"A playful history. Having grown up with a hunter-green leather-bound set of Britannicas in the house, I relate to Garfield''s nostalgia and delight. However bookish knowledge can be, Garfield counters this tendency with a light and personable touch." - New York Times Book Review "Anyone fascinated by the origins, evolution and the ultimate mortality of print encyclopedias will love this book. Wikipedia enthusiasts, from casual consumers to dedicated contributors, will also gain much from reading the book. All the Knowledge in the World is excellent at telling the long historical story of all encyclopedias, including those that predated Britannica. The book does a great job of detailing the 20th-century history of Britannica and the full story of Wikipedia''s creation, challenges and impact." - Inside Higher Ed "Entertaining.
Garfield''s genial solution is to organize his book alphabetically, which allows him to dive after whatever morsel of knowledge attracts his eye: for readers it means feeling much as if we were browsing an actual encyclopedia written by a companionable soul." - The Spectator "Garfield''s witty history captures the obsessive, quixotic and sometimes error-filled quests of those--from Pliny the Elder in the first century A.D. to Wikipedians in this one--who have attempted to corral all the world''s information into a single source." - New York Times "A fascinating history.Lively and informative.The story of the encyclopedia, in Garfield''s telling, is a continual push for more and bigger: knowledge''s widening gyre." - Washington Post "A fascinating history.
Lively and informative." - Washington Post "The life and death of the encyclopedia is recounted in Simon Garfield''s excellent new book.Garfield is lucid, witty, learned and clearly a bibliomaniac. In All the Knowledge in the World, he has produced a lively threnody to the encyclopedic impulse.Impressively comprehensive." - Wall Street Journal "An enjoyable tour." - Science "Magnificent. A perfectly styled work of literature--at times sad, at times funny, but always full of life.
" - Engineering & Technology Magazine "Illustrates Garfield''s capacity to synthesise wide-ranging research and present it in a lucid, vibrant style. A valentine to the monumental significance of encyclopaedias." - Irish Examiner "An erudite and amusing exploration of the human quest for knowledge." - Financial Times "Quirky and entertaining. Fast-paced and fact-filled, this entertaining compendium is a worthy tribute to the pursuit of knowledge." - Publishers Weekly "A wealth of research wrapped into an eccentric, charming package. Fits easily into [Garfield''s] unpredictable canon, combining information, entertainment, and insight. Garfield''s great affection for his subject shines through, making this book a pleasing, intriguing read.
" - Kirkus Reviews "Illuminating. An infectiously enthusiastic history, inspired by genuine affection." - Times Literary Supplement (London) "[A] suitably encyclopaedic book--written with all [Garfield''s] usual wit and sharp eye for memorable facts." - Reader''s Digest "Entertaining and informative." - The Canberra Times (Australia) "Simon Garfield is the only author who could ever keep me up at night reading about encyclopedias. A brilliant book about knowledge itself." - DEIRDRE MASK, author of The Address Book "Witty and geekily eclectic.Celebrates encyclopedias in all their quirky, leatherbound glory.
" - The Times (London) "A pleasure. Garfield writes fluidly, cheerily and charmingly, even while the breeziness does not detract from the scale of his ambition: to understand nothing less than humans'' need for knowledge and how to convey and preserve it." - The Spectator (Australia) "Fans of Simon Winchester''s The Professor and the Madman and readers who don''t mind plenty of intriguing digression will devour." - Booklist.