Lynne T. (mignon) reviewed on 4/14/2018 + 256 more book reviews

A.J. Jacobs decided to be the 'smartest person' in the world by reading the entire 'Encyclopedia Britannica' (EB). He took a year to accomplish this. So, I decided to see how long it would take me to read his book. The book contains 24 chapters: A-W and XYZ.

Yea! I finished. It took me about 6 months reading an entry or two every day or so. Last entry-Zywiec-a town in south-central Poland. It's known for its large breweries and a 16th sculpture called 'The Dormant Virgin'.

I learned a lot of minutia, but my favorite entry was under Ecclesiastes. "(The EB author's) observations on life convinced him that 'The race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, nor bread to the wise, nor riches to the intelligent, nor favor to the men of skill; but time and chance happen to them all" (9:11)... In the face of such uncertainty the author's counsel is to enjoy the good things that God provides while one has them to enjoy". (Jacobs again references this in the Ws under Wise Men as a bit of wisdom from the EB that hit him over the head.)

I am glad I decided to read it in stages. It would have been boring to read as a novel. This way I had time to digest the the entries little by little instead of a big gulp.

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