MATHEMATICAL FICTION:

a list compiled by Alex Kasman (College of Charleston)

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The Unknown Quantity (1933)
Hermann Broch
(click on names to see more mathematical fiction by the same author)
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Contributed by John L. Bell, University of Western Ontario.

"Here the main character is a mathematician who learns, through love and tragedy, that the `unknown quantity' of life resists mathematical formulation."

More information about this work can be found at www.amazon.com.
(Note: This is just one work of mathematical fiction from the list. To see the entire list or to see more works of mathematical fiction, return to the Homepage.)

Works Similar to The Unknown Quantity
According to my `secret formula', the following works of mathematical fiction are similar to this one:
  1. The Man Without Qualities Vol. 1: A Sort of Introduction and Pseudo Reality Prevails by Robert Musil
  2. San by Lan Samantha Chang
  3. Stranger than Fiction by Marc Forster (Director) / Zach Helm (Screenplay)
  4. The Sleepwalkers (Schlafwandler) by Hermann Broch
  5. The Bishop Murder Case by S.S. van Dine (pseudonym of Willard Huntington Wright)
  6. Murder by Mathematics by Hector Hawton
  7. The Intangible by C.J. Washington
  8. Properties of Light by Rebecca Goldstein
  9. The Hyperboloid of Engineer Garin by Aleksei Nikolaevich Tolstoi
  10. Parade's End by Ford Madox Ford
Ratings for The Unknown Quantity:
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Categories:
Genre
MotifAcademia,
TopicMathematical Physics,
MediumNovels,

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Where are the new works of mathematical fiction?: As you can see from this chronological listing, this database includes many works of mathematical fiction for each year from 1990 to 2025. Strangely, only two are listed for 2026, so far. Either less mathematical fiction is being published than in previous years or I'm just having more trouble finding it. If you know of any works of fiction that should be added to this list, especially recently published ones, please let me know. (Keep in mind that I do not include self-published works or children's fiction that just covers elementary mathematical concepts.) Thanks!

(Maintained by Alex Kasman, College of Charleston)