These clearly and cleverly presented mathematical recreations of paradoxes and paperfolding, Moebius variations and mnemonics both ancient and modern delight and perplex while demonstating principles of logic, probability, geometry, and other mathematical fields.

"A classic."—Andrew Rothery, Times Education Supplement

"Martin Gardner has turned a trick as neat as any in the book itself. He has selected a group of diversions which are not only entertaining but mathematically meaningful as well. The result is a work which is rewarding on almost every level of mathematical achievement."—Miriam Hecht, Iscripta Mathematica

Seasoned with Gardner's interest in the history and philosophy of science, this delightful book is a treasure-trove of puzzles, anecdotes, games, and logical theory. These intriguing problems, collected from Gardner's Scientific American columns, involve knots, interlocking rings, rotations and reflections, logical paradox, two-dimensional universes, chess strategies, and gambling odds.

"Gardner conjures problems that are both profound and silly; exquisite truths and outrageous absurdities; paradoxes, anagrams, palindromes and party tricks. . . . He knows, better than most, how many amazing true things there are in the world."—Newsweek

When Russel B. Nye and Martin Gardner teamed up to bring out a new edition of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, theirs was the first critical analysis of L. Frank Baum American classic. The book opens with an essay by Nye, entitled "An Appreciation," which is an overview of Baum's creative and imaginative genius. Nye explores the reasons why earlier critics virtually ignored the Oz stories. Gardner, in his essay, "The Royal Historian of Oz," presents a brief biographical sketch, revealing little-known facts about this prolific writer. The volume also contains the complete, original text of the Wonderful Wizard of Oz, along with many original illustrations by artist W. W. Denslow.