The Joy of x: A Guided Tour of Math, from One to Infinity, by Steven H. Strogatz - Book Review
This book is a collection of short articles which covers a huge spectrum of math. It really is a guided tour of math. It starts very simply by explaining some basic concepts of math, and moves toward the concepts of infinity at the end of the book. Strogatz covers all different mathematical disciplines: algebra, analysis, calculus, probability, number theory, and topology. His explanations are all clear enough that a layperson can understand the mathematical concepts very well.
One drawback of this book is that the mathematical level varies too much. The first half of the book is much easier than the second half, and some of these sections seem a bit redundant for my taste. The reader with previous knowledge might be bored during the first half of the book. The content is already published in so many other books before, that the reader with previous knowledge hardly learns anything new. But the second half of the book is excellent. He presents mathematical content in an interesting way through connecting the math to real world problems in current topics. For example, he explains the math behind the google page rank and the application of the theory of probability in criminal science.
Overall, Strogatz explains mathematical concepts and content exceptionally well. He found a great way to simplify mathematical facts and theories and describe the content very clearly for the layperson. But due to his examples of math applications, the second half of the book is also interesting for people with a math background.
A link to Amazon bookshop and more reader reviews: