Long ago, in the year 2002, before Wikipedia overtook the reference world, a journalist named A.J. Jacobs embarked on a quest: Read the Encyclopedia Britannica, all 32 volumes, alllll 33,000 pages, A to Z.
What happens to a knowledge-obsessed man who spends a whole year reading the encyclopedia? Does his wife divorce him? Does his IQ skyrocket? Does he win a million dollars on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? No, no, and no. But he does write a hilarious, bestselling book about the experience: The Know-It-All: One Man’s Humble Quest to Become the Smartest Person in the World.
A. J. infuses the Britannica with his own brand of wonderfully witty humor. He writes about the information he’s learning, but also weaves in gut-busting autobiographical bits, such as how he, um:
-poses nude for Esquire
-outsmarts his eleven-year old cousin
-embarrasses himself on a national game show
-mistakes Alex Trebek for a Mexican gardner
I breezed through the book. I laughed, I learned stuff, and, yup, I feel smarter. Read this book and you’ll not only learn some hilarious facts about the world, but (bonus!) some hilarious facts about the man himself, A. J. Jacobs.
Short but sharp. You bring it on the point and leave the reader wanting to get started with the book. Well done!
Thank you!