Book cover of I Want to Be a Mathematician: An Automathography in Three Parts (Maa Spectrum Series)

Book description

"I Want To Be A Mathematician" is an account of the author's life as a mathematician. It tells us what it is like to be a mathematician and to do mathematics. It will be read with interest and enjoyment by those in mathematics and by those who might want to…

When you buy books, we may earn a commission that helps keep our lights on (or join the rebellion as a member).

Why read it?

1 author picked I Want to Be a Mathematician as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

Told by one of the most famous orators and expositors of mathematics, Paul Halmos tells us what it’s like being a mathematician – at least what it was like for him being a mathematician. While I was fortunate to have had a conversation with such a unique person (about writing mathematics), it is even more fortunate that he has done many of us a favor by writing this book.

If you love I Want to Be a Mathematician...

Book cover of December on 5C4

December on 5C4 by Adam Strassberg,

Magical realism meets the magic of Christmas in this mix of Jewish, New Testament, and Santa stories–all reenacted in an urban psychiatric hospital!

On locked ward 5C4, Josh, a patient with many similarities to Jesus, is hospitalized concurrently with Nick, a patient with many similarities to Santa. The two argue…

Want books like I Want to Be a Mathematician?

Our community of 13,000+ authors has personally recommended 86 books like I Want to Be a Mathematician.

Browse books like I Want to Be a Mathematician

Book cover of The Magic of Math: Solving for X and Figuring Out Why
Book cover of The Man Who Loved Only Numbers: The Story of Paul Erdos and the Search for Mathematical Truth
Book cover of The Joy of X: A Guided Tour of Math, from One to Infinity

Share your top 3 reads of 2026!

And get a beautiful page showing off your 3 favorite reads.

181

readers submitted
so far, will you?

📚 If you like I Want to Be a Mathematician, you might also like...

Book cover of Sexy Selfie Nation: Standing Up for Yourself in Today's Toxic, Sexist Culture

Sexy Selfie Nation by Leora Tanenbaum,

The problem is not with the actions young women take but with the toxic, sexist conditions they are responding to.

Tanenbaum found, based on six years of interviews with young people ages 14-30, that young women are navigating a culture littered with gendered dress codes, revenge porn, and sexually explicit…

Book cover of In This Together: Connecting with Your Community to Combat the Climate Crisis

In This Together by Marianne E. Krasny,

In This Together explores how we can harness our social networks to make a real impact fighting the climate crisis. Against notions of the lone environmental crusader, Marianne E. Krasny shows us the power of "network climate action"—the idea that our own ordinary acts can influence and inspire those close…

5 book lists we think you will like!