Customer Reviews

The Moscow Puzzles: 359 Mathematical Recreations

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

"The Moscow Puzzles" is unique among problem-solving and brainteaser books because of the wide range of types of problems that it addresses. As a lecturer at Cal Tech's Executive Training Center, I teach "Creating Breakthrough Products" to technical executives. This book has been very helpful for those participating, because the problems it contains represent various types of psychological barriers that prevent problem-solvers and designers from achieving high-level solutions. I refer to examples from this book during the Cal Tech training session; we employ the revolutionary Russian problem-solving tool whose acronym is "TRIZ."

Other fine attributes of this book are its sense of humor and its practicality. The author has chosen everyday events and situations for his problem "plots," and in doing so, maintains the interest level of the average reader.

Readers of this book will learn to overcome personal barriers to creativity (the chief personal barrier is called "psychological inertia"), and will increase their creativity quotients by an order of magnitude, or more.

I strongly recommend this book for use in all classes from grades 4 through college senior. For the rest of us who simply like ("love") to work on challenging problems, this is the book for you. Good luck!

I was thrilled and surprised to see that this book is still in print. I loved puzzles as a child and spent many hours for fun working the problems in this book (which may have paved the way for my PhD in Computer Science). I fished out my old copy recently to show my 11 year old daughter how I spent my spare hours as a child - *not* playing computer games of dubious educational value. I am sure that working the problems in this book helped increase my problem solving skills - in a different and more general way than I was learning in school.

Of all the puzzle books and puzzles I ever owned, this is the only one I saved. The book has a wide variety of types of puzzles (not all involve numbers). While some are easy, most were challenging. The descriptions were charming, with Russian names of children and towns and quaint puzzle descriptions involving wells, or steam engines or household objects. All in all, a delightful, very educational puzzle collection.

Nice collection of problems which demand some creativity as well as varying degrees of mathematical prowess. Also populated with interesting anedotes regarding mathematicians throughout history.

Although no mathematics beyond the high school level is required, the challenge lies in the ingenious application of even the most rudimentary math and logic necessary to successfully tackle these exercises. The problems range from rather simple to difficult. Some amount to raw logic riddles requiring little or no math while others offer the opportunity to fine tune one's skills in geometry and algebra. In addition to offering a rich variety of problems which will satisfy the needs of puzzlists at many levels, the editors have made a good point of dividing the problems into categories emphasizing different sets of skills including geometry, algebra, arithmetic operations, spatial visualization and logic. Such a delineation makes it easy evaluate strengths and weaknesses so you can focus on areas of improvement.

Given the long history of this publication, several problems will be familiar to some seasoned puzzle enthusiasts but most will still provide a fresh challenge.

I greatly enjoy mathematical puzzles and brain teasers and regularly look for good puzzle books out there. I picked this one up about 10 years ago, and it's still one of the best I've ever encountered. Many of the problems are short and concise, but provide great challenges. A great learning tool as well as a nice diversion for many ages.

Excellent collection of math puzzles not requiring advanced math - A book for anyone and everyone

With and outstanding collection of 359 mathematical recreations and being lavishly illustrated with more than 400 diagrams and sketches, this book will certainly become a treasure in the personal library of anyone that enjoys solving puzzles.

It's a mammoth puzzle collection, compare with most math teasers and puzzles book available. But what is important is not the quantity, but the quality and charm of the problems presented.

The book is divided in fifteen chapters, as shown:
- Amusing problems.
- Difficult problems.
- Geometry with matches.
- Measure seven times before you cut.
- Skill will find its application everywhere.
- Dominoes and dice.
- Properties of nine.
- With algebra and without it.
- Mathematics with almost no calculations.
- Mathematical games and tricks.
- Divisibility.
- Cross sums and magic squares.
- Numbers curious and serious.
- Numbers ancient but eternally young.
- Solutions.

Everyone will find the type of problems the like most. Often the puzzles are presented in the form of charming stories that provides valuable insights into contemporary Russian life and customs.

I bought this book while working as a gifted children teacher. I liked it so much that I used to keep it in my car and solve riddles whenever I had to wait for someone. It is a great resource for all teachers; children are suddenly made quiet when you present a puzzle to them.

I especially like the stick puzzles, where you can distribute a number of matches to students (by the way, it works with kids, teenagers and adults alike) and give them a puzzle. The advantage of this kind of puzzle is that you can give additional tasks to those fast-solvers; you do not have a story behind it.

The organization of the book is excellent; it is divided by difficulty levels as well as by type of puzzle. For example, you have different levels of geometry problems and of sticks problems.

Great book!

As a 7th grade math teacher, I use problems from this book to supplement my gifted pre-algebra classes, and to provide a challenge to my math teams. Superb book.

despite of difficulty, I love it because there are various good problems
Thanks you

The other reviews summarize nicely that the puzzles are good as mathematical exercises. It is worth adding that the book also is interesting in how many of the puzzles are illustrative of Soviet culture and "good think" so to speak. E.g.:

"Vasily Chapaev, a great Red Army commander during the civil war of 1918, once said .... . Use his hint to solve problem .... "

"A brigade of young pioneers are planting apple trees. Vladimir's platoon plants twice as many as Mikhail's, ... . "

"The snow-fort commander has 19 defenders to distribute against waves of attackers. In the first charge, 3 boys are 'lost'. In the second and third, 4 are lost each time. How was the defense organized if ... "

Just reading the puzzles is amusing!

This book has very interesting challenges for people of all ages. Some you get very easily, and some will anger you because you have to look in the back to fiqure it out. My wife and i enjoy the book very much. I Also share the puzzles inside with my neice and nephew ( 11 and 8 respectively), they also enjoy the challenge.