Rating: 
Summary: Prime Reading
Review: Give this book a chance, and it will rekindle the joy in numbers that you probably lost, like me, sometime in high school algebra. Though Hoffman's non-linear account of Erdos'life is certainly fascinating, this book is really a celebration and meditation on the elegance of number theory, with cameos by all the great mathematicians from the Greeks to Andrew Wiles, the modern day conquerer of Fermat's Last Theorem. A fun and well written book, and I think you will gain a very strong admiration for Erdos as a human, not just a math genius, as you go along.
Rating: 
Summary: Worst biography I have ever read
Review: This is the worst biography I have ever read. There is no common thread that holds the book together. It seems like different parts have been cut from different sources and pasted here. There are absolutely non-sensical and useless diversions into Hardy and his interest in cricket, Ramanujan and his food habits etc. Cheap tricks to get attention and hide poor research.It is clear that the author has no interest in mathematics and it almost seems like the book was published to cash in on Erdos's death and the media attention the event was getting. Save your money and time.
Rating:
Summary: Erdos is god
Review: An intimate portrait of the legendary Paul Erdos. Paul Hoffman spent a lot of time around Erdos and as a result he's able to describe Erdos' life in great detail. For better understanding of the greatness of uncle Paul I recommend "The Mathematics of Paul Erdos" from Springer Verlag.
Rating: 
Summary: Good, Fun Book, but Not Great
Review: If, like me, you want a quick, easy read about this fasinating man, this is the book for you. However, if you want a biography that completly covers Paul Erdos, this book is not for you. The author often wanders to other subjects (Other number thoerists)--not that they are bad, he just often gets away from Erdos. Still though, it was worth my money. I recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: Intreaging, funny, humbling. The story a truely amazing man.
Review: I picked up this book in Glasgow airport for a quick read, probably never destined to get past page forty. I was glued from page one. It's well written, funny, truly humbling and the captivating story of a man who is unlikely ever to be paralleled. It puts across the perfectly the way in which the mathematical community is one big, happy family. All working together to better man kinds knowledge of math and the way it all fits together. The SF himself would find this impossible to put down!
Rating:
Summary: Very enjoyable book but one math problem remains unsolved
Review: Paul Erdos always carried two suitcases with him that were each only one-third full. The question is, why carry two?
Rating: 
Summary: Excellent
Review: I enjoyed the book as it contains an excellent mixture of facts, figures, fun, and feelings. One can only hope this inspires a lot of Epsilons to work in mathematics.
Rating:
Summary: Not just Paul (unfortunately)
Review: I picked up this book in the hopes of finding out more about this mathematician named Paul. Many of my math professors have spent at least some time illustrating his eccentricities (or was it weirdness?). Unfortunately, I finished this book without learning much. The main reason was because so much of the book was digressions. The digression about Andrew Wiles and Fermat's Last Theorem seemed especially out of place (perhaps because I enjoyed Singh's "Fermat's Enigma" as an account of the history of FLT). Likewise, the sections on Hardy, Ramanujan, Godel and others seemed out of place. For those who are interested in the alternate universe of a mathematician, this may be a worthwhile book. As for a biography on one of history's most prolific mathematicians.... maybe try somewhere else.
Rating:
Summary: "The reviewer(s) doth protest too much, methinks."
Review: Curious, how what others have called such a terrible and horrible book about a very odd mathematics genius, should result in over 26 reviews & comments, many of them critical? If you have a interest or fascination for what is different in human beings and life, then you will love this book on Paul Erdos. And his character is not solely limited to those who are passionate and obsessed among mathematicians, chess and ping pong players, but can be observed in almost any field or avocation. For example, in music, the great interpretive pianist, Glenn Gould, immediately comes to mind. One thing is guaranteed--readers will not be neutral about this book, nor it's subject.
Rating:
Summary: Great math, poor literature
Review: Perhaps the math in this book is what wins it five stars from the math people who have reviewed it. If you aren't a math major, and would like a look into the heart of a great mathematician, look elsewhere. Perhaps the author is too accustomed to writing magazine articles. He is unable to sustain the pattern to write a full length book, so we wander off into digressions. The book never pulls itself together. Over and over we are reminded of Erdos's mortality, that the old man is on his last legs, and has even imagined how he would like to die. My impression was that the last days of this great man would be a unifying theme of the work, but we never learn if Erdos met his end in the way he wished. I am not being morbid (I hope); from a literary standpoint, the author should have handled this better. If you know all about math, and would like to see a bunch of unrelated andecdotes about Erdos thrown together willy-nilly, this is the book for you. Not for me. +Say, if I write a review, can I get my money back?
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