As a survey of the basics of knot theory, this book is as good as it gets. The opening chapter is a history of knot theory, which is followed by a chapter on the mathematical definition of knots. The remainder of the book is a series of descriptions of knots, how they are represented, classified and the mathematical machinery used to transform them.
Very little in the way of deep mathematical knowledge is needed to understand the presentation, one of the most important requirements is the ability to think in spatial terms. Exercises are given at the end of each section although no solutions are provided.
Many areas of mathematics began as an abstract theory and after some time, applications are found. Knot theory is an element of this set; one of the applications is that it can be used to describe how proteins fold. A protein is a long chain of connected amino acids, but its' ability to be biochemically active is based on the structure that it folds into after construction. This book is a lively understandable introduction to this fascinating field; it is suitable for self-study or a special topics class in the area of knots.

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