Around the World in 80 Games: A mathematician unlocks the secrets of the greatest games

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'BRILLIANTLY CLEAR AND CAPTIVATING PROSE' STEPHEN FRY

A WATERSTONES BOOK OF YEAR 2023

An award-winning mathematician explores the maths behind the games we love and why we love to play them.
Where should you move first in Connect 4

Which property is best in Monopoly

How can pi help you win Rock Paper Scissors

Crossing oceans, continents and millennia, award-winning mathematician Marcus du Sautoy explores how maths and games have always been deeply intertwined. As well as being integral to human psychology and culture throughout the ages, games provided the first opportunities for deep mathematical insight into the world. This grand adventure teaches us how to strategise, play better and win more often.

The subject matter is fun (I mean, isnt it quite literally the definition of fun) and du Sautoys enthusiasm is infectious THE SUNDAY TIMES

Lively, creative and humane exactly as one would expect from Marcus du Sautoy TIM HARFORD, author of How To Make The World Add Up

'A delightful and addictive celebration of games. Youll keep wanting one more go' DARA BRIAIN, author of Is There Anybody Out There

You do not need to be a seasoned player nor a skilled mathematician to relish this enchanting read. However, this book may just encourage you to become one or the other REINER KNIZIA, award-winning game designer

Reviews

Marcus du Sautoys brilliantly clear and captivating prose manages to bring to life the drama of so many different games. With the lightest of touches du Sautoy manages persuasively to show how games are both narratives that speak about us and structures whose ideas underlie everything in our known universe. And on top of it, the book serves as an absolutely indispensable compendium. Rainy weekends in Cornwall will now be welcomed Stephen Fry

The book encapsulates the very essence of human ingenuity and our intrinsic love for play and exploration. You do not need to be a seasoned player nor a skilled mathematician to relish this enchanting read. However, this book may just encourage you to become the one or the other Reiner Knizia, award-winning game designer

'Du Sautoys enthusiasm is infectious perhaps it will ignite a search for new gaming horizons beyond lazy Cluedo sessions on Boxing Day. It may even awaken a recognition in those who dont see themselves as gaming fans that its not that they are fundamentally averse to games, its that they have yet to find the right oneSunday Times

The world of games is vast and du Sautoy ranges across it boldly, his lively and engaging style keeping things readable, even for those with non-mathematical minds An excellent Christmas present for anyone who seriously enjoys playing games Literary Review

[du Sautoy] thoroughly knows his subject, and he writes with self-effacing charm A complex package delivered in refreshingly simple and consistently entertaining terms Kirkus starred review

This meticulous and deeply researched survey will appeal to math-lovers and history buffs alike Publishers Weekly

Author Bio

Marcus du Sautoy is Professor of Mathematics at the University of Oxford and a fellow of Wadham College. He has been named by the Independent on Sunday as one of the UK's leading scientists, has written extensively for the Guardian, The Times and the Daily Telegraph and has appeared on Radio 4 on numerous occasions. He is the author of The Music of the Primes and has presented Mind Games and Music of the Primes on BBC television. He was the Royal Institution Christmas lecturer in 2006, broadcast on Channel 5, and is filming The Story of Maths for the BBC. In October 2008 he was appointed to Oxford Universitys prestigious professorship as the Simonyi Chair for the Public Understanding of Science, a post previously held by Richard Dawkins. He lives in London with his wife and three children.