The housekeeper and the professor hakase no ai shita suushiki literally the professors beloved equation is a novel by yoko ogawa set in modern day japan it was published in japan in august 2003 by shinchosha in 2009 the english translation by stephen snyder was published. And theyre all here in the housekeeper and the professor which ms ogawa wrote in 2007 the professor is of mathematics and has amnesia the housekeeper is devoted and has a son this melange constitutes the cast of a charming story of mathematics and love subjects with a connection that is less. The only minor downside is that the housekeeper and the professor does go deep into the mathematical weeds on several occasions with lengthy explanations of various theorems laws and formulas fans of pierre de fermat leonard euler and pythagoras will appreciate their numerous references with eulers formula being specifically highlighted. The housekeeper takes the professor to get his hair cut after which she remarks perfectly for once he smelled of shaving cream rather than of paper a conflict with the professors. The housekeeper and the professor was first published in 2003 by the popular and critically acclaimed japanese writer yoko ogawa it was translated into english in 2009 this slow paced and atmospheric work tells the story of a single mother who works as a housekeeper for a retired professor of mathematics