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 Open your Eyes to Real Knowledge and be Amazed Nov 19, 2009
(With foreword by Stephen Fry and Four words by Alan Davies)
This number-one bestseller, will set you right.
Be the focus of any social gatherings with impressive historical knowledge as the number of wives Henry VIII did have; trivial data as the number of nostrils we have; the length of time a chicken can live without its head and brainstorming questions as, What has a three-second memory?
Other interesting facts as how polar bears disguise themselves will have you wondering how much you really know. As Stephen Fry says in the Foreword, `Read it wisely, Little One, for the power of ignorance is great.'
Alan Davies' four words, `Will this do, Stephen?' makes us think about what we believe we know and what the facts really are.
We find out other facts like who introduced tobacco and potato to England and who invented the telephone - not Alexander Graham Bell as we are lead to believe - surprising isn't it?
Culinary and scientific facts such as:
Where the popular Indian dish, Chicken Tikka Masala comes from - this is really interesting.
French toast and France - I hadn't have known this.
What makes a hunk-hunk noise - a natural response and amusing.
How many senses a human being have - I thought of 6 but there are more.
How many states of matter there are - very interesting scientific knowledge.
What is three times as dangerous as war - a true known fact.
What killed most sailors in an 18th century sea battle - this fact is surprising.
What we have Thomas Crapper to thank for - what we use daily and surprising too.
Who America was named after - not Amerigo Vespucci as widely thought - and someone I'd not heard of before.
Where baseball was invented - I hadn't have thought of this country.
Who the first American President was - not who I'd first thought of.
What George Washington's false teeth was made of - very interesting.
What is most likely to survive a nuclear war - not cockroaches as widely thought - something more scientifically expressed.
More importantly, who blew the nose off the Sphinx - amusing and surprising.
These facts will astonish even the non-culinary experts and trivial pursuit enthusiasts.
With humour, facts and anecdotal explanations, you'll become an expert at such `important' trivia and general knowledge that you'd be asked back to more social events and more than those you can fill in your diary.
Where the authors add a touch of humour, you'll like the explanations given and where facts are necessary, you'll like the way they set out the details so you can remember them well and have them stored in your vital memory bank for those occasions when you need to show how much you really know as opposed to how much others think they know and that will get you on a good footing for next time.
It's near Christmas so where Santa Claus is from is of the utmost importance - not Lapland or the North Pole as we would have thought but somewhere as far from my thoughts as you can imagine.
This has to be in your Christmas stocking - the recipient of this book will be forever thanking you for opening their eyes to facts we would never have known otherwise.
They will astonish even the literary, science and general knowledge quiz buffs.
1 of 4 found the following review helpful:
 a lazy effort Oct 06, 2009
I was disappointed in this book. Although it contains a lot of entertaining snide comments about the "incorrectness" of conventional wisdom, the book itself is very careless about accuracy. It strikes me as a lazy effort on the part of the authors.
Of course, someone has put this book in the "humor" category. That being the case, any inaccuracies can be palmed off as "only joking." Sorry, guys, it's not that funny. Why bother with a mishmash of material that is partly accurate and partly nonsense?
By the way, did you know that Santa Claus actually has a tenth reindeer? We can start with the eight named in that famous narrative poem (Comet, Cupid, Donder, Blitzen, Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen) and then name Rudolph as the ninth, but don't forget that snarky little female reindeer Olive. (In the song about Rudolph, "Olive, the other reindeer, used to laugh and call him names.")
If you liked that ridiculous reindeer factoid, then you might like this book.
1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
Book of General ignorance Oct 03, 2009
Great book! All the information your teachers did not, or could not, tell you. Much background on everyday items like the telephone. Did Alexander Graham Bell invent it or did he steal the idea and market it?
Great book for trivia buffs and know-it-alls. A great resource for repeatable information. You will quote this book! It offers answers to questions you never thought to ask. This book could become your mental addiction.
1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
 People who assume they know May 05, 2009
After reading this " Book of General Ignorance" both my husband & I agreed upon one subject: there is much ignorance among the population. It seems that the "spin doctors" of history have invaded the "mind of the Populace" with these intriguing little tales and thus creating a mindset of cute little antedotes about subjects that are simply not fact; but Fiction. Nevertheless they have invaded our "brains" with useless information which is just that - "Useless Information"
It's just a huge episode of QI Apr 30, 2009
I like QI. But another reviewer mentioned that the book is not so much odd facts, as it is technicalities. That's true for just about every question.
Still it was enjoyable, informative, and fun to frustrate my friends with.
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