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But Jacobs deftly intermixes an ongoing story of how the task of reading the EB impacted him, his wife, his friends and family and what legacy his mission might leave for his unborn child. The Know-It-All reading experience for me was not too unlike reading the complete Encyclopedia Britannica - it kind of bogs down around the letter M.On the surface, the above statement may sound like a panning of the book (and to some extent it is), but it's more a reflection of the subject-matter than the quality of the content.The book is one man's abbreviated journal of his successful attempt to read the EB from front to back - a daunting task for any determined reader. And, if you're looking for some tidbits of trivia to wow the folks at your next cocktail party then you've just found your next book to read. The end result is a recounting of a moderately touching personal journey that most anyone could enjoy.If you don't get bogged down in the myriad of facts that Jacobs draws from the EB, then you'll be rewarded with a nice story and a happy ending. Throughout the book the author shares with the reader numerous bits of trivia, facts and abridgments of entries that he found interesting. And were it a book that only offered to digest the contents of the EB then it would have failed miserably (imho).
Also, during the year of his quest, the author and his wife are trying to conceive their first child and are frustrated by the lack of progress and the fact that their friends and family members all seem capable of producing attractive offspring at will. I don't see how this could possibly even be in question with positive endorsements from Jon Stewart and P.J. The author mentions over and over again that his father and his grandfather are very successful and famous attorneys in New York City. However, it is not just a bit of humor for the sake of humor, it is also a very heart-warming vignette into the life and family of the author at a very crucial time.
In The Know-It-All: One Man's Humble Quest to Become the Smartest Person in the World, the author, A.J. The authors warmth and charm, the admiration he has for his family all come through in his self-deprecating brand of humor. It is clear he feels that as an Editor for Esquire Magazine he may not have lived up to the family expectations for him. Jacobs, chronicles his year long quest to read the entire Encylopaedia Britannica.
The author's father had once attempted the same feat and made it only to the B's. But, what this book is really about is the story of a man, who on the eve of fatherhood himself, comes to accept himself and his accomplishments and the realization that his father always has. There is no question that the book is funny, as in have to put the book down and just laugh out loud for several seconds funny. O'Rourke; two very funny men in their own right.
For instance, Jacobs interviews Alex Trebek but first mistakes him for the gardener, tries out for and plays on "Who Wants to be a Millionaire", attends a Mensa convention, and (eventually) impregnates his wife. Always say 'yes' otherwise you'll lead a very dull life."), the answer to the ubiquitous "Why is the sky blue." (the smaller blue rays of the sun are scattered by the dust in the atmosphere), and the dedication in the 1940s edition of the Britannica ("To the men, women, and children of the world who, by increasing their knowledge of the earth and its people, seek to understand each others problems and through this understanding strive for a community of nations living in peace, the Encyclopedia Britannica dedicates this volume."). On the surface, a man chronicling his experience reading the encyclopedia may not seem too entertaining, but A.J. And among the hundreds of encyclopedia-like entries, a few of the more memorable: author Ian Fleming's philosophy on life ("Never say 'no' to adventures. In the end, Jacobs' concedes that he may have smartened up a bit from reading the Britannica, and he seems all the better and wiser for it. Jacobs manages to capture the essence of reading the complete Britannica with a subtle and smart wit. And fortunately, the book is much more than a collection of various entries from the encyclopedia -- Jacobs weaves vignettes from his life into the story and, with well-placed humor, describes how his family, friends, and random people react to his endeavor to read the encyclopedia.
You don't become smart by reading a bunch of stuff - you may become more knowledgeable, but I doubt that this increases one's intelligence.
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