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A review by thomcat
Genius At Play: The Curious Mind of John Horton Conway by Siobhan Roberts
4.0
Biography of mathematician John Horton Conway in three parts. Enough math and geometry to get the gist of his insights - definitely not overwhelming to the number phobic. Overseen by the subject, who is quoted liberally throughout, this is an interesting read.
Conway was very active in number and knot theory, groups and combinatorial games, but the first line of most biographical entries is the Game of Life. That work (and related exchanges with Martin Gardner) make up the middle part of the book; the other two are essentially before and after Life. An epilogue and appendices delve a little deeper into the math; a bibliography gives some direction for more. This is first and foremost a book about the mathematician, not the math.
Roberts first met Conway at Mathcamp while researching her book on Donald Coxeter, one of his mentors. The quirky lifestyle of Conway has led to many anecdotes, and resulted in a solid year of editing this biography. In the end, she has captured the eccentric genius in a very readable format. I look forward to reading her book on Coxeter, [b:King of Infinite Space: Donald Coxeter, the Man Who Saved Geometry|207949|King of Infinite Space Donald Coxeter, the Man Who Saved Geometry|Siobhan Roberts|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1317793269s/207949.jpg|1744459].
Conway was very active in number and knot theory, groups and combinatorial games, but the first line of most biographical entries is the Game of Life. That work (and related exchanges with Martin Gardner) make up the middle part of the book; the other two are essentially before and after Life. An epilogue and appendices delve a little deeper into the math; a bibliography gives some direction for more. This is first and foremost a book about the mathematician, not the math.
Roberts first met Conway at Mathcamp while researching her book on Donald Coxeter, one of his mentors. The quirky lifestyle of Conway has led to many anecdotes, and resulted in a solid year of editing this biography. In the end, she has captured the eccentric genius in a very readable format. I look forward to reading her book on Coxeter, [b:King of Infinite Space: Donald Coxeter, the Man Who Saved Geometry|207949|King of Infinite Space Donald Coxeter, the Man Who Saved Geometry|Siobhan Roberts|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1317793269s/207949.jpg|1744459].