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Listomania
Organized into eight chapters, Listomania covers questions of human behavior, trivia facts about geography (past and present), etymology, mythology, ancient and recent history, as well as pop culture. Some of the lists included are:
10 Tiny Terrors: a list of the ten most petite world leaders (yes, some were shorter than Napoleon!)
43 Famous People Who Were Adopted (e.g. Steve Jobs, Debbie Harry, Mark Twain, Alexander the Great)
15 Movies Featuring Giant Rabbits
10 Top Cheese Eating Countries( note correspondence to the top ten happiest countries)
8 Dastardly Ponzi Schemes
38 Ancient Cities (That People Still Live In)
28 Prehistoric Creatures Named for Famous People or Cool Things (e.g. Dracorex Hogwartsia, Attenborosaurus, and Psephorus Terrypratchetti)
Illustrated in full color with playful images, graphs, charts, captions, and photographs, this colorful book brings a new face to trivia and is sure to wow readers, surprise them, and make them laugh from cover to cover. Listomania functions as a practical information resource as well as a fun and quirky gift for readers of any age.
10 Tiny Terrors: a list of the ten most petite world leaders (yes, some were shorter than Napoleon!)
43 Famous People Who Were Adopted (e.g. Steve Jobs, Debbie Harry, Mark Twain, Alexander the Great)
15 Movies Featuring Giant Rabbits
10 Top Cheese Eating Countries( note correspondence to the top ten happiest countries)
8 Dastardly Ponzi Schemes
38 Ancient Cities (That People Still Live In)
28 Prehistoric Creatures Named for Famous People or Cool Things (e.g. Dracorex Hogwartsia, Attenborosaurus, and Psephorus Terrypratchetti)
Illustrated in full color with playful images, graphs, charts, captions, and photographs, this colorful book brings a new face to trivia and is sure to wow readers, surprise them, and make them laugh from cover to cover. Listomania functions as a practical information resource as well as a fun and quirky gift for readers of any age.
288 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2011
8 people are currently reading
302 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews
November 15, 2020
Most “coffee table” books like this I just skim through from time to time, but I was so enthralled I actually read this one cover-to-cover. Such a fun and entertaining read!
September 17, 2023
I love me some good infographics! This book gets four stars mostly because it is already 12 years old so some information is way out of date, but there is still a ton of fascinating information to sink your teeth into.
And yes I did actually read every page!
And yes I did actually read every page!
October 22, 2015
This book of lists and infographics was right up my alley - I love strange facts! The only problem I have with books like this is that they get out-of-date pretty fast. In a few years, some of this may not be true. But for now - it's great! An easy read while your husband plays video games or you are watching a movie you hate.
January 2, 2012
I received this one as a present from a good friend who knows I love stuff like this. This is a super-fun book of random infographics and facts. There were loads of things that prompted me to go done the rabbit hole of Google, because my interest was piqued.
[Finished book #1 of 2012.]
[Finished book #1 of 2012.]
August 10, 2020
I'm a fact nerd. I'll gladly admit it. I'm the host of a yearly quiz and during the year leading up to it, I try to find useful and interesting information I can weave into said quiz.
This book is filled with Tony tidbits of information. Enough to skim over the ones that are uninteresting to me, and search for more information online when they are interesting. The art is fun, every page (or double page) consists of an infographic piece with short descriptions added to it.
The index at the back of the book is also great. It'll help my find the info quickly when there's something tickling the back of my mind that I must have read that somewhere.
This book is filled with Tony tidbits of information. Enough to skim over the ones that are uninteresting to me, and search for more information online when they are interesting. The art is fun, every page (or double page) consists of an infographic piece with short descriptions added to it.
The index at the back of the book is also great. It'll help my find the info quickly when there's something tickling the back of my mind that I must have read that somewhere.
September 25, 2022
Infographs, statistics, geography, pop culture. What's not to love here? I was easily able to complete this book mostly while watching/listening to football over one weekend. If only I had the mental capacity to remember all the random and sometimes useless facts compiled in these 288 pages.
Then again, maybe for the sake of society, that might not be such a bad thing. After all, nobody likes an insufferable know-it-all.
Then again, maybe for the sake of society, that might not be such a bad thing. After all, nobody likes an insufferable know-it-all.
May 13, 2024
Just what the librarian ordered for a list junkie like me.
This one has it all and beautifully laid out with stunning graphs and graphics.
Covers a wide range of subjects from "animal migrations" to "most translated books" to "8 unusual ransoms" to "most pro-gay governments" to etc., etc., etc............
Lots of fun and easy to pick ups and read just an entry or two at a time.
Highly recommended.
This one has it all and beautifully laid out with stunning graphs and graphics.
Covers a wide range of subjects from "animal migrations" to "most translated books" to "8 unusual ransoms" to "most pro-gay governments" to etc., etc., etc............
Lots of fun and easy to pick ups and read just an entry or two at a time.
Highly recommended.
August 21, 2024
this is the kind of book you scan through. it is not meant to be read word by word. you can open it on any page and read one of the lists. some of it was interesting and lots of it wasn't. I am grateful I didn't dedicate too much of my life to reading this one, because it isn't worth reading word for word cover to cover. I will never read through this book again. 1 thumb up, 1 thumbs down.
April 25, 2018
Hele leuke, originele lijstjes, maar veel te vaak bleef ik op mijn honger zitten voor wat extra info. En om nu telkens te gaan googlen, daar had ik toch ook geen zin in...
April 29, 2018
vermoeiend type boek... overdosis weetjes... ziet er leuk uit, maar is vervelend
September 13, 2018
Definitely nice to read if you are in an airport or such. Makes the time fly way faster.
January 11, 2012
This was such a fun book!! I'm a sucker for those best of books and year end compilations but Listomania is absolutely addicting.
I've had this book for a bit and have been picking it up over the course of the last month and I've read every page at last. We've had so much fun at home asking each other if we can come up with some of the entries on the list. Examples? There are 62 rooms you might find in a house...name as many as you can.There's a list of movies with 'ridiculously high body counts'...any thoughts? Movies with giant rabbits?
I was enamoured of the book lists. Most translated books? The Bible was number one, but Pinocchio was number two - translated into 260 languages! Books with an animal protagonist? Books with nameless protagonists?
There are so many topics covered - the book is broken down into eight great sub categories. Lists pull in facts from around the world. But it's not just dull lists on a page. Each page is completely different. The graphic presentation of the facts is shown through photographs, charts, graphs, drawings and more, all in full colour.
Many of the entries had me going to the computer to follow up, such as '14 Cool Things to View on Google Earth.' In Chile, 70,000 Coke bottles spell out the company logo. Or the Badlands Guardian in Canada.
This is one of those books that everyone will enjoy. Leave it out on the coffee table - it's like a bag of chips - you won't be able to just rhard to resist....Can you name a karaoke song that makes the top ten list in the US and England -- hint: it's a Madonna tune. What 13 crayon colours has Crayola retired. What country has the fastest internet connections in the world? Name the top 10 cheese eating countries in the world. What is....
I've had this book for a bit and have been picking it up over the course of the last month and I've read every page at last. We've had so much fun at home asking each other if we can come up with some of the entries on the list. Examples? There are 62 rooms you might find in a house...name as many as you can.There's a list of movies with 'ridiculously high body counts'...any thoughts? Movies with giant rabbits?
I was enamoured of the book lists. Most translated books? The Bible was number one, but Pinocchio was number two - translated into 260 languages! Books with an animal protagonist? Books with nameless protagonists?
There are so many topics covered - the book is broken down into eight great sub categories. Lists pull in facts from around the world. But it's not just dull lists on a page. Each page is completely different. The graphic presentation of the facts is shown through photographs, charts, graphs, drawings and more, all in full colour.
Many of the entries had me going to the computer to follow up, such as '14 Cool Things to View on Google Earth.' In Chile, 70,000 Coke bottles spell out the company logo. Or the Badlands Guardian in Canada.
This is one of those books that everyone will enjoy. Leave it out on the coffee table - it's like a bag of chips - you won't be able to just rhard to resist....Can you name a karaoke song that makes the top ten list in the US and England -- hint: it's a Madonna tune. What 13 crayon colours has Crayola retired. What country has the fastest internet connections in the world? Name the top 10 cheese eating countries in the world. What is....
August 30, 2014
Back in the seventies, I was a big fan of the Wallechinsky/Wallace fact publishing machine (The Book of Lists, The People's Almanac, and their sequels). There was an air of hip irreverence that strongly appealed to a pre-teen raised on World Book Encyclopedias. Listomania scratches the same itch, but with a nod to the infographics movement --- each list is spread over two pages with integrated and very colorful graphics. Some of the pieces make full use of the medium --- I especially liked the maps that showed both animal and language migration. There are some fun charts showing the animal noises represented in different languages and a great table of meat encased in dough in various countries. The irreverence and strangeness is there too. My favorite example was a spread comparing cheese consumption with happiness by nation. (And I had never heard of Stanley Brouwn and his conceptual art until this book.)
Sadly, about a fifth of the lists lack integration with the artwork and are more just reading material with tacked on images. One of the most egregious was a list of great sports comebacks that just had backgrounds of the different playing fields referenced in each story. That may be a function of the list more than the graphic design, but regardless I didn't feel the punch of a great image.
Sadly, about a fifth of the lists lack integration with the artwork and are more just reading material with tacked on images. One of the most egregious was a list of great sports comebacks that just had backgrounds of the different playing fields referenced in each story. That may be a function of the list more than the graphic design, but regardless I didn't feel the punch of a great image.
June 3, 2013
This is another of those fascinating eclectic trivia books organized into chapters: Things that have come, gone, and stayed; Questionable actions and ideas; Good, bad, popular, and unpopular ideas; Important and trivial measures; Places we live and places we don't; Great (and not so great) kinds of entertainment; Things you might eat or drink (or not); Creatures both real and imaginary; Heights and depths of human behavior; Amazing things about this book.
My favorite is four national borders where traffic switches sides from left to right, or vice versa on page 46. Guyana-Brazil does it with infrastructure (crossover bridges over the Takutu River. Thailand-Laos does it with traffic lights along their lengthy shared border. Hong Kong to Mainland China has traffic roundabouts. Kenya to Ethiopia has signposts, but only low-volume traffic apparently.
Also included are: 13 invented languages (includes Klingon & Na'vi from movie Avatar) on p. 20-21. 8 cool jobs on p. 86; 8 awful jobs on p. 87. 20 most translated books on p. 93. 15 fastest Internet connections around the world (U.S. is 15th) on p. 119. 10 short national leaders on p. 120-121. 10 longest tunnels on p. 123. 14 Cool things to view on Google Earth on p. 142. 57 interesting potato chip flavors from around the world on p. 200-201. 12 nations' favorite hot dog toppings on p. 204. 14 living fossils on p. 226-227. 8 famous ghosts on p. 237
Recommended. There should be something for everybody in this mix.
My favorite is four national borders where traffic switches sides from left to right, or vice versa on page 46. Guyana-Brazil does it with infrastructure (crossover bridges over the Takutu River. Thailand-Laos does it with traffic lights along their lengthy shared border. Hong Kong to Mainland China has traffic roundabouts. Kenya to Ethiopia has signposts, but only low-volume traffic apparently.
Also included are: 13 invented languages (includes Klingon & Na'vi from movie Avatar) on p. 20-21. 8 cool jobs on p. 86; 8 awful jobs on p. 87. 20 most translated books on p. 93. 15 fastest Internet connections around the world (U.S. is 15th) on p. 119. 10 short national leaders on p. 120-121. 10 longest tunnels on p. 123. 14 Cool things to view on Google Earth on p. 142. 57 interesting potato chip flavors from around the world on p. 200-201. 12 nations' favorite hot dog toppings on p. 204. 14 living fossils on p. 226-227. 8 famous ghosts on p. 237
Recommended. There should be something for everybody in this mix.
September 10, 2016
This book is a gorgeous, visual cortex overload of sometimes cheekily illustrated lists that runs the gamut of useful (if you are gay or transgendered, you should migrate to Canada or Iceland), educational (the animal with the longest migratory travels is the Arctic Tern), important safety tips (firing a gun sideways might look cool on-screen but the recoil can cause a nasty arm injury) and useless but fun (there is a list of an slightly astonishing 14 movies with giant rabbits.) Whatever your interests are, you'll find something in here that will pique them. Not something you'll want to read straight through but it's beautiful to flip through and would make for ideal gift material.
March 13, 2015
This is one of my favourite books to read. It’s so easy just to randomly flip to a page and learn something new. It’s filled with fun, interesting, crazy facts about basically anything. And it’s arranged in such a creative graphical way, which makes it so much easier to remember the facts. I gotta say, the stuff I do remember from the book definitely impressed some of my friends. C:
Blog. Full review on here plus photos from the book. Pretty awesome.
Blog. Full review on here plus photos from the book. Pretty awesome.
February 1, 2012
I'm one of those people who is obsessed with lists. I love making them, I love it when I can put a big V behind an item whenever I finish doing something, and what I love most is reading them. (I'm not talking about grocery lists etc., unless when people put odd things on them)
This book is full of lists which are sometimes funny, sometimes creepy and always interesting.
This book is full of lists which are sometimes funny, sometimes creepy and always interesting.
April 21, 2012
Lists, lists, and more lists. Even lists of lists! I am using the List of Deadly Pastimes to update my Bucket List--elevator surfing, base jumping, volcano boarding. That kind of stuff. Also liked the list of Biggest Conspiracies--wonder if any of the proposed entries was erased by Big Government or Evil Aliens. Another favorite list was Things Built By Aliens. Very Fascinating Book!
May 3, 2015
What an awesome book! The pictures are quirky and gorgeous in their simplicity. The subjects are so unique and fun. Everytime I read this book, some member of my family seemed to be trying to find a way to get it out of my hands so they could read it. Part II please?
September 4, 2012
Entertaining information on mythical beasts, cannibalism, different forms of marriage, the top cheese-eating countries, and hats. Very useful if you want to know what a doggie says in Russian ("hav-hav").
August 25, 2014
This book was really fascinating! I loved the visual take on listing random interesting facts, and admittedly a lot of them I didn't know, and the way the images themselves were shown was entertaining. I'm really pleased I checked it out!
September 26, 2012
A really interesting and fun book. I enjoyed it a lot. And I learned a lot.
February 24, 2012
intersting book of lists
June 17, 2012
Well done fun!!!
July 12, 2012
Fun, easy to read graphics. Probably took me less than 90 minutes of concentrated attentiveness. I read it while I was working a Scholastic book fair, and while waiting for my laptop to boot up.
July 24, 2012
A very entertaining & visual book. Highlights include a list of the top 10 weird things to see on googlemaps, like the coordinates at which you can see a giant bird carved in a mountain side
January 3, 2015
Colorful, engaging, fascinating!
April 21, 2015
Amazing
May 4, 2015
I love lists, so this was super-fun. Plus, I learned a lot! I'll be so exciting at my next cocktail party armed with this knowledge ^_^
August 3, 2015
I love the random facts listed in this book and it's design is fabulously fun! I think textbooks should use this book as an example to showcase facts and stories to encourage learning!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews