SUMM’s Bookshelf
Here are some of our favorite math-themed books. We urge all parents to read before giving to your children.
Cover images link to Ada’s Technical Books and Cafe, a local Seattle technical book store, for more information and to purchase individual titles. SUMM is not affiliated with Ada’s Books.
Juneteenth Highlights
Hidden Figures, by Margot Lee Shetterly & illustrated by Laura Freeman.
Based on the New York Times bestselling book and the Academy Award–nominated movie, author Margot Lee Shetterly and Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor Award winner Laura Freeman bring the incredibly inspiring true story of four black women who helped NASA launch men into space to picture book readers!
A Computer Called Katherine, by Suzanne Slade & illustrated by Veronica Miller Jamison.
The inspiring true story of mathematician Katherine Johnson--made famous by the award-winning film Hidden Figures--who counted and computed her way to NASA and helped put a man on the moon!
Meet Raye Montague—the hidden mastermind who made waves in the U.S. Navy! After touring a German submarine in the early 1940s, young Raye set her sights on becoming an engineer. Little did she know sexism and racial inequality would challenge that dream every step of the way, even keeping her greatest career accomplishment a secret for decades. Through it all, the gifted mathematician persisted—finally gaining her well-deserved title in history: a pioneer who changed the course of ship design forever.
The History of Counting, by Denise Schmandt-Besserat & illustrated by Michael Hays
Drawing on years of research, a renowned archaeologist traces the evolution of counting. Engrossing and enlightening, this fascinating book introduces children to one of our most important inventions.
Tells the gripping story of four female African-American mathematicians who literally made it possible to launch US rockets--and astronauts--into space. Tells the thrilling tale of how each woman contributed, the struggles and resistance each experienced, and the amazing results. Consultants currently works for NASA.
This book is a critically important contribution to the work underway to transform schooling for students who have historically been denied access to a quality education, specifically African American children.
This book profiles 160 African Americans in science, math, and invention. Each enlightening biographical entry concentrates on the events in that person's life related to his or her accomplishments in these overlapping fields and includes a list of further reading on that person. An introduction, bibliography, subject indexes, general index, and more than 55 photographs round out the text.
Erica N. Walker presents a compelling story of Black mathematical excellence in the United States. Much of the research and discussion about Blacks and mathematics focuses on underachievement; by documenting in detail the experiences of Black mathematicians, this book broadens significantly the knowledge base about mathematically successful African Americans.
Picture Books
Hidden Figures, by Margot Lee Shetterly & illustrated by Laura Freeman.
Based on the New York Times bestselling book and the Academy Award–nominated movie, author Margot Lee Shetterly and Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor Award winner Laura Freeman bring the incredibly inspiring true story of four black women who helped NASA launch men into space to picture book readers!
A Computer Called Katherine, by Suzanne Slade & illustrated by Veronica Miller Jamison.
The inspiring true story of mathematician Katherine Johnson--made famous by the award-winning film Hidden Figures--who counted and computed her way to NASA and helped put a man on the moon!
Meet Raye Montague—the hidden mastermind who made waves in the U.S. Navy! After touring a German submarine in the early 1940s, young Raye set her sights on becoming an engineer. Little did she know sexism and racial inequality would challenge that dream every step of the way, even keeping her greatest career accomplishment a secret for decades. Through it all, the gifted mathematician persisted—finally gaining her well-deserved title in history: a pioneer who changed the course of ship design forever.
The History of Counting, by Denise Schmandt-Besserat & illustrated by Michael Hays
Drawing on years of research, a renowned archaeologist traces the evolution of counting. Engrossing and enlightening, this fascinating book introduces children to one of our most important inventions.
The School of Numbers: Learn about Mathematics with 40 Simple Lessons
By Emily Hawkins & illustrated by Daniel Frost
Hop on board the spaceship School of Numbers and head off on an intergalactic mathematical journey that will introduce young readers to key concepts including arithmetic, shapes, fractions, percentages, and sequences.
Nothing Stopped Sophie: The Story of Unshakable Mathematician Sophie Germain by Cheryl Bardoe & illustrated by Barbara McClintock.
The true story of eighteenth-century mathematician Sophie Germain, who solved the unsolvable to achieve her dream.
Quack And Count written and illustrated by Keith Baker.
Slip, slide, leap, and dive with a family of seven lively ducklings as they get ready to fly for the very first time. It's an adventure little ones will want to recount again and again!
Spaghetti and Meatballs For All! A mathematical story by Marilyn Burns & illustrated by Debbie Tilley.
Math Curse by Jon Scieszka & illustrated by Lane Smith.
Did you ever wake up to one of those days where everything is a problem? You have 10 things to do, but only 30 minutes until your bus leaves. Is there enough time? You have 3 shirts and 2 pairs of pants. Can you make 1 good outfit? Then you start to wonder: Why does everything have to be such a problem?
Inch by Inch: A Lift-the-Flap Book by Leo Lionni & illustrated by Jan Gerardi.
Now kids can help a little inchworm measure his friends by lifting fun flaps to find a flamingo, a toucan, a hummingbird, and more!
Sir. Cumference Series by Cindy Neuschwander &Illustrated by Wayne Geehan.
The Boy Who Loved Math: The Improbable Life of Paul Erdos by Deborah Heiligman & illustrated by LeUyen Pham.
Most people think of mathematicians as solitary, working away in isolation. And, it's true, many of them do. But Paul Erdos never followed the usual path.
Chapter Books
The Man Who Counted, by Malba Tahan & Illustrated by Patricia Reid Baquero.
Malba Tahan is the creation of a celebrated Brazilian mathematician looking for a way to bring some of the mysteries and pleasures of mathematics to a wider public.
The Number Devil, by Hans Magnus Enzensberger & illustrated by Rotraut Susanne Berne.
In twelve dreams, Robert, a boy who hates math, meets a Number Devil, who leads him to discover the amazing world of numbers: infinite numbers, prime numbers, Fibonacci numbers, numbers that magically appear in triangles, and numbers that expand without end.
Magic, Puzzle, and Activity Books
Magical Mathematics: The Mathematical Ideas That Animate Great Magic Tricks, by Persi Diaconis & Ron Graham.
The mathematics behind some of the world's most amazing card tricks
Magical Mathematics reveals the secrets of fun-to-perform card tricks--and the profound mathematical ideas behind them--that will astound even the most accomplished magician.
40 Fabulous Math Mysteries Kids Can't Resist, by Marcia Miller & Martin Lee
Humorous, reproducible math mystery stories will give your math sleuths a chance to have fun while practicing important math problem solving skills. They’re just perfect for class work and homework and help you meet state standards.
Codes, Ciphers, and Secret Writing, by Martin Gardner
Learn to use the most important codes and methods of secret communication in use since ancient times. Cipher and decipher codes used by spies. Explore the famous codes that changed the fate of nations and political leaders. And enjoy hours of fun experimenting with cryptography ― the science of secret writing.
Math Games for Clever Kids: More than 100 Puzzles to Exercise Your Mind, by Gareth Moore & Illustrated by Chris Dickason.
An epic collection of 100 math games and puzzles for clever kids! Packed with logic, reasoning, and problem-solving activities, this book is built to help kids make the most of their intelligence. Exercise your mind!
Mental Magic: Surefire Tricks to Amaze Your Friends, by Martin Gardner & illustrated by Jeff Sinclair.
A barber in Chicago says he'd rather cut the hair of ten red-headed men than the hair of one brown-haired man. Can you guess why?
Ask Professor Picanumba, a master of riddles who carries dozens of surefire tricks up his sleeve. He'll show you how to astonish your friends and family by predicting the answers to 88 word and number challenges.
Hexaflexagons, Probability Paradoxes, and the Tower of Hanoi: Martin Gardner's First Book of Mathematical Puzzles and Games, by Martin Gardner
Based off of Gardner's enormously popular Scientific American columns, his puzzles and challenges can now fascinate a whole new generation Paradoxes and paper-folding, Moebius variations, mnemonics, and much more.
My Best Mathematical and Logic Puzzles, by Martin Gardner
Over a period of 25 years as author of the Mathematical Games column for Scientific American, Martin Gardner devoted a column every six months or so to short math problems or puzzles. Later, these puzzles were published in book collections, incorporating reader feedback on alternate solutions or interesting generalizations. The present volume contains a rich selection of 70 of the best of these brain teasers, in some cases including references to new developments related to the puzzle.
The Adventures of Penrose, by Theoni Pappas
Penrose, a cat with a knack for math, takes children on an adventurous tour of mathematical concepts from fractals to infinity.
Other Books
The Annotated Alice: 150th Anniversary Deluxe Edition, Original Work by Lewis Carroll, Annotated by Martin Gardner.
The Annotated Alice: 150th Anniversary Deluxe Edition compiles over half a century of scholarship by leading Carrollian experts to reveal the history and full depth of the Alice books and their enigmatic creator. This volume brings together Martin Gardner’s legendary original 1960 publication, The Annotated Alice; his follow-ups, More Annotated Alice and the Definitive Edition; his continuing explication through the Knight Letter magazine; and masterly additions and updates edited by Mark Burstein, president emeritus of the Lewis Carroll Society of North America. In these pages Lewis Carroll's mathematical riddles and curious wordplay, ingeniously embedded throughout the Alice works, are delightfully decoded and presented in the margins, along with original correspondence, amusing anecdotal detours, and fanciful illustrations by Salvador Dalí, Beatrix Potter, Ralph Steadman, and a host of other famous artists.