The Quest to Become the Smartest Person in the World

Esquire editor A.J. Jacobs, author of The Year of Living Biblically and The Guinea Pig Diaries began this series of quirky books about his obsessions with The Know-It-All: One Man's Humble Quest to Become the Smartest Person in the World.  His quest? to read the entire Encyclopaedia Britannica from beginning to end.  Sometimes informative, sometimes funny, always interesting, he takes us from a-ak to Zywiec with his self-effacing, humorous look at knowledge.  His search leads him to meeting Alex Trebek, an appearance on Crossfire, taking on a debate team, and finally to being a contestant on Who Wants to be a Millionaire?  Interwoven in his reading adventures is the more personal quest of achieving parenthood,and other stories of his family and friends.  I highly recommend any of his books.

A Departure from My Reading of Murder Mysteries

I just finished reading The Year of Living Biblically: One Man's Humble Quest to Follow the Bible as Literally as Possible by A. J. Jacobs.  A. J. Jacobs made the decision in his self-admitted obsessive-compulsive way that he would follow all the rules of the Bible for one year.  It is a fascinating and humorous look at our beliefs.  Another fun aspect of the book is the way his long-suffering wife puts up with his antics.  It is interesting to watch an avowed agnostic discover a belief in God and return to his own religious roots.  I read The Guinea Pig Diaries: My Life as an Experiment by him last year and decided he was worth reading.

I just put his other book The Know It All on hold.  He's worth it!