Includes bibliographical references and index.

The Library of Babel is arguably Jorge Luis Borges' best known story--memorialized along with Borges on an Argentine postage stamp. Now, in The Unimaginable Mathematics of Borges' Library of Babel, William Goldbloom Bloch takes readers on a fascinating tour of the mathematical ideas hidden within one of the classic works of modern literature. Written in the vein of Douglas R. Hofstadter's Pulitzer Prize-winning Godel, Escher, Bach, this original and imaginative book sheds light on one of Borges' most complex, richly layered works. Bloch begins each chapter with a mathematical idea- The Library of Babel is arguably Jorge Luis Borges' best known story. Now, in The Unimaginable Mathematics of Borges' Library of Babel, William Goldbloom Bloch takes readers on a fascinating tour of the mathematical ideas hidden within one of the' classic works of modern literature. Bloch begins each chapter with a mathematical idea - combinatorics, topology, geometry, information theory - followed by examples and illustrations that put flesh on the theoretical bones. In this way, he provides many insights into Borges' Library.