Schott's Sporting, Gaming, and Idling Miscellany
Schott's Sporting, Gaming, and Idling Miscellany

Author: Ben Schott

Publisher: Bloomsbury USA

Published: 2005-11-01

Total Pages: 160

ISBN-13: 9781582344065

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From the author of the international bestsellers Schott’s Original Miscellany and Schott’s Food and Drink Miscellany comes the third and most playful installment in the series: a miscellanist’s wisdom from the worlds of sports, games, and idling. What other sporting book will explain the rules of elephant polo; the perils of the Cresta Run; the link between crosswords and the devil; the story behind the Nike “swoosh”; or why surfing is the “Sport of Kings” (in Hawaii)? Which other volume will list the seven deadly sins of golf; the secrets of Houdini’s Code; or the myriad personalities of the Pac-Man ghosts? Where else will you stumble across an account of Evel Kneival’s broken bones, a detailing of Mike Tyson’s tattoos, the nicknames for classic poker-hands, or every sporting ailment from jogger’s nipple to housemaid’s knee? You don’t have to be a sports fanatic to enjoy this irresistible volume of factual odds and ends. Schott’s Sporting, Gaming, and Idling Miscellany scores big with its fascinating hodge-podge of sports- and activity-related trivia.

Schott's Quintessential Miscellany
Schott's Quintessential Miscellany

Author: Ben Schott

Publisher: Bloomsbury UK

Published: 2011

Total Pages: 160

ISBN-13: 9781408815779

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Introducing the all-new, indispensable collection of necessary trivia, uncommon knowledge, and vital irrelevance from Schott--the inventor of the Miscellany genre.

Schott's Original Miscellany
Schott's Original Miscellany

Author: Ben Schott

Publisher: Bloomsbury USA

Published: 2003-08-04

Total Pages: 144

ISBN-13: 9781582343495

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Impossible to read at one sitting, but utterly unputdownable, Schott's Original Miscellany is a unique collection of fabulous trivia. What other book boasts an index that includes shoelace lengths, sign language, and the seven deadly sins; dueling and dwarves; the hair color of Miss America and the Hampton Court maze? Where else can you find, packed onto one page, the names of golf strokes, a history of the Hat Tax, cricketing dismissals, nouns of assemblage, an unofficial motto of the US Postal Service, and the flag of Guadeloupe? Where else but Schott's Original Miscellany will you stumble across John Lennon's cat, the supplier of bagpipes to the Queen, the labors of Hercules, and the brutal methods of murder encountered by Miss Marple? A book like no other, Schott's Original Miscellany is entertaining, informative, unpredictable, and utterly addictive.

Schottenfreude
Schottenfreude

Author: Ben Schott

Publisher: Penguin

Published: 2013-10-31

Total Pages: 98

ISBN-13: 039916670X

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Schottenfreude is a unique, must-have dictionary, complete with newly coined words that explore the idiosyncrasies of life as only the German language can. Ever thought, There should be a German word for that? Well, thanks to the brilliantly original mind behind Schott’s Original Miscellany, now there is. In what other language but German could you construct le mot juste for a secret love of bad foods, the inability to remember jokes, Sunday-afternoon depression, the urge to yawn, the glee of gossip, reassuring your hairdresser, delight at the changing of the seasons, the urge to hoard, or the ineffable pleasure of a cold pillow? A beguiling, ideal gift book for the Gelehrte or anyone on your list—just beware of rapidly expanding (and potentially incomprehensible) vocabularies.

Schott's Sporting, Gaming & Idling Miscellany
Schott's Sporting, Gaming & Idling Miscellany

Author: Ben Schott

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC

Published: 2004

Total Pages: 160

ISBN-13: 9780747569244

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What other sporting book will explain the rules of elephant polo; the perils of the Cresta Run; the intricacies of the Palio; the breathtaking anties of Kabaddi; or why surfing is the 'Sport of Kings'? Which other volume will inform you of the importance of snooker to nuns; the correct temperature of a 'hot bath'; the words.

Geary's Guide to the World's Great Aphorists
Geary's Guide to the World's Great Aphorists

Author: James Geary

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA

Published: 2008-12-08

Total Pages: 452

ISBN-13: 1596917881

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Both an expert and a collector, James Geary has devoted his life to aphorisms-and the last few years to organizing, indexing, and even translating them. The result is Geary's Guide, featuring aphorists like Voltaire, Twain, Shakespeare, Nietzsche, Woody Allen, Muhammad Ali, Emily Dickinson, and Mae West, as well as international practitioners appearing in English for the first time. But it is more than just a conventional anthology. It is also an encyclopedia, containing brief biographies of each author in addition to a selection of his or her aphorisms. The book is a field guide, too, with aphorists organized into eight different "species," such as Comics, Critics & Satirists; Icons & Iconoclasts; and Painters & Poets. The book's two indexes-by author and by subject-make it easily searchable, while its unique organizational structure and Geary's lively biographical entries set it apart from all previous reference works. A perfect follow-up to Geary's New York Times bestseller The World in a Phrase, Geary's Guide is eminently suitable for browsing or for sustained reading. A comprehensive guide to our most intimate, idiosyncratic literary form, the book is an indispensable tool for writers and public speakers as well as essential reading for all language lovers.

Lore of the Wild
Lore of the Wild

Author: Claire Cock-Starkey

Publisher:

Published: 2021-09-21

Total Pages: 76

ISBN-13: 0711260710

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Delves into nature folklore from around the world in six topical categories, featuring for each category one traditional tale and extensive ancient lore about that topic.

Penguins, Pineapples & Pangolins
Penguins, Pineapples & Pangolins

Author: Claire Cock-Starkey

Publisher:

Published: 2016

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9780712356367

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In these modern times knowledge is at our fingertips and it can sometimes feel as if there is nothing new to discover. The awe and excitement from that moment has been lost because these objects and experiences have become ordinary to us. But if we travel back in time just a few hundred years, adventurers were exploring the world during a period when most people rarely travelled further than their nearest market town. Penguins, Pineapples and Pangolins captures the wonderment these intrepid explorers felt as they struggled to record their new experiences. The eyewitness accounts in this collection reveal the reactions and thoughts of Europeans as they visited new places, tasted new foods and encountered strange animals, peoples and plants for the very first time.

The Georgian Art of Gambling
The Georgian Art of Gambling

Author: Claire Cock-Starkey

Publisher:

Published: 2013

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9780712357395

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"The Georgian Art of Gambling" takes the reader on a miscellaneous tour through high and low society to reveal all aspects of gambling in the Georgian era. Descriptions of the most fashionable card and dice games of the day are interspersed with snippets of contemporary anti-gambling pamphlets, descriptions of the most famous (and degenerate) gambling houses, and accounts of the ruination of many high-profile aristocrats. "The Georgian Art of Gambling" covers wagering on sports such as cockfighting, bull baiting, boxing and cricket to the more sedentary pleasures of the card table. Both the civilised (card games portrayed in the novels of Jane Austen) and the debauched (card sharps and loaded dice) are explored, offering the reader a fascinating glimpse into the extent of gambling in Georgian Britain.