Rating: 
Summary: Great for all school ages!
Review: I'm a teacher and have used this book in all of my high school math classes from ESE to AP. The kids really get a kick out of it; the humor helps to bring new life to math and how it relates to real life.
Rating: 
Summary: Cursed be the quadratic equations! Arrrgh!
Review: I'm always fascinated by those picture books so incredibly popular that they inspire highly sought after sequels. We expect sequels from popular movies and television shows, but picture books are a different matter entirely. What is it about a good book for children that causes masses of people to clamor for another of its ilk? I ask all of this because Jon Scieszka's ingenious, "Math Curse", is a perfect example of what I'm asking. Telling a simple tale of a boy (or possibly a girl) as he/she becomes enmeshed in a never ending day o' math problems, the book has recently been joined by the equally amusing "Science Curse". As such, it deserves closer inspection.
One day our protagonist (who, for lack of a gender, I will refer to in as unbiased a manner as I possibly can) wakes up with a problem. Just the day before, the kid's teacher pronounced that, "You know, you can think of almost everything as a math problem". Whoopsie! Before you know it our hero is spinning in an out-of-control vortex of mathematically inspired thoughts and questions. These range from the practical questions you'd often receive in school ("Mrs. Fibonacci has this CHART of what month everyone's birthday is in: 1. Which month has the most birthdays? 2. Which month has the fewest") to the downright silly ("What is another way to say 1/2 of an apple pie? a. 2/6. b. 3/6. c. la moitie d'une tarte aux pommes"). By the end of the day our little protagonist can't take it any more. Fortunately a fortuitous dream ends all math problems and in the morning everything's the same again. This is until the teacher thinks to mention, "You know, you can think of almost everything as a science experiment".
Don't get the impression by this review that this book is going to be dull to you parental English majors out there. I can personally assure you that as a child/teen/adult I have hated and continue to hate all math related ventures. Nonetheless, this book charmed me. First of all, that has a lot to do with its creators. I turn your attention now to the incomparable Jon Scieszka (pronounced shiss-ka, or so I am told) and his partner in crime Lane Smith. If you're already familiar with their particularly original, "The Stinky Cheese Man, and Other Fairly Stupid Tales" or "The True Story of the Three Little Pigs", then you have some sort of an idea what to expect. Both men are delightful twisted, but twisted in entirely different ways. While Scieszka puns and takes an especial pleasure in silly statements and questions, Lane illustrates his pictures with creative psychotic aplomb. The result is a book that's as vastly original as it is enjoyable to read through.
Genuinely funny picture books are always too far and few between. Since I can honestly tell you that this book is a droll little piece of chicanery that you should be sure not to miss, you've no need to worry. Just go out and purchase it for your kids, your kids' friends, and children you've never seen before in your life but who may enjoy the laudable, "Math Curse". It'll do you a spot of good.
Rating:
Summary: Math Curse
Review: Jon Scieska's Math Curse is an excellent book for motivating students about problem solving. Whenever I read this book to my students, they ask me to read it over and over again. I would highly recommend reading this book to people of all ages. If you love this book, I also suggest that you read Scieska's other books, especially the True Story of the Three Little Pigs and the Stinky Cheese man.
Rating:
Summary: How to reverse a Math Curse
Review: Math Curse - I would definitely recommend the Math Curse for all ages. It is especially helpful with explaining to young children that math is essential for every day activities. It also deals with math problems that come up unexpectedly in daily routines. The pictures in this book are incredibly vivid and they captivate the reader by displaying math problems through charts and other simple mathematical formulas. This book is a must for every elementary school classroom. This book is really helpful for anyone trying to reach students and change their outlook on math! Students who have once feared math and felt they were cursed will now have a greater appreciation for math!
Rating:
Summary: How to reverse a Math Curse
Review: Math Curse - I would definitely recommend the Math Curse for all ages. It is especially helpful with explaining to young children that math is essential for every day activities. It also deals with math problems that come up unexpectedly in daily routines. The pictures in this book are incredibly vivid and they captivate the reader by displaying math problems through charts and other simple mathematical formulas. This book is a must for every elementary school classroom. This book is really helpful for anyone trying to reach students and change their outlook on math! Students who have once feared math and felt they were cursed will now have a greater appreciation for math!
Rating: 
Summary: Math Curse is a curse.
Review: Math Curse explores math from a different point of view. It encourages the reader to view life as a math problem. Although repetitive, this book makes its reader aware of the day to day applications of math. The graphics were very distracting for the reader. Even though the graphics emphasized the word "curse", they were too nightmarish for young children. Because of this, I would not recommend this book for sensitive children. In essence, Math Curse is a nightmare to a reluctant math student.
Rating:
Summary: Children and Adults Love It!
Review: Math Curse is a hilarious book about how math can be so confusing at first, but then how it all of a sudden clicks. This wonderfully illustrated book shows children how math is in the real world with everyone, everywhere, everyday. I read this book to my sixth graders and they loved it! It is a must read for parents, teachers, and students. Enjoy!
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Summary: Math Curse Review
Review: Math Curse was a big hit when I read it to a 4Th grade class I was observing. The pictures are vivid and grabbed their attention. It contains a lot of usefull information on everyday life, like how much time you have to get dressed, to eat, and how everything can be looked at like a math problem.I would definatly recommend Math Curse to children and adults of all ages.
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Summary: Math Curse
Review: Math Curse
Jon Scieszka & Lane Smith This book is about "The Math Curse" The boy has the Math Curse. In this book you can think of everything as a math problem. Every class the boy has or goes too. He is always doing a math problem and he doesn't know it (well he does).
The lesson this book teaches is how to write a math a problem, and do a math problem. The book also has questions in the book that really make you think. The age level for this could be ages seven and up. I really liked this book myself. It teaches many things, this book would be good to use in a classroom. And it can help kids the world.
Rating:
Summary: introduction to pragmatic math and surrealist illustration
Review: Mrs. Fibonacci has told her class 'You know, you can think of almost everything as a math problem'. The Math Curse has begun. Suddenly our little protagonist cannot look *anywhere* without thinking of math problem after math problem -- in the closet, at the dinner table, on the bus. He is quite agitated until he realizes he can solve all the problems he sees. Bold, interesting illustrations.
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