Customer Reviews

One Riddle, One Answer

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My daughter brought this book home from her school library and asked me to read it to her. It is a great story about a girl who loves numbers. And perfect for me to read to her since I am an accountant. I really like that the book is about a woman who is good at math, and it takes her a lot of time to meet a man who can match her mathematical genius. It is a cute story with great illustrations.

Beautifully written and illustrated, this is an outstanding book for uses in the upper-elementary grades to accompany a lesson on properties of whole numbers (the multiplicative identity, in particular), place value, and problem solving, in general. I used it with my course for prospective elementary teachers and they loved it. I know that children will love it as well. It also supports gender equity in mathematical ability.

Young Aziza, the sultan's daughter, has been educated in all things, but her favorite subject is numbers. When the time comes to marry, how to choose her husband? A riddle, of course. A riddle with only one answer. She travels throughout the country searching for a man who can answer her riddle. An astronomer, a soldier, and a merchant all try, but fail. Just as Aziza is about to give up a farmer comes to the caravan to try to answer the riddle. This humble man knows the answer and becomes her groom. A detailed explanation of the riddle follows the story. The illustrations are beautiful. A great story, gorgeous pictures, math - what more could you want!