Anno’s Mysterious Multiplying Jar (1983)
Masaichiro & Mitsumasa Anno
Illustrated by Mitsumasa Anno
I enjoy connecting math to literature, but have often found that many are simplistic for many intermediate students. This book was an exciting find for me, with its beautiful watercolor and pen illustrations that captures the interest of readers before explaining the mathematical concepts in numeric and pictoral form. Though this text explains the advanced concept of factorials, the images make it comprehensible for a wide range of readers and may inspire intermediate students to continue understanding the world with numbers.
The story unfolds with a delicately painted jar, which the authors invite us to look into. The ship painted on the jar foretells the journey that readers are led through. The math starts with an island, which is divided into two countries and then into mountains, kingdoms, villages, and so on. Readers will want to linger on the illustrations of the various homes depicted in the pictures.
Whether introducing the concept of multiplication or to explain factorials, this book is inspiring and artful literature connection to mathematics.
Yes, Anno has many cool concept books -- check out Anno's Counting Book and Anno's Journey...so detailed!
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