Friday, January 04, 2008

Schott's Almanacs and Books of Miscellany

I saw an interview with author Ben Schott, author of several popular almanacs and books of miscellaneous information, recently that makes me want to check out his books.

Amazon has these excerpts from reviews, and a short description, of Schott's Almanac 2007 -
“Genuine practical value…elegantly designed…a vast [collection] of informational flotsam and jetsam.”—New York Times

“If we live in an information age, then Ben Schott has become something of a maestro, or perhaps a master chef, ranging over the whole of knowledge and seasoning his…books with a pinch of this, a drop of that.”—Chicago Sun Times

Schott’s Almanac presents a delightful mix of useful information and more whimsical fare that makes it both a reference resource and a source of entertainment.”—Kirkus

“A meticulously researched and rather addictive annual compendium of facts and figures by Ben Schott, clever creator of the best-selling Schott’s Original Miscellany.”—Dailycandy.com

“One of the oddest and most addictively readable reference books in print.”—Boston Globe
Book Description

"In the modern age, where information is plentiful but selection and analysis elusive, Schott’s Almanac presents a unique biography of the year: from Hillary Clinton’s and Barack Obama’s historic presidential runs to George Bush’s continued infatuation with “the Google,” from marriage and crime statistics to the incidence of shark bites worldwide, and from the Nobel Prize for Literature to the Bad Sex in Fiction award, Schott’s Almanac distills information and opinions critically, giving readers an accurate biography of the year past.

Practical, entertaining, and utterly compulsive, Schott’s Almanac eschews endless lists and tiny type to present an elegantly designed and utterly compulsive selection of the year’s events."
Here's a couple of links to interviews with Ben Schott from the International Herald Tribune and Radar Online, as well as a link to his website


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