Book Nook: How Pi Can Save Your Life

 I'm a nerd. Even though my kids and husband don't like math as much as I do, they still like to learn about math and science. We all enjoyed How Pi Can Save Your Life.

I'm a math teacher, so I had no problem understanding the content in the book. For those that are a long way out from their last math class, the beginning of the book has some quick explanations about solving equations - if you really struggled with math, it won't help you understand it all, but it will give you at least a basic idea of the fact that equations can be rearranged and solved with a purpose. Although a basic understanding of high school math is helpful, this book can be read and enjoyed even by people who aren't as math-literate - and it just might give a stronger justification for learning some math topics too.

If you're a hardcore fan of the umber pi, then this book might disappoint you. However, I found it fun to read. Each section was short, at just a few pages, and provided a situation for a specific math topic, then worked through it in a narrative way with a little bit of dry humor. The end of each section also had some more trivia or real-life application of the concept. (And yes, pi did show up in the book, it just wasn't the only concept in the book). 

This is a great book for anyone a little nerdy who wants to point out that math is useful, or anyone who wants to learn more about how the world around them works.