[2] Andrew Bremner called the book "a delight" and opined that readers of Martin Gardner would appreciate it.
[1] A. Robert Pargeter found it "fascinating" both for systematic reading and for browsing, and he recommended that school and college libraries carry it.
[4] Sarah Gourlie called the book "organized and enlightening", while observing that some topics were considerably more demanding than others.
[5] Likewise, reviewing the book for the Mathematical Association of America, Allen Stenger noted that while the book only presumed knowledge of high-school algebra and trigonometry, it also in places demanded a "high level of mathematical reasoning".
[2] A retrospective by Ezra Brown also commented on the "more than a little sophistication" required to follow some of Conway and Guy's discussions, while finding that the authors' joy "comes through on every page".