I’m just going to come right out and say it: Math is not my favorite. I’m a bookworm, more inclined towards language than arithmetic. Nevertheless, I’ve bred with a veritable calculator– our offspring are innately mathematically inclined and I’d prefer not to squash their inherent gifting. (This is why I no longer teach our eldest math.)
Rather than fan the flames of the numbers versus letters debate, why not embrace the two jointly? This week’s What to Read Wednesday installment fits the bill perfectly– books about math! In my seldom humble opinion, the best books about math are the ones that sneak it in like the kale in my smoothie, which is just such the case with Firstborn’s latest library borrow. I steered her towards Andy Weir’s recent novel, The Martian. As is our custom, we’ll screen the film together after she reads the book. (see also: Narnia, Percy Jackson, The Hobbit, Harry Potter, Willy Wonka, Mr. Popper’s Penguin’s, The Hunger Games, Lemony Snicket, etc.)
Full disclaimer, I haven’t yet read the book***, but Husband has and vouched approvingly. I suppose I’ll read it in tandem with our daughter– God bless the library for stocking multiple copies on it’s shelves. I did see the movie, however; so can share the spoiler that the title character must precisely calculate his minimum caloric needs in order to budget his food rations in hopes of ensuring/prolonging his survival. Translation? Math.
Warning: This book contains some bad language, I recommend it only for some older kids & adults.
Bonus Martian meme that blesses my weary homeschoolin’ heart:
***Updated to share that I’ve since finished the book (and promptly re-watched the film) and it was fantastic– two enthusiastic thumbs up from this homeschoolin’ mama– it was even more “mathy” than I had hoped, and The Lord of the Rings reference delivered by none other than Boromir blessed by nerdy heart all the way to Mars and back.
And now for the link up!
The most popular post from last week is most befitting, what with the total solar eclipse imminent this weekend (our new house is in the path of totality!) & all the mathematical calculations that went into predicting it with accuracy:
Our hosts will still share a themed selection of our favorite books each week.
By linking up you agree that if your blog post is selected to be featured on any of our hosts’ blogs that we can use an image from your post with a link back to your post.
This list has our book themes, but you don’t have to stick to that to link up–any family-friendly posts are welcome. So, come on! Join in the fun!
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