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Master Sun’s problem—first posed by Sun Bin, a Chinese military strategist and supposed descendent of Sun Tzu, the legendary author of The Art of War—is an ancient strategy question whose elegant simplicity conceals a fiendishly difficult mathematical puzzle. The problem was largely ignored for two thousand years until a college friend of Dana Mackenzie revived it—and in doing so, rekindled Mackenzie’s passion for mathematics.

Master Sun’s Problem is Mackenzie’s entertaining account of how, to his own amazement, he solved this tantalizing problem. Mackenzie, a former math professor turned science writer, describes every unexpected twist and turn, and provides advice, explanations, and plenty of examples for math lovers of all ages who want to try their own hand at discovering something new. Along the way, he traces the history of the problem and busts some myths about math and mathematicians, and reveals how the solution received a vital assist from ordinary people—the readers of The New York Times.

An eloquent meditation on the nature and practice of mathematics, Master Sun’s Problem is a story of the uncommon pleasures of mathematical exploration and a unique testament to the power of collaboration and tenacious curiosity.