How Do I Undo the Past?

            Oh no. The title sounds overly melodramatic. But really, Ian Stewart, bakit ngayon ka lng dumating sa buhay ko? (Flaaashback!)

            March 28, 2014. Hours left before the deadline for the last book review. Scan here; read there; the ink of pen started to leave its footprints on my paper. At first it was a burden I thought I’d never carry through, but then it turned out to be, yes, still a burden, but a beautiful burden. J

            I’ve always had this unjustified (yes, I admit -_-) loatheness towards math. Math and its cruel twists. And surely, your impression towards a thing really affects your perception with it. I have perceived math as something so harshly essential in your life. Math is a “DO or DIE” thing. And since I have seen math this way, it has, in return, treated me the same epic way. I don’t really know why I hated math. Did my low grades cause my hatred or my hatred caused my low grades?  And have you noticed that I used the word “hateD” (again, hateDDD)? That’s all thanks to Ian Stewart’s Cabinet of Mathematical Curiosities.

            This masterpiece of Ian Stewart really did change my impression towards math. The book was filled with his treasures in mathematics: puzzles, riddles, short stories, concepts, and many more things that he found worth-keeping and of course, worth-sharing. This is not like the other books in mathematics that will make you doze off. The puzzles in this book really would catch and keep your interest. ;) Sad to say I was not able to entertain all puzzles due to time mismanagement. But really, I never thought I’d have fun in solving the puzzles and brainstorming the riddles. The author did a good job in converting complex and boring mathematical exaggerated equations into simple and easy-paced words. The complicated equations were more interestingly and comprehensibly molded into puzzles and tricks that unfold the beauty and simplicity in math. With this book, I had learned to see math not as a boring, life-sucking demon, but as kind of like crazy-fun friend. How I wish I had read this book during my childhood days, when time was so cheap and reading books sounded so cute.

            To all those mathematically freaked-out dudes out there (like how I used to be), I urge, entice, and push you to really take time to read this book. Though the intensity of benefits might vary, I assure you that it will make learning math in your life more fun and a little less of a burden. And lastly, they always say “save the best for last”. Indeed, this book deserves to be the last. J