Blockhead: The Life of Fibonacci

From School Library Journal Grade 2–5—Leonardo does his math problems so quickly that he has plenty of time to look out the window and count other things in nature. His teacher, however, chastises him for daydreaming and the other students call him a "blockhead." Only his father's advisor, Alfredo, understands that Leonardo has a fascination with numbers, a love that will eventually help him become the "greatest Western mathematician in the Middle Ages." As an adult, Fibonacci imagines the figure of Alfredo continuing to help him refine his theories. Although the book is presented as a biography, the author states that "little is known about the life of…Leonardo Fibonacci" and no sources are listed. Entertaining in the vein of the "You Wouldn't Want to Be" series, this lighthearted introduction to Fibonacci's ideas will inspire young math lovers and perhaps point them toward more scholarly explorations. The illustrations have a medieval look to them but without any stiffness or fussiness. They include many touches of humor and are well suited to the story. Painted with a broad pointillist style detailed with pen and ink, the pictures incorporate many visual references to Fibonacci's work, such as swirling features suggestive of the spiral, a key element in the mathematician's theories of nature.— Lucinda Snyder Whitehurst, St. Christopher's School, Richmond, VA Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. From Booklist Though written in a modern idiom (“‘Yuck,’ I thought. ‘Who wants to be a merchant?’”), D’Agnese’s introduction to medieval Europe’s greatest mathematician offers both a coherent biographical account—spun, with some invented details, from very sketchy historical records—and the clearest explanation to date for younger readers of the numerical sequence that is found throughout nature and still bears his name. O’Brien’s illustrations place the prosperously dressed, woolly headed savant in his native Pisa and other settings, contemplating flowers, seashells, and the so-called arabic numerals (which he promoted vigorously and rightly ascribes to India), as well as presenting a visual solution to his most famous mathematical word problem. Closing with a page of relevant activities for young naturalists, this picture book makes an excellent alternative to Joy N. Hulme’s colorful but flawed Wild Fibonacci: Nature’s Secret Code Revealed, illustrated by Carol Schwartz (2005). Grades 3-5. --John Peters “Charming and accessible...” ― The New York Times Book Review “* The lively text includes touches of humor; Emperor Frederick called him 'one smart cookie.' O'Brien's signature illustrations textured with thin lines re-create a medieval setting.” ― Kirkus Reviews, starred review “Math lover or not, readers should succumb to the charms of this highly entertaining biography of medieval mathematician Leonardo Fibonacci.” ― Publishers Weekly “D'Agnese's introduction to medieval Europe's greatest mathematician offers both a coherent biographical account--spun, with some invented details, from very sketchy historical records--and the clearest explanation to date for younger readers of the numerical sequence that is found throughout nature and still bears his name.” ― Booklist “This lighthearted introduction to Fibonacci's ideas will inspire young math lovers and perhaps point them toward more scholarly explorations.” ― School Library Journal “[An] engaging, kid-friendly look at Fibonacci and his eponymous numerical sequence... The book has some clever tongue-in-cheek humor, and D'Agnese does readers a favor by clearly explaining Fibonacci's breeding rabbits scenario... Throughout the book, O'Brien's illustrations are textured with swirls and spirals--a whimsical homage to the man who discovered, as he believed, 'the numbers Mother Nature uses to order the universe.'” ― Horn Book “Young listeners should get the gist of Fibonacci's work, and they can test their skills at identifying numbers in the Fibonacci sequence by looking for examples tucked throughout the artwork.” ― Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books Joseph D’Agnese is a writer and journalist who lives in the mountains of Western North Carolina. Though he writes about the Middle Ages, he considers himself a Renaissance man. He is the author of Blockhead: The Life of Fibonacci . JOHN O'BRIEN is lieutenant lifeguard on the Jersey shore and has been dedicated to beaches and beach safety for the past thirty-five years. The illustrator of many popular children's books-including This Is Baseball, This Is Figure Skating , and This Is Soccer -he divides his time between the Jersey shore and Miami, Florida. Read more