Proofs from THE BOOK

Proofs from THE BOOK by Martin Aigner and Günter M. Ziegler

Synopsis: Proofs from THE BOOK is a book of mathematical proofs by Martin Aigner and Günter M. Ziegler. The book is dedicated to the mathematician Paul Erdős, who often referred to “The Book” in which God keeps the most elegant proof of each mathematical theorem. During a lecture in 1985, Erdős said, “You don’t have to believe in God, but you should believe in The Book.”

This revised and enlarged fifth edition features four new chapters, which contain highly original and delightful proofs for classics such as the spectral theorem from linear algebra, some more recent jewels like the non-existence of the Borromean rings and other surprises.

First Published: 1998 | ISBN: 978-3-662-44205-0

Mini-bio: Martin Aigner is an Austrian mathematician, professor at Freie Universität Berlin since 1974, with interests in combinatorial mathematics and graph theory. He received Ph.D from the University of Vienna. Wikipedia

Mini-bio: Günter Matthias Ziegler is a German mathematician. Ziegler is known for his research in discrete mathematics and geometry, and particularly on the combinatorics of polytopes. Wikipedia

An exquisite text covering the work of Paul Erdős. It lists the most elegant proofs of mathematical theorems Erdős claimed were from THE BOOK written by God himself. – From 10 Great Books on Mathematics

American Mathematical Society Book Review [pdf]
Mathematical Association of America