The Book of Books

by Les Krantz, Tim Knight

An Eclectic Collection of Reading Recommendations, Quirky Lists, and Fun Facts about Books

A book about books. Great adventure, novels, history, illustrated gift books, or memoirs, your will find detailed lists of must reads in every literary genre. Excerpts from noteworthy books and a wealth of inside information for example, that Mark Twain perpetrated one of the most sensational literary hoaxes?? Great addition to a library.

Genres: Nonfiction, Reference, Books About Books

200 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2007

Reviews

[Christopher Rush · Rating 2 out of 5]

Despite what its subtitle claims ("An Eclectic Collection of Reading Recommendations, Quirky Lists, and Fun Facts about Books"), this book of lists is rather disappointing, tedious, and banal. The only helpful aspect to this book is once in awhile it mentions the name of a book completely off the radar of most of us that potentially might be interesting (such as Farley Mowat's Never Cry Wolf). For most of the collection, the "authors" give the reader every impression they have read not a single one of the books they are compiling. Most of the summaries sound like they were taken straight from dust jackets - or worse, online editor synopses such as one finds on Amazon.com. By the time the joint compilers get to the political section, their bent in favor of Democrats over Republicans is painfully obvious not only in the books they deign to list but also their summaries. The book is further flawed by its commitment to the modern over the ancient. Despite its prolific heft, a lot of missing: no epics, no drama, not much poetry (it never defines its own parameters well); apparently the only French literature worth noting is the kind available only in the back room of slightly shady used bookstores (or the main displays of "trendy" franchise bookstores still extant today); it has no serious treatment of general nonfiction, only a few bizarre hodgepodges (fulfilling in part its subtitle, I suppose) - its main nonfiction list is a bizarre amalgam of Modern Library lists). Several lists are worth eschewing altogether (there's room for a list on "psychopaths in literature," but not for "characters with good values we should emulate"). Most of the time, after reading one of their summaries (or an entire, unsavory list), the reader will come away thinking "and I should read that why?" Though the book is more often than not a disappointment, some of the lists and book selections therein (as mentioned above) are intriguing and potentially worth further investigation. Many other readers, though, especially those very unfamiliar with the diverse worlds of literature (called "books" here), might want to check it out and remember what was once skimmed over briefly in high school English class (the good stuff, at least).

[Stephanie Jobe · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is definitely not my usual reading. I picked it up on sale because I thought it might be interesting. I actually quite like it as a resource. Not only did it contain many books I’ve already read, but it also added many more to my list as well as giving me ideas for future Christmas and Birthday gifts. The lists cover quite a range and surprisingly very few are redundant. The snippets of information are informative, without telling too much (perhaps I should learn from them). Overall a nice interesting thing to flip through. Over several months I read it when I had odd bits of time especially during periods when I didn’t have time to read an entire book it helped satiate my thirst.

[Stephen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is one fo those books that I grab and then read over several days on lunch, at stoplights (when the light is red!), while waiting for the wife and kids to get ready for dinner, and so on. For the function it serves, this was a good book with nice, compact snippets of information to keep the mind engaged while waiting on other people or events to occur. I certainly disagreed with some of the books attempts to define "best" or "essential" reading in particular areas or genres but, really, why would anyone expect agreement on matters of such personal taste?

[Sarah :) · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a book that suggests and tells you about hundreds of other books. It is broken into sections so you can find your interests easier. Under each section is anywhere from 5 - 15 suggestions of books in that category. Each book has the title and author and a brief synopsis of the book and sometimes even a little excerpt.

This book has been great so far and I look forward to making my way through their suggestions!!!

[Keith Alexander · Rating 5 out of 5]

This ebook is a great go-to guide to recent releases in both traditional genres, and creative topics. I found it especially useful for book shopping for friends. Regular updates are available as well.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

The sheer number of categories is enough to ensure exposure to some new titles. There are some perennial favorites and some titles are repeated on several lists, but I still thought this offered some interesting suggestions.

[Jim · Rating 3 out of 5]

lists of books by them and others, put it along side nancy pearl's books