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Some Interesting Memories: A Paradoxical Life6 reviews
Raymond M. Smullyan

Thinkers' Press, 2002

Some Interesting Memories
I have been a fan of the wonderful Raymond Smullyan for over 20 years, since "What is the Name of This Book?", and I was glad to find that this book is indeed more than a simple compendium of Smullyan's previous books (though, honestly, not all THAT much more than that). My first pleasant surprise was seeing that this book was published by Thinkers' Press, a noted chess book publisher (I am very ... 		  
  







  
  
Satan, Cantor, And Infinity and Other Mind-Boggling Puzzles6 reviews
Raymond M. Smullyan

Knopf, 1992

To tell the truth...
Raymond Smullyan has been described (by Martin Gardner, no less) as the most entertaining logician ever (lets leave aside the lack of competition here -- after all, Kurt Godel wasn't known to be a bundle of laughs, etc. ...). One of the points of logic is to figure out what lines of reasoning make sense, and what can be considered true and false, given the proper rules of rational thought and ... 		  
  







  
  
Who Knows?: A Study of Religious Consciousness3 reviews
Raymond M. Smullyan

Indiana University Press, 2003

Inquiring Minds Want to Start At "Who Knows?"
Here is a book that manages, in relatively few pages and in a style that is consistently readable, to address provacatively and intelligently some of the central questions that men and women throughout time have pondered. Three basic areas are covered: (1) The existence of God, and more important, the "type" of God in whom one believes, (2) The question of whether God is unable or unwilling to ... 		  
  







  
  
What is the name of this book?: The riddle of Dracula and other logical puzzles13 reviews
Raymond M Smullyan

Prentice-Hall, 1978

Good Intro to a DEEP Subject
At the time this book was written, Raymond Smullyan was one of the world's leading experts on Godel's Incompleteness Theorems -- some of the deepest mathematical results of the 20th century. This book is actually a gentle intro to these topics, and the most amazing part of it is that Dr. Smullyan keeps the level suitable for children. That does NOT mean this book is not suitable for adults. ... 		  
  







  
  
Lady or the Tiger? And Other Logic Puzzles Including a Mathematical Novel That Features Godel's Great ...9 reviews
Raymond M. Smullyan

Random House Puzzles & Games, 1992

Intellectually stimulating
This is a fine book with independent chapters that can be dipped into when you want some good intellectual company. The first few puzzles got me hooked. Smullyan is very good at giving a new twist to old puzzles. 		  
  







  
  
The Tao Is Silent23 reviews
Raymond M. Smullyan

HarperOne, 1977

the path to enlightenment starts here
I was skeptical as I first began to read the short story (or perhaps essay) 'Is God a Taoist'. But it hit me like a ton of bricks with a few simple words 'Where do you end, and the rest of the universe begin?'. And by the time I had finished reading the essay i began to see the world differently then my Catholic School Boy eyes had ever seen it. I immediately rushed out to buy the book, to learn ... 		  
  







  
  
The Chess Mysteries of Sherlock Holmes: Fifty Tantalizing Problems of Chess Detection10 reviews
Raymond M. Smullyan

Random House Puzzles & Games, 1994

joy of discovery
I think the 2-star reviewer misses the point of this book: it's supposed to be fun. And it is. The puzzles are pretty challenging, and it definitely helps if you play chess. You tend to notice positional abnormalities that are the bases of the problems. From there, it's just detective work. But the real treat to this book is the world the author creates. Smullyan's characters can't play chess for ... 		  
  







  
  
Godel's Incompleteness Theorems (Oxford Logic Guides, No 19)4 reviews
Raymond M. Smullyan

Oxford University Press, USA, 1992

Finally -- Straight Talk About Incompleteness!
Well. This is the book. Read this instead of, or before you read Goedelıs paper. Within 20 pages you will know the ıtrickı that Goedel used. Itıs a beauty, but it is far easier to see it under Smullyanıs tutelage than by coming to the classic paper cold, since Goedel uses a more difficult scheme to achieve his ends. Much work has been done since 1931, and we get the benefit of the stripping-down ... 		  
  







  
  
First-Order Logic8 reviews
Raymond M. Smullyan

Dover Publications, 1995

a classic
I mainly bought this book because of the influence it has had on numerous modern-day logic texts. If you are unfamiliar with the tableaux method for structural proofs, then you will gain alot from reading this, as it provides a different perspective from the more popular Hilbert-system approach. Tableaux systems, of course, have been made popular because they are easy to program with a computer. ... 		  
  







  
  
To Mock a Mockingbird4 reviews
Raymond M. Smullyan

Oxford University Press, 2000

Sweet and Simple introduction to functional programming.
This book by Smullyan is different from his other puzzle books, in that it is fully about puzzles from functional programming. The birds are functors that compute on strings. Self reference comes into play when the Mockingbird shows you what a fixpoint computation is. The phethora of birds may confuse you if you try to read it fast or skip solving the puzzles. The problems are not easy, it took ... 		  
  







  
  
Riddle of Scheherazade, The: And Other Amazing Puzzles, Ancient and Modern9 reviews
Raymond M. Smullyan

Knopf, 1997

The only logic book you'll ever need
Seeing my frustration at being thoroughly unchallenged in logic in my math class at school, my mom bought me this book. I owe her one. There are coercive logic puzzles, easy but sneaky riddles, and math games. There are liar/truthteller problems to keep you guessing for hours. That said, this is also a great book to read on a plane. It is so complete, you will never need another brainteaser book. ... 		  
  







  
  
Alice in Puzzle-Land A Carrollian Tale for Children Under Eighty2 reviews
Raymond M. Smullyan

William Morrow & Co, 1986

Stretch your logic muscles here
He is "simply the best" is the phrase that most accurately describes the ability of Raymond Smullyan to create puzzles in logic. Written at a lower level than some of his other books, no background in formal logic is necessary to understand and solve all of the problems in this collection. While the novice will find the problems understandable, even the veteran will experience new levels of ... 		  
  







  
  
Recursion Theory for Metamathematics (Oxford Logic Guides)1 review
Raymond M. Smullyan

Oxford University Press, USA, 1993

guess what?
you can buy this for less than twenty bucks on half.com's website 		  
  







  
  
Forever Undecided: A Puzzle Guide to Godel (Oxford Paperbacks)3 reviews
Raymond M. Smullyan

Oxford Univ Pr, 1988

Brain candy in a logical form
Do you believe that you know what you believe? Is it possible to believe only those things that are true? These questions are but two of the many addressed in this book by Professor Smullyan, and the answers will surprise you! With most of the material in the form of puzzles, and nearly all of them solved, it is possible for a logical novice to read and understand the book. However, it is ... 		  
  







  
  
The Chess Mysteries of the Arabian Knights4 reviews
Raymond M. Smullyan

Oxford University Press, 1992

Wonderful, tricky problems
The prevoius reviewer misses the point of the problems, I think. They are not normal chess problems. They are "retrograde analysis" problems, where you have figure out how a given position came to be. Perhaps this is the reviewer's problem: he claims several of the positions are impossible. In fact, the challenge is to figure out how in the world they *can* be possible; many do indeed look ... 		  
  







  
  
This Book Needs No Title: A Budget of Living Paradoxes4 reviews
Raymond M. Smullyan

Prentice Hall Trade, 1980

Paradoxical reflections
Raymond Smullyan, of whom I am a longtime reader, is probably best known as a creator of fiendishly brilliant logic puzzles. He's also a mathematical logician of high caliber (and a magician, and a pianist, and . . . ) But some of his lesser-known works have consisted of philosophical reflections on a wide range of subjects (which nevertheless include a common thread that is devilishly difficult ... 		  
  







  
  
The Lady or the Tiger?3 reviews
Raymond M. Smullyan

Knopf, 1982

An overlooked gem
I find it surprising that this book is almost unknown and out of print. This collection of logic puzzles is easily one of the best ever written. Starting with a small set of lighthearted teasers, continuing with progressively more serious problems, including probably the most complete variations on liar/knight and metapuzzle themes, and finishing with the best amateur level introduction to ... 		  
  







  




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