The Quite Interesting Ignorant Books Series by John Lloyd, John Mitchinson

A comprehensive catalogue of the various misconceptions, mistakes and misunderstandings in 'common knowledge'.

An indispensable compendium of popular misconceptions, misunderstandings and common mistakes culled from the hit BBC show, QI.From the bestselling authors of The Book of General Ignorance comes a noticeably stouter edition, with 26% extra facts and figures perfect for trivia, pub quiz and general knowledge enthusiasts. The QI team sets out again to show you that a lot of what you think you know is wrong... moreAn indispensable compendium of popular misconceptions, misunderstandings and common mistakes culled from the hit BBC show, QI.From the bestselling authors of The Book of General Ignorance comes a noticeably stouter edition, with 26% extra facts and figures perfect for trivia, pub quiz and general knowledge enthusiasts. The QI team sets out again to show you that a lot of what you think you know is wrong.If, like Alan Davies, you still think the Henry VIII had six wives, the earth has only one moon, that George Washington was the first president of the USA, that Bangkok is the capital of Thailand, that the largest living thing is a blue whale, that Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone, that whisky and bagpipes come from Scotland or that Mount Everest is the world's tallest mountain, then there are at least 200 reasons why this is the book for you.The researchers at QI have written many bestselling books including such titles as The QI Book of General Ignorance and 1,277 Facts To Blow Your Socks Off. They now present a noticeably stouter edition, an indispensable handbook for trivia lovers, pub quiz enthusiasts and general knowledge experts alike.And remember - everything you think you know is still wrong. less

Listen and Learn! The Sound of General Ignorance brings you all the best bits of the number one bestseller The Book of General Ignorance in handy audio form.Allow yourself to wallow in the misconceptions, mistakes and misunderstandings in 'common knowledge'. Your new-found wisdom will help you to impress your friends, frustrate your enemies and win every argument... moreListen and Learn! The Sound of General Ignorance brings you all the best bits of the number one bestseller The Book of General Ignorance in handy audio form.Allow yourself to wallow in the misconceptions, mistakes and misunderstandings in 'common knowledge'. Your new-found wisdom will help you to impress your friends, frustrate your enemies and win every argument. Henry VIII had six wives- WRONG! Everest is the highest mountain in the world- WRONG! Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone- WRONG! Everything you think you know is- WRONG! less

The Second Book of General The Discreetly Plumper Edition [Paperback] Lloyd, John and Mitchinson, John

Fast on the heels of the New York Times bestseller The Book of General Ignorance comes The Book of Animal Ignorance, a fun, fact-filled bestiary that is sure to delight animal lovers everywhere. Arranged alphabetically from aardvark to worm, here are one hundred of the most interesting members of the animal kingdom explained, dissected, and illustrated, with the trademark wit and wisdom of John Lloyd and John Mitchinson... moreFast on the heels of the New York Times bestseller The Book of General Ignorance comes The Book of Animal Ignorance, a fun, fact-filled bestiary that is sure to delight animal lovers everywhere. Arranged alphabetically from aardvark to worm, here are one hundred of the most interesting members of the animal kingdom explained, dissected, and illustrated, with the trademark wit and wisdom of John Lloyd and John Mitchinson.Did you know, for instance, that• when a young albatross takes wing, it may stay aloft for ten years• vampire bat saliva—unsurprisingly, when you think about it—is the source of the world’s most powerful blood thinning drug, appropriately called draculin• bombardier beetles fire a boiling chemical spray out of their rears at 300 pulses per second• a bald eagle’s feathers weigh twice as much as its bones• a giant tortoise recently died at the documented age of 255• octopuses are dexterous enough to unscrew tops from jars• spider silk is so light that a strand long enough to circle the world would weigh as much as a bar of soap?So meet the water bears that can live in suspension for hundreds of years, the parasite carried by your cat that makes men grumpy and women promiscuous, and the woodlouse that drinks through its bottom. Marvel at elephants that walk on tiptoe, pigs that shine in the dark, and woodpeckers that have ears on the ends of their tongues.If you still think a pangolin is a musical instrument, that hyenas are dogs, or that sheep are pointless and stupid, The Book of Animal Ignorance has arrived just in time. less

The team behind the New York Times bestseller The Book of General Ignorance turns conventional biography on its head-and shakes out the good stuff.Following their Herculean-or is it Sisyphean?-efforts to save the living from ignorance, the two wittiest Johns in the English language turn their attention to the dead.As the authors themselves say, “The first thing that strikes you about the Dead is just how many of them there are... moreThe team behind the New York Times bestseller The Book of General Ignorance turns conventional biography on its head-and shakes out the good stuff.Following their Herculean-or is it Sisyphean?-efforts to save the living from ignorance, the two wittiest Johns in the English language turn their attention to the dead.As the authors themselves say, “The first thing that strikes you about the Dead is just how many of them there are.” Helpfully, Lloyd and Mitchinson have employed a simple—but ruthless—criterion for inclusion: the dead person has to be interesting.Here, then, is a dictionary of the dead, an encyclopedia of the embalmed. Ludicrous in scope, whimsical in its arrangement, this wildly entertaining tome presents pithy and provocative biographies of the no-longer-living from the famous to the undeservedly and—until now—permanently obscure. Spades in hand, Lloyd and Mitchinson have dug up everything embarrassing, fascinating, and downright weird about their subjects’ lives and added their own uniquely irreverent observations.Organized by capricious categories—such as dead people who died virgins, who kept pet monkeys, who lost limbs, whose corpses refused to stay put—the dearly departed, from the inventor of the stove to a cross-dressing, bear-baiting female gangster finally receive the epitaphs they truly deserve.Discover:* Why Freud had a lifelong fear of trains* The one thing that really made Isaac Newton laugh* How Catherine the Great really died (no horse was involved)Much like the country doctor who cured smallpox (he’s in here), Lloyd and Mitchinson have the perfect antidote for anyone out there dying of boredom. The Book of the Dead-like life itself-is hilarious, tragic, bizarre, and amazing. You may never pass a graveyard again without chuckling. less

The Third Book of General Ignorance gathers together 180 questions, both new and previously featured on the BBC TV programme's popular 'General Ignorance' round, and show why, when it comes to general knowledge, none of us knows anything at all.Who invented the sandwich? What was the best thing before sliced bread? Who first ate frogs' legs? Which cat never changes its spots? What did Lady Godiva do? What can you legally do if you come across a Welshman in Chester after sunset?