Malba Tahan is the creation of a celebrated Brazilian mathematician who was looking for a way to bring some of the mysteries and delights of mathematics to a wider public. He turned out to be a born storyteller. The adventures of Beremiz Samir, The Man Who Counted, take the reader on an exotic journey in which, time and again, he summons his extraordinary mathematical powers to settle disputes, give wise advice, overcome dangerous enemies, and win for himself fame and fortune. as we accompany him, we learn much of the history of famous mathematicisns who preceded him; we undergo a series of trials at the hands of the wise men of the day; and we come to admire the warm wisdom and patience that earn him the respect and affection of those whose problems he resolves so astutely. In the grace of their telling, these stories hold unusual delights for the reader.

馬爾巴·塔罕（Malba Tahan），本名Júlio César de Mello e Souza（1895—1974），已故巴西數學教授、作傢。童年時受到《天方夜譚》的啓濛後，瘋狂愛上阿拉伯文化，以阿拉伯筆名馬爾巴·塔罕自稱，並用筆名發錶著作超過五十本，獲巴西總統親自批準將筆名印在身份證上。其作品融閤數字與文字間的奧妙及趣味，藉由“娛樂教授法”數學作品聞名於世，著有69本故事書、51本數學與其他主題書，及至1995年已銷售超過兩百萬本。作者因其著作成就榮獲巴西文學院大奬，他的生日也被立為巴西數學日，是巴西唯一和足球員同樣有名的數學老師。