This Book Does Not Exist - Adventures in the Paradoxical

by Gary Hayden

Welcome to the perplexing world of the paradoxical. Prepare to stretch your mind and challenge everything you think you know, as This Book Does Not Exist unveils just how weird a place the world of thought can be, introducing you to some of the great names in the field of paradoxes, from the ancient Greeks to Einstein.Filled with philosophical and mathematical problems to baffle and delight you, This Book is a collection of thought experiments, real-life examples and puzzles for you to try. Divided into eight mind-bending chapters, it takes you on a journey from the counterintuitive to the downright absurd, forever changing the way you think.

Genres: Nonfiction, Philosophy, Science, Mathematics, Unfinished

Hardcover

First published January 1, 2009

About the author

If you look at the ratings I give, here on Goodreads, you might think that I'm very easy to please, since many of them are five-star. But that's because I tend mostly to rate books I love and admire, rather than just anything that comes my way.
I love classic literature, particularly classic British literature, especially Jane Austen, Charles Dickens and Anthony Trollope.
As a writer, I'm influenced to some degree by every good book I've ever read - and quite possibly many of the not-so-good books too. But my biggest (conscious) influences are the philosophers Bertrand Russell and David Hume.

Reviews

[Gary Hayden]

Can't really comment on this book since I wrote it.

[R · Rating 5 out of 5]

A brain melter.
An argument starter.
An argument solver.

A pick-up and put-down toilet book, yet it requires conversation and group analysis at times.

Anyone geek-inclined should read it.

[Al Bità · Rating 4 out of 5]

Heaven for lovers of paradox. This is an extensive collection of paradoxes, with references to the (usually) philosophers who thought about them, created them, discussed them. Great fun!

One quibble: my paperback edition is handsomely produced using various tinted paper throughout. Unfortunately, the font used, while fine if used bold, can be difficult to read in normal print, and is especially difficult to read in the even smaller size used for providing the solutions.

[kikiss]

Alors c tres marrant psk ce livre je le vois dans la bibliothèque de maman depuis que je suis toute petite le titre m’intriguait (le seul livre qui m’intriguait vraiment). un jour je demande à maman ce que c’est que ce livre elle me dit tu vas rien comprendre c des maths laisse tomber
Et un jour, pendant que je m’intéressais tranquillement a la philosophie et aux mathématiques je retombe sur ce livre et je vois qu’il traite des deux sujets qui m’intriguaient profondément !
Et voila qu’aujourdhui ce sont les deux matières que j’étudie
J’étais destiné depuis toute petite a ca j’avais la réponse devant les yeux je n’avais pas à chercher ce que j’aimais ! C’etait devant moi ! (Et je le voyais)

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another one of those books where if you have an idea what you are getting into and are eager to dive in, it fully meets your expectations.
This is a small, clever book of paradoxes, and I was happy that the authors presented the paradoxes not only considerably thoroughly and clearly, but in an unbiased way. Readable by any average human being, but it does allow you to use your head a little, if you so choose.
The only thing is I do wish the book was longer, and I wish they included a few more page-long biographies of famous philosophers.

[Dee · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was an alright book, a very succinct and efficient look at logical, philosophical, and mathematical paradoxes. I think Hayden put more effort into making the book an entertaining/marketable read rather than engaging seriously with ideas that run much deeper. By the same reasoning, presenting deeply paradoxical ideas to a mind that is prepared to think about them rather than being told how to think about them may be the book's true motive, making it a fantastically well-written piece. Which is it? Both? Neither???!

[Jackie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I remember when I first saw this book on the shelf at the store. I was intrigued by the title and the cat on the cover. I also liked the gray tones of paper and simplistic illustrations.

I meant to read the book a little every day and ponder each thing. Well, that didn't happen.

There are some things in this book that I found pretty interesting. Like when it talked about renovating a boat, and how much can it be changed and still be the same boat?

I had a hard time getting past the logic and math part, even though I remember liking logic in school, I found the parts in this book quite dull, and put down the book for weeks before attempting to get through the rest.

So, for me, the book was okay. I enjoyed some parts, and other parts...not so much. I am glad I finally finished it after all these years, though.

Another reader mentioned that the print was sometimes difficult to read against the grey tones paper of his paperback. The hardback cover had the same problem, especially with the small print, as mentioned.

[Chinchilla_clouds · Rating 4 out of 5]

Makes you think twice before stating anything.

[Bj]

“…for while we exist, death is not present, and when death is present, we no longer exist.”

[Phoenix · Rating 4 out of 5]

Indeed it does, and a Good Thing Too!

This book is a collection of short descriptions of well known paradoxes.

I'll start by stating that the cover of my edition is slightly different than the one shown here - it features a Nekker cube instead of a black cat. The arrangement of the text is slightly different but the colour and text font of the cover are the same.

The thematic organization of the book into 8 chapters worked very well in relating some 55 paradoxes to each other. The authors spend about 2-3 pages on each, explaining each paradox clearly and discussing how it might be resolved.

Some of the paradoxes revolve around an inadequate understanding of mathematics - Zeno's paradox is about mathematical limits; the Monty Hall paradox is about probability, and other paradoxes including "Can God Create and Object He Cannot Lift" revolve around an inadequate concept of infinity or the nature of "supertasks". Still others center around logic (The Barber Paradox), identity (The Ship of Thebes), or inadequate definitions (Heaps)

The writing is very accessible (a bright 12 year old could follow it) and does not require a mathematical background. At most 3 points in the book where you'd have problems if you were math phobic. I think it would make a nice gift for someone who likes puzzles or word play. My one complaint is that the publisher decided to use different coloured paper in each section - greyish text on brown paper can be hard to distinguish and should be avoided

[Assaad · Rating 4 out of 5]

As I am a big fan of Paradoxes, this book is a collection of the most important an well known paradoxes. Although I knew most of the paradoxes cited in this book, I enjoyed reading it because the book is well organized. In the book, paradoxes are classed according to their categories.
I discovered two new paradoxes to me, I have never heard about them: Hilbert's paradox of the Grand Hotel which I liked much and Newcomb paradox.
In general, this book is a must-read for people who are interested in logic and logical problems and paradoxes.

[Allyse]

This is one of those books you pick up when your brain is in a funk and you need to shake it up. I'm sure I'll never finish it but there are some interesting things to help exercise that three lb organ that can definitely stagnate if left to feed on mass media and pop tarts (altho my guilty sin is that I don't hate pop tarts :(

[Crystal · Rating 5 out of 5]

Goodness, I've never read anything so unsettling in my whole life. The book basically questioned everything we think we know as well as the world's existence and forces you to doubt everything (the only thing reassuring was when it told me I could not doubt my existence. Rene Descartes concluded that.)

[Danielle]

Great book - a wonderful introduction to the concept of the logical paradox, and a great primer on the various types of said. However, not a book to be read in one sitting, unless you want your brain to start bleeding.

[Lexa Salindato · Rating 3 out of 5]

I "found" this the other day while I was doing some random browsing in the library. To be honest, the title got me. It's very catchy. And although I am rather familiar already with most of the paradoxes included, it is still refreshing to discover new ones.

[Laurent · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cette critique n'existe pas! Tout comme les relecteurs tant les fautes d'orthographe et de typographie défigurent cette édition. Dommage, car même si le style laisse à désirer, les paradoxes exposés sont prenants et décrivent l'air de rien une histoire de la philosophie et des mathématiques.

[C · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book made my brain hurt! It's not that it was poorly written; quite the contrary. My mind could simply not compute & it shut down! If you are science or math minded & are able to easily grasp complexities, I think you'd enjoy this book.

[Audrey Hacker · Rating 5 out of 5]

i loved this book!! i found it vwery interesting although it made my head hurt!! i would recommemed this book to anyone interested in this stuff!

[Tanya · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found the idea of dividing this book into two page bits quite useful. The math in the logic section was a bit much for me, but overall this book was useful.

[Dyonis Miller]

Thoroughly enjoyed the section on infinity and Hilbert's Hotel. Recommended for any math geeks out there.

[Erikka · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a great brain workout! This was such a fun book and started many many discussions between my husband and I (hence the reason a 160 page book took a week to read). I really enjoyed this!