Further Adventures of Penrose the Mathematical Cat

by Theoni Pappas

Penrose, no ordinary cat, takes us on an adventurous tour of mathematical concepts and characters. Now he takes off again on new adventures.

Join him as he .....discovers the mathematical rep-tiles…meets x, the mathematical actor..... is overpowered by a hoard of numbers …stumbles onto the math rods… has a close encounter with Probably… discovers how 1+1!=2 … helps Sorry Snowflake find its symmetry … takes on Napier’s hot rods … crosses pi’s path … learns that mathematical doughnuts are not for dunking …tantalizes, teases and perplexes us with his puzzles and games.

These amusing and informative tales are just a few of many enchanting stories written in the author’s captivating style that is sure to make mathematics entertaining. The reader will gain new insights and appreciation for mathematics and its many facets.

Genres: Mathematics, Childrens

128 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 2004

About the author

Theoni Pappas is committed to giving mathematics greater exposure and making it more approachable. Pappas encourages mathematics teachers to share and develop new teaching ideas, methods, and approaches. Her gift to the Mathematics Education Trust (MET) helps teachers in grades 9—12 develop mathematics enrichment materials and lessons complementing a teaching unit implemented in the classroom.

Currently, Pappas is a mathematics educator and consultant. She received her B.A. from the University of California at Berkeley and her M.A. from Stanford University. She became a member of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) in 1967, when she began teaching high school mathematics. Over the years, she has taught basic math, prealgebra, algebra, trigonometry, geometry, precalculus, and calculus.

Through her studies and research, Pappas has developed products that address mathematical ideas, and she has written numerous books, both for the general public and for educational audiences. Her books include More Joy of Mathematics; The Joy of Mathematics; Mathematics Appreciation; Math Talk; Greek Cooking for Everyone; Fractals, Googols, and Other Mathematical Tales; Mathematical Footprints; The Magic of Mathematics; Math-A-Day; The Music of Reason; Mathematical Scandals; The Adventures of Penrose–the Mathematical Cat; and Math for Kids & Other People Too!
from http://www.nctm.org/resources/content...

Reviews

[Karla · Rating 2 out of 5]

Didn't like this at all- way too much information. Illustrations were sketchy and sophomoric.
It's just not engaging to children, the intended audience.
I do not recommend.

[Caterpickles · Rating 4 out of 5]

I bought this back when The Eight-Year-Old was merely four, not because I thought there was any chance of her being able to do anything with it then, but because I knew the day would come when The Eight-Year-Old would forget math could be fun. I wanted this book in my back pocket.

The Eight-Year-Old has dipped into it here and there over the years, enticed by the prospect of doing math with a cat. She’s still not completely ready for it, but I haven’t regretted my purchase. The prospect of learning enough math to solve problems with Penrose has helped me keep The Eight-Year-Old from chucking her math worksheets out the window.

Review originally posted on my blog Caterpickles.

[Hannah · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a good book. I think it could have been better but just because I don't really like to READ a MATH book. Although it's a little funny, I wouldn't count it as a real book. I was surprised even to find it in the selection of BOOKS. I'm sorry but I won't be able to give this one a thumbs up. But if this author wrote like REAL books, I might be able to get through the book without abandoning it. I would abandon it but it's for a project and the project sounds like its challenging and I will learn new things from it. But, yeah, that's my book review.

[Trever · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not quite as good as the first book, this book seemed to go further away from mathematics into more applied areas and logic puzzles. I was hoping when it said "further adventures," that it would take it deeper into mathematics and try to explain harder material, but at times it seemed to go backward.

Worth having for the 2-3 stories that were good.

[Judy · Rating 4 out of 5]

You can't just read one adventure! I wanted to see how Pappas could make other math concepts interesting. She is certainly trying! These type books are hard to come by. My grandson may not understand the math concepts but he certainly likes Penrose! That has to be a plus!!