The Cat in Numberland [Hardcover]

Ivar Ekeland (Author), John O'Brien (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 9 and up | Grade Level: 3 and up

At Mr. and Mrs. Hilbert’s Hotel Infinity, the resident cat is puzzled. The hotel is fully booked — the rooms are full of Numbers, both Odds and Evens — yet guests continue to arrive. When Zero shows up, there’s a massive room switching, and he stays, even though Mr. Hilbert insists he’s not really a Number. Then the Letters appear and everyone still has a room, even though no Numbers have left. No matter how many guests arrive or depart, the hotel accommodates them all, and is always full. But when the Fractions arrive, demanding rooms, real chaos threatens. Can an ingenious solution be found to house them all?

Based on mathematician David Hilbert’s famous paradox of the Grand Hotel, The Cat in Numberland offers a refreshingly clear explanation of infinity for readers of all ages. John O’Brien’s imaginative line drawings further elucidate the complex concept, as well as simple functions like addition, subtraction, division, and multiplication.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 3-5–In this clever tale, Mr. and Mrs. Hilbert are the proprietors of the Hotel Infinity, an establishment for Numbers of all sizes. The odds and evens live happily together, playing games like addition and subtraction until Zero comes to call. Mr. H refuses to admit him on the grounds that, Zero is not a Number…Numbers serve to count things. His wife disagrees, and she offers 10, 100, and 1000 as cases in point. Defeated, her husband agrees to give him a room, but which one? The hotel is fully occupied. Zero suggests each guest move up one. Everyone is happy but the cat, who ponders how a hotel that was already full could suddenly accommodate another guest. Zero tells the others about a place called Alphabet where the Letters live. They cannot play the games we know, but they know others that are very interesting…. When they invite the Letters for a sleepover, Zero proposes that he move to Room 26, and the others follow suit. Again, the cat cannot fathom where all these extra rooms have come from. In the end, the Hotel Infinity becomes famous far and wide as it is always full, yet there is always room. The clever black-line and crosshatch sketches portray the number and letter people as comical aliens. Readers will particularly enjoy poring over the scenes of the numbers at play as they search for recognizable patterns and number sentences. This easy chapter book explains concepts such as odd and even, the four operations, fractions, patterns, algebra, and infinity. More importantly, it presents a difficult, sometimes-feared subject, in a fun, lighthearted way.–Barbara Auerbach, New York City Public Schools
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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9 and up
  
• Hardcover: 56 pages
• Publisher: Cricket Books (April 7, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 081262744X
• ISBN-13: 978-0812627442
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 6.4 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #178,810 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Infinity made simple, December 29, 2006

By 

D. Schetzel "TJEd mom" (Utah) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Cat in Numberland (Hardcover)

I read this delightful book to my sons, ages 10 and 7, and we all enjoyed it. The illustrations were fun and showed the numbers and letters playing their games. We loved the humor in the illustrations and the text. My 7 year old spotted the bus in the shape of the letters B-U-S. Having to say the number "One Million Two Hundred Thirty-Four Thousand Five Hundred Sixty-Six" was part of the fun of the book! And when the fractions move in and the hotel is still full and there is room for everyone...we just laughed and wondered at the beauty of numbers. A fun book for those who love numbers!

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Solid book for young math lovers, September 25, 2006

By 

New Jersey - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Cat in Numberland (Hardcover)

This book maybe a little tedious for parents to read to their kids, but my six year old loved it and it made him think about various difficult mathematical concepts (infinity, fractions) in an accessible and fun way. The artwork is detailed and much action is hidden in the pictures for those who look carefully.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One to add to "The Number Devil" for math reading, May 24, 2008

By 

Julie Brennan "Living math" (San Diego, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Cat in Numberland (Hardcover)

My daughter has read this book repeatedly over the past year, she is now 8, and I do wish there were more books like this in print to satisfy her appetite for math literature. The variety of math picture books out there is amazing, and there is no shortage of math reading for high school and adults, but this kind of fantasy adventure accessible to the 7 to 11 year old crowd is rare. I read it to her the first time, and then she owned it for herself. Illustrations are a matter of personal taste, use the "Search Inside" feature to determine if they will put you off the book, but we certainly enjoy them! The idea is not to teach young children advanced math concepts to master them, but to introduce them in a fun way. Later when they do learn these concepts in more formal settings, they are like old friends.