 <i>Cakes, Custard and Category Theory</i>&#x2F;<i>How to Bake Pi</i> is very similar to <i>Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance</i>: it has not much of anything to do with the subjects mentioned in the title. You will find some recipes, sort of, and you&#x27;ll find some category theory, sort of. But if you&#x27;re looking to learn anything about either, this is not the book for you.<p>As another reviewer said, this is a love letter from the author to mathematics. But, like most love letters, if you are not the sender or the receiver, it won&#x27;t make a great deal of sense. There are many anecdotes from the life of a mathematician here, and many short vignettes of mathematics. But not enough details about either to make some kind of autobiography or some kind of informative math book. Unfortunately, since I&#x27;m neither the author nor Mathematics, I&#x27;m left with nothing but the feeling that I&#x27;ve been reading something that was not intended for me.<p>Here&#x27;s one example of the former: &quot;I once went to a party and decided to try an experiment: I refused to tell anyone what my job was. Telling people you&#x27;re a mathematician produces all sorts of odd responses. Some people become afraid, and extract themselves very quickly, but others immediately start trying to demonstrate how &#x27;intelligent&#x27; they are. Yet others immediately start trying to belittle me....&quot; Unfortunately, she never tells us what happened in the experiment.