors, expecting to work less than 79 hours per week, were greedy. In This is Going to Hurt, Kay shows us the extremes of being a young doctor in the modern NHS.

Who is the Target Audience?

This is Going to Hurt is suitable for all those interested professionals or amateurs who find the life of doctors to be scintillating reading. Kay doesn’t spare us the gritty facts of life of a junior doctor and later a Senior Registrar. In this book there are some really funny tales and some truly dreadful stories of life and death. If you enjoy blood and guts descriptions of desperately sad and appalling ends, then you may enjoy the wild ride hanging on the white coat tails of Dr. Kay. If you are British, you may also gain a greater appreciation for the young medics that you interact with during your health visits.

Synopsis

The most significant part of This is Going to Hurt is dedicated to the abuse and neglect that many doctors are exposed to working within the British NHS. Dr. Kay discloses the scarcity of essential amenities required for proper medical care in the NHS. He explains the long hours of unpaid work forced upon doctors. He describes the lack of sleep and the abandonment of family, friends, and holidays. Worst of all, he describes how the enumeration is woefully inadequate for the myriad of drawbacks. Ultimately, after long periods of neglect by his employers a life altering incident prompts a change in his thinking and eventually leads him on a new path.

Conclusion

Adam gives us a view of the true life of a doctor on the wards of a British NHS hospital. He reminds us that doctors are only human. They are not infallible; they need love, care, and respect as we all do. They have the failings we all share and he prompts us to realize that. Most of all he wants us to understand that neglecting those who care for us is dreadful and that we should value and cherish the sacrifices; social, financial and psychological that doctors working in the NHS endure to provide you with world class health service.

Acknowledgment

My sincere thanks go to: NetGalley, and Picador for affording me the opportunity to review This is Going to Hurt.

book review, Medical Science, Medicine, Non-Fiction, Reference Works, Regenerative Medicine, Science

STEM CELLS IN REGENERATIVE MEDICINE – REVIEW

October 28, 2019 Nemo Leave a comment

Litercurious Book Review

Comprehensive review coming soon.

Title	Stem Cells in Regenerative Medicine: Carpe Diem – Carpe Vitam!
Author	Mike K. S. Chan, Dmitry Klokol
Publisher	Matador (July 31, 2019)
Format	Kindle
Page	551
Language	English
ASIN #	B07VVL2MS7

Brief Synopsis

Quote: “The goal is to provide a once in a lifetime treatment to correct a specific medical deficit.”
Stem Cells in Regenerative Medicine Carpe Diem-Carpe Vital! (July 31, 2019).

This is a seminal monograph on the subject of the therapeutic application and use of stem cells in “regenerative medicine.” The science described within the pages of this text may be leading edge, but Chan and Klokol have attempted to keep the information accessible to the average reader. However, in some parts the comprehension of the complex science may be challenging. Research scientists and students of medical research may gain the greatest benefits of this work.

The text guides you through the multiple applications of the utilization of Stem Cells and the medical illnesses that may be treated by the use of ‘Xenogeneic Cell Therapy.’ The authors posit the limitations and benefits of the scientific method as it relates explicitly to its use in human subjects. There is a brief description of xenotransplantation in the treatment of cells requiring regenerative assistance in a range of degenerative conditions through cross-species donated cells. Significant importance is placed in the use of cross-species hosts to be Scientific Pathogen Free Animals (SPF – Animals) through the use of ‘Closed Colony’ and proven clinical methods.

Stem Cells in Regenerative Medicine describes the merits, the problemata, and the detailed methodologies of regenerative therapies. The book is replete with beautiful color illustrations that includes the Cell Cycle and the illustrations of the Noble Prize Winner, Günter Blobel, for Physiology or Medicine in 1999. His thesis is on how the distribution mechanism of biological active transport cells migrate, how proteins contain signals inside that direct their location in a destination cell, and how they are transported and where they may migrate to.

I found the Chronology of the development of stem cell research and application to be compelling reading.

Simply the most comprehensive book on the subject of Stem Cells as applied in ‘regenerative medicine,’ and most certainly the best illustrated. The illustrations combined with Chan and Klokol‘s vivid written communication provides you with an invaluable tool in comprehending the ground breaking subject of Stem Cell Therapy.

book review, History, Humor, Litercurious Archives, Litercurious Archives, Medical Science, Non-Fiction, Reference Works, Science

The Mystery of the Exploding Teeth – REVIEW

October 23, 2019 Kado Leave a comment

Litercurious Book Review

Title	The Mystery of the Exploding Teeth: And Other Curiosities from the History of Medicine
Author / Narrator	Thomas Morris / Ruper Farley
Publisher	Penguin Dutton; 1 edition (Nov 20, 2018)
Format	Unabridged Audiobook, Kindle, Paperback, Hardcover
Time	9 hours and 7 minutes
Language	English
ASIN #	B07K1FC2C1

AUTHOR

Thomas Morris was a successful radio producer for the British Broadcasting Company (BBC) for many years. He is now a freelance writer and medical historian. His first book, The Matter of the Heart: A History of the Heart in Eleven Operations, wonthe Royal Society of Literature and the Jerwood Charitable Foundation award. The award is one of three annual awards, one of £10,000 and two of £5,000, offered to authors on their first works of non-fiction. Mr. Morris now lives in London.

WHO IS THE TARGET AUDIENCE?

This book is for everyone 16 or older. The Mystery of the Exploding Teeth is written for the masses and not just for those who want to learn about historic medicine. The book is full of individual cases hand-picked through time to provide the reader with a glimpse of common medical procedures, some uncommon medical procedures, and allot of very interesting cases.

SYNOPSIS

The Mystery of the Exploding Teeth: And Other Curiosities from the History of Medicine, is a sojourn into some of the most interesting medical cases and the procedures used in those cases. It is told through the eyes of the people who were actually there. This book is a conglomeration of notes, letters, personal views of the doctors, and sometimes the patients. The author does a great job of finding the most interesting cases in history. There are some interesting cases that include various items escaping the bodies from all different places, some not very good places. How about the surgeries where the patient is not anesthetized and is an active participant? There is a chapter of patients who survived extreme injuries, some lived normal lives after their injuries.

CONCLUSION

After reading this book, I listened to the audible version and the narrator added so much more to the enjoyment. He does a great job with the inflection of his voice and the bits that are in French. The little jokes he throws in are awesome. This tome, at times, had me laughing, cringing, crying, and always wondering about the historic doctors and their sometime weird practices. The cases offer a wide variety of injuries and maladies; the causes of some of these will haunt me. I would definitely recommend this book to a friend.

SIMILAR WORKS YOU MAY BE INTERESTED IN

Dr. Mütter’s Marvels was established by Dr. Mütter who sadly died prematurely at the age of 48. He left behind an immense collection of medical oddities that form the basis of Philadelphia’s renowned Mütter Museum. Dr Mütter’s Marvel by Cristin O’Keefe Aptowicz is an insight into the dedicated surgeon’s career as well as his life and times. Aptowicz presents her view on Dr. Mütter’s medical practices and the prejudices he witnessed. Aptowicz draws upon Mütter’s speeches and lectures which reveals his humanist based approach.

Mütter Museum: Historical Medical Photographs Is a cornucopia of high quality photographs taken by professional photographers. Between the 1860s and the 1940s, photographers took pictures of these oddities as records for physicians to share among medical colleagues. They also functioned, at the time, to demonstrate various techniques used in medicine such as micrography and X-ray. During the earliest days, they utilized the method of photography known as the daguerreotype. This processing method required the photographer to polish a sheet of copper plate with silver halide coated to a mirror finish, and treat it with fumes that made its surface light sensitive. There is much more to the Mütter Museum however, and it is not for the squeamish.

Artificial Intelligence, Non-Fiction, Science

Competing in the Age of AI – REVIEW

October 20, 2019 Nemo Leave a comment

Litercurious Book Reviews

Title	Competing in the age of AI
Author	Marco Iansiti & Karim R. Lakhani
Publisher	Harvard Business Review Press (January 7, 2020)
Format	Kindle, Hardcover
Page	288
Language	English
ASIN #	B07MWCTNSD

Author’s Bio

Marco Iansiti is a Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School. His special expertise revolves around Technology and Operations Management. He advises Blue Chip companies globally on operational transition, and technological transformation for the 21^st Century. Iansiti and Lakhani posit workable solutions and invaluable insights into the infinite utility of AI.

I studied Managerial Cybernetics, Systems Analysis, and Systems Development under the tutelage of Stafford Beer for both my B.Sc., and M.Sc. I am currently evaluating how the synthesis of a variety of recent technologies can be applied to extend the economic potential of large distributed networks and International organizations. Much of my work includes related issues raised in Competing in The Age of AI. My experience and my academic credentials, I believe afford me a unique perspective on this manuscript.

Iansiti is a prolific author of publications based on a particular area of expertise. Some of his works include: Digital Ubiquity, The Truth About Blockchain (Iansiti & Lakhani), The Keystone Advantage (Roy Levine), and Managing Our Hub Economy. Those looking for advice on establishing digital advantage or operational model transformation of a global organization need look no further than Competing in The Age of AI.

Karim R. Lakhani is a Business Administration Professor at Harvard Business School. Lakhani is the co-director of the Laboratory of Innovation Science at Harvard’s Institute of Quantitative Social Science, as well as the Chair of the Harvard Business School’s Analytics Program. His area of expertise is innovation and technology management. He is the author of numerous articles and case studies on technology, digital commerce, and digital innovation. He has been published in a myriad of significant publications that include: The Economist, The Wall Street Journal, and Business Week among many others.

Who is the target audience?

This is probably the most important book on business application of digital innovations this decade. This thesis is suitable for those who want or need to understand the potential for the increased span, scope, and scale afforded by the appropriate utilization of digital innovations, particularly artificial intelligence as applied to business models. Iansiti and Lakhani’s concept provides a most important tool for Captains of industry, investors, CEOs, entrepreneurs, and students of business and technology. Iansiti and Lakhani’s publication is a must read for all those who want to improve their understanding of the application of AI in organizations. Competing in the Age of AI should be compulsory reading for all those involved in leveraging competitive advantage in the new business world underpinned by artificial intelligence.

Synopsis

The discussions herein include the question of ethics in application and distribution of technology. Iansiti and Lakhani’s have provided a map for the exploitation of the technical advances provided by new technology. The authors have given practical advice on the strengths, limitations, and challenges of employing artificial intelligence to support and augment a company’s strategy.

Conclusion

Competing in The Age of AI is a seminal work, containing all the key ingredients for global companies to explore in order to improve competitive advantage. Iansiti and Lakhani have provided sensible, practical jargon-free explanations for the application of advanced technology strategies and advice on the potential effects on span, scope, and scale across the organization.

Acknowledgment

My sincere thanks go to: NetGalley, and Harvard Business Review Press for affording me the opportunity to review of Competing in the Age of AI.

book review, Mathematics, Non-Fiction, Science

How To Bake Pi – REVIEW

September 21, 2019 Nemo Leave a comment

A Litercurious Book Review

Title	How To Bake Pi
Author	Eugenia Cheng
Publisher	Basic Books (May 5, 2015)
Format	Kindle, Audiobook, Hardback, Paperback
Pages	300
Language	English
ISBN #	0465097677 (ISBN-13: 978-0465097678)

Who is Eugenia Cheng?

Eugenia Loh-Gene Cheng is a British mathematician who specializes in a fringe area of mathematics referred to as Higher-Dimensional Category Theory. She is also known for her support of popular mathematics. Among her many publications are The Art of Logic and, my personal favorite, Beyond Infinity. Professor Cheng attended school at Roedean and is a graduate of The University of Cambridge with her Thesis: Higher-dimensional category theory: opetopic foundations (2002). She graduated with both a BA and a PhD.

Who is the target audience?

This book could appeal to anyone; perhaps with the exception of those traumatized by ill intentioned or professionally inept math teachers. Eugenia has taken the everyday practice of baking and uses it as frame to hang mathematical theories on, to make the mathematics more accessible to a wider audience, and to simplify the theory for the common man. These theories are not new concepts, however, they may be fresh concepts to you. It is a skillfully woven discourse with Category Theory at its heart. Of course there may be some people who will not understand the basic concepts, but I believe the majority of people who read this book will learn something that may benefit them.

In this book

Having read How to Bake Pi, I’ve noted the Professor is a skilled and gifted educator. She takes the art of teaching mathematics to a whole new level. Her ability to enlighten the audience is due in part to her: familiarity with her subject, and her varied methods to demystify the subject; while simultaneously encouraging an enthusiasm for math that most people never knew they had.

I enjoyed the humor and the lucidity of her delivery. The mathematical logic is there throughout the text, but it is softened through: clear, lucid, and work-a-day explanations that aid the reader in exploring the world of math.

Conclusion

I found this book to be engaging, warm, effusive, and fun. Ultimately, Eugenia has proven that it isn’t what you teach, but how you teach that makes the difference.

Acknowledgements

Thanks to the following: NetGalley, Basic Books, and Eugenia Cheng.