George L. Legendre

Sometimes you come across a book that is so wonderful you want to recommend it to everyone. Sometimes you come across a book that is so specific in subject matter that you can't think of another soul who would appreciate it. Sometimes it's the same book.

Pasta by Design is the brainchild of two architects, one of whom is Italian. The book is about over 90 different kinds of pasta: where it comes from, what its name means, what is significant or characteristic about its shape, how long to cook it, and what to serve it with.

The book also contains mathematical formulas describing the shape of every kind of pasta in the book. (Let me tell you, friend, you have not lived until you have seen the six formulas which define the shape of a tortellino.)

Highly recommended for the gourmet who also enjoys advanced mathematics. Or for the mathematician who gets a kick out of math creatively applied. Or for the calculus teacher who thinks that integrating the shape of macaroni would be a good test question on a final exam. (It would!)… (mere)