Murderous Maths

Murderous Maths is a series of British educational books by author Kjartan Poskitt. Most of the books in the series are illustrated by illustrator Philip Reeve, with the exception of "The Secret Life of Codes", which is illustrated by Ian Baker, "Awesome Arithmetricks" illustrated by Daniel Postgate and Rob Davis, and "The Murderous Maths of Everything", also illustrated by Rob Davis.
The Murderous Maths books have been published in over 25 countries. The books, which are aimed at children aged 8 and above, teach maths, spanning from basic arithmetic to relatively complex concepts such as the quadratic formula and trigonometry. The books are written in an informal similar style to the Horrible Histories, Horrible Science and Horrible Geography series, involving evil geniuses, gangsters, and a generally comedic tone.
The first two books of the series were originally part of "The Knowledge" (now "Totally") series, itself a spin-off of Horrible Histories. However, these books were eventually redesigned and they, as well as the rest of the titles in the series, now use the Murderous Maths banner. According to Poskitt, "these books have even found their way into schools and proved to be a boost to GCSE studies". The books are also available in foreign editions, including: German, Spanish, Polish, Czech, Greek, Dutch, Norwegian, Turkish, Croatian, Italian, Lithuanian, Korean, Danish, Hungarian, Finnish, Thai and Portuguese (Latin America). In 2009, the books were redesigned again, changing the cover art style and the titles of most of the books in the series.
Poskitt's goal, according to the Murderous Maths website, is to write books that are "something funny to read", have "good amusing illustrations", include "tricks", and "explaining the maths involved as clearly as possible". He adds that although he doesn't "work to any government imposed curriculum or any stage achievement levels", he has "been delighted to receive many messages of support and thanks from parents and teachers in the UK, the United States and elsewhere".
The following are the thirteen books that are available in the series.
Related puzzle books have been published also:
One title that covers many different areas of mathematics has also been released:
Kjartan has also written a book entitled Everyday Maths for Grown-Ups (2011).
A recommendation of the series by Scientific American includes a quote from a Stanford engineer named Stacy F. Bennet, who described the series as "very humorous and engaging introductions to such topics as algebra, geometry and probability". On 22 November 1997, that same publication said of the series, "Have a look at Murderous Maths by Kjartan Poskitt. It is a truly addictive reading book, and was leapt on and devoured by my children. The book is full of awful jokes, fascinating facts, real murders and yes, the maths is good too. This is a brilliant book."
The Primary Times released a review of Professor Fiendish's Book of Diabolical Brain-benders on November 25, 2002, describing the title as "intriguing, fun to do, and not at all dry", and adding "I warn you, once you start, you'll be 'hooked'!". The Times Educational Supplement also published a review on the book on December 6, 2002, describing the title as being "action-packed" and reasoning that "behind the non-stop fun, serious mathematical principles are being investigated".
Kjartan did a presentation for 350 kids and 10 teachers at Wolfreton School, Hull in June 2004. Reporter Linda Blackbourne described it as a "stand-up maths routine [that] has children - and teachers - in fits of laughter". Carousel issue 16 (the guide to children's books) commented on the event: "...he possesses a prodigious gift of the (Yorkshire) gab, appears to be incapable of not enjoying himself, and plays his audience with the finesse of a maestro. Maths will never seem the same again".
The Times Educational Supplement described Murderous Maths as "A stand-up maths routine has children and teachers in fits of laughter... maths has never been so much fun". The Western Gazette said: "It is not often that you see a grown maths teacher cry with laughter...", while The Worthing Gazette said: "The kids went wild, they absolutely loved it...". The Stockton Evening Gazette said: "Headteacher Barry Winter said it was a stroke of genius inviting the quick-witted author to open the resource centre". The GCSE book in the Guardian said: "Those who have experienced Poskitt "live" will recognise his commitment to getting readers involved with the learning process" (Nov 6th 2001), and The Press (York) described it as "...charismatic..."
A review by science writer Brian Clegg described his views on Murderous Maths: Desperate Measures: