Each morning, the Professor and the Housekeeper are introduced to one another. The Professor may not remember what he had for breakfast, but his mind is still alive with elegant mathematical equations from the past. He devises clever maths riddles ? based on her shoe size or her birthday ? and the numbers reveal a sheltering and poetic world to both the Housekeeper and her ten-year-old son. With each new equation, the three lost souls forge an affection more mysterious than imaginary numbers, and a bond that runs deeper than memory.
Written by Bella, Simone, Sophie and Chiara
Bella
This is the story of a professor with an 80-minute short-term memory and his housekeeper and her young son who forge an unlikely friendship and bond with the professor.
This book gets to you and tugs at your heartstrings. It emphasizes the importance of living in the now, as the professor starts fresh every 80 minutes so the present is of utmost importance.
I’m a huge math-phobe, so the mention of numbers and equations initially scared me and put me off, but I felt my resistance wearing down while reading it and even gained subtle understanding of why some love the world of numbers.
Simone
This novel, by Japanese author Ogawa, is both factual and scientific as well as very tender and sweet. The professor in mathematics has a very short memory time span, and he aims to make sense of everything by holding on to his numbers and calculations. The housekeeper tries to adapt to this situation in every way she can and finds herself quite attached to the man.
Sophie
“One of the sweetest reads I know. It’s one of those books that gives dignity and respect to a difficult situation like the professor’s. If you enjoyed the film Past Lives, you’ll probably like this book, too.”
Chiara
This is the story of a brilliant math professor with a brain problem (his memory only lasts 80 minutes), his housekeeper and her son. Their relationship is strengthened through mathematical formulae, baseball and small, everyday acts of generosity.
A sweet, short novel that touched my heart in unexpected ways.
