Robert Recorde was an English mathematician who lived in the first part of the 16th century. Since his work predates most computing devices, Recorde belongs in the history of computing only in the very broadest sense, that is, if we include applied mathematics. Recorde did make some important contributions in this regard. Besides his invention of the equal sign, his texts and other works were written from a logical and fact-based point of view that foreshadowed the scientific method.

This volume primarily consists of a very detailed examination of Recorde’s four major mathematical books. The rest of the volume attempts to sketch out what is known about other aspects of his life, though few records about that are available.

Recorde seems to be an interesting person who did important work in applied mathematics. This should have been an interesting book, but it was not, for several reasons. First, Williams has a dry and uninspiring writing style. In addition, the book includes lengthy quotes from Recorde’s original work, complete with the spelling and usage of early 16th century English. While historical purists may think this a positive feature, most readers would find these passages difficult.

The primary stumbling block is Williams’ use of extreme detail, some of which is really not applicable to the subject at hand. For example, the book includes a detailed history of a now-ruined church building that was in the area where Recorde spent his childhood. This seems to have been included for two reasons. First, Recorde may have obtained some of his education in that building. Second, the date on the building was written in Hindu-Arabic numerals, which were rare in England at the time (Roman numerals were generally used). In either case, a detailed history of the building, including a long footnote on the form of the character “4” in the date, seems to be a useless tangent.

For the graduate student in the history of mathematics, this thorough and detailed work would be valuable. Other readers, however, would find it painfully dry.