Keith Devlin is well known for his concise treatments on modern mathematics and of his excellent explanations of the history of mathematics. In Mathematics: The Science of Patterns, Devlin blends these two excellent treatments into one book which is further improved with first rate diagrams and photographs. Only in the chapter on reasoning and communicating did I find myself tempted to skip ahead due to a bit of dryness. I have read this book several times and highly recommend it.