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Cover of Flatterland

Flatterland

Like Flatland, Only More So

Ian Stewart

384 pages

A dizzying, pun-filled romp through the bizarre and beautiful dimensions of modern mathematics.

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What it feels like

Reading this book feels like stepping into a funhouse mirror designed by a brilliant, slightly eccentric physics professor. It is a brisk, mind-bending journey that wraps complex mathematical and cosmological concepts in a delightfully absurd, pun-heavy narrative. The mood is relentlessly curious and lighthearted, bouncing from one bizarre dimensional encounter to the next with the whimsical energy of a modern-day Lewis Carroll tale. The prose is conversational and packed with geeky wordplay, ensuring that the educational payload goes down smoothly. It is a joyful, paradigm-shifting experience perfect for math nerds, logic puzzle enthusiasts, and anyone who loves seeing the boundaries of their imagination stretched by the sheer weirdness of the universe.

Mood
  • mind-bending
  • curious
  • lighthearted
  • intellectual
Tone
  • playful
  • didactic
  • wry
  • geeky
  • whimsical
Pace
brisk
Themes
intellectual awakening · the limits of perception · joy of discovery · paradigm shifts
The writing
Brimming with relentless puns, clever wordplay, and conversational dialogue designed to make abstract concepts accessible.
The arc
Moves from comfortable ignorance to dizzying, awe-inspiring comprehension of a vast and complex universe.
Who it's for
Curious minds who love logic puzzles, mathematical thought experiments, and the whimsical humor of Douglas Adams or Lewis Carroll.

About the book

"First there was Edwin A. Abbott's remarkable Flatland, published in 1884, and one of the all-time classics of popular mathematics. Now, from mathematician and accomplished science writer Ian Stewart, comes a dazzling, modern sequel." "Flatterland: Like Flatland, Only More So provides an engaging, completely accessible guide to some of the trickiest concepts in contemporary mathematics. Through larger-than-life characters and an inspired story line, Flatterland explores our present understanding of the shape and origins of the universe, the nature of space, time, and matter, as well as modern geometries and their applications." "The journey begins when our heroine, Victoria Line, comes upon her great-great-grandfather A. Square's diary, hidden in the attic. The writings help her to contact the Space Hopper, who tempts her away from her home and family in Flatland and becomes her guide and mentor through ten dimensions." "Informed by Stewart's ingenious stream of wordplay and crackling dialogue, Flatterland is the story of Vikki's fantastic voyage through the Mathiverse. From the Charming Construction Entity to Moobius, the one-sided cow, from the Hawk King to the Space Girls, her encounters grow ever stranger. She watches two Parallel Lions meet and sees the Doughmouse change a doughnut into a teapot without breaking any mathematical rules. She experiences the universe expanding from the outside and survives a harrowing trip through a black hole. Finally, armed with a clearer vision of the world beyond, Vikki makes her way home to two-dimensional Flatland -- and starts to spread the word." "In the tradition of Alice in Wonderland and The Phantom Toll Booth, this magnificent investigation into the nature of reality is destined to become a modern classic. Book jacket."--Jacket.

Description from Open Library.

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