Socrates and the Three Little Pigs

Beautiful Math #6

by Tsuyoshi Mori, Mitsumasa Anno (Illustrator)

A wolf's attempt to figure out in which of five houses he is most likely to find one of three little pigs introduces such mathematical concepts as combinatorial analysis, permutations, and probabilities.

Genres: Mathematics, Childrens, Picture Books, Arithmetic, Fairy Tales

44 pages, Hardcover

First published April 18, 1985

About the author

His name is written as 森毅 in Japanese.

Reviews

[Bloom · Rating 2 out of 5]

trobo una anada d'olla que es fes un llibre tant purament matemàtic, que es passen. te la seva part de gràcia, pro. m'hagués agradat un pèl més narratiu

[Blue · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really like the idea, and the book was cute (as someone who studied university-level maths and computer science (mostly the latter being relevant here)) but as a children's book this is worthless. Perhaps being a picture book there simply wasn't room to make it more story than lecture.

I would recommend this book for someone starting computer science or with trouble understanding permutations, but otherwise I cannot imagine an audience.

The art is okay, but the female wolf having human-like breasts was weird.

[Norain · Rating 1 out of 5]

A children's book explaining permutations and combinations? Really? Probability used to be the chapter I liked out of all my high school math syllabus, but I can't find any part of my brain that considers this interesting or illuminating. And in the end, because this is a children's book, the wolves don't even eat the little pigs and somehow their hunger just disappears. So what even is the point?

[Dave · Rating 2 out of 5]

Read this mainly for Anno's art. No idea how this book got made. Imagine the pitch: "Let's make a picture book to explain permutations and combinations starring animals named after Greek philosophers and mathematics. Xanthippe will be a wolf, but let's give her some boobs that are just hanging out there." What publisher could resist?

[owlette · Rating 4 out of 5]

From the afterword:

頭のなかの数学の野原がひろければ、そこにあそんでいるうち、やがて数学に強くなります。

[Robin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Socrates the wolf enlists the aid of his friend Pythagoras the frog in deciding which of five houses the three little pigs might be in. Lots of math in this book that not all readers will get, but presented in a way that they can -- thought it will require a bit of effort. Love Anno's artwork and charactization of the thin, philosophical wolf and plump, charming pigs.

[J-Lynn Van Pelt · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is an odd retelling of the Three Little Pigs nursery rhyme that incorporates discussion of mathematics and probability. I don’t understand enough math to know if the formulas are sound, but there is an extensive author’s note that goes in depth into the math concepts.

[Prateek Goel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brilliant! The concepts of Permutation & Combination are not easy to explain to beginners. This book does it in an interesting way of storytelling. The philosophical touches are good. :) I liked Socrates' impatient wife's character. :P

[Ali · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant! The concepts of Permutation & Combination are not easy to explain to beginners. This book does it in an interesting way of storytelling. The philosophical touches are good. :) I liked Socrates' impatient wife's character

[Catherine · Rating 2 out of 5]

A little boring. LOL!

[Paige Albright Vanderpool]

AUTHOR/ILLUSTRATOR: Good to use in a math unit about odds. But also teaches a good lesson about not overcomplicating things and not overthinking.

[Wendee Radmall · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great visual way to teach probability and patterns. Socrates is the wolf, who over-analyzes... really funny, engaging story.

[Elizabeth · Rating 2 out of 5]

The illustrations are beautiful but the math concepts are still confusing to me.

[Maura Navarrete · Rating 4 out of 5]

un libro corto y preciso para que los más pequeños y pequeñas comprendan el análisis combinatorio de una manera didáctica🌸