Customer Reviews

Mental Floss: What's the Difference?

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The editors of Mental Floss Magazine have put together the type of quick-read book I thoroughly enjoy since it boosts your knowledge quotient with a minimum of effort. Launched in 2001, the bimonthly magazine has been targeting renaissance trivialists who look for the connections among seemingly different elements in the world to make sense of their existence. "What's the Difference?" focuses on the common dilemma of clarifying distinctions among a familiar series of seemingly similar word pairs. It will help you avoid the glazed look you may have emitted during your last high-faluting conversation.

This slim volume organizes its subject matter by common school subject - English, Home Ec, Social Studies, Science and the miscellaneous category of Band, Art & P.E. Under English, for example, you will have an opportunity to understand the nuances among geeks, nerds and dorks, as well as the true demarcation line between idiots and morons (hint: imbeciles lie between the two factions). Forehead-slappers will be relieved to see that a definitive explanation of em-dashes and en-dashes is provided here. There are even higher intellectual pursuits included such as the difference between polytheism and pantheism.

Even current events are covered, such as the distinction between Shias and Sunnis. Some of the couplets strike me as a bit more forced than others and consequently excisable, e.g., African versus Asian elephants or Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday. But there are still gems among them like Monet versus Manet. It all appropriately ends with a more intentionally humorous chapter on terms and people you may suspect are different but are indeed alike, such as bipolar disorder and manic depression, or Chevy Chase and Helen Hunt (!) A fun read for the geeks among us...or did I mean nerds? Hmmm...

Great and quick to read book of differences; each 2 pages discusses two to four (generally 2) similar items. This book discusses a wide range of topics from science to match to world history, architecture, people, places, and things. This book is great for many people, not just the random information buffs out there, because it's full of information and it is fun to read.

Very easy to read and understand. It's another handy reference book just like all the other Mental_Floss books. And it's written in a fun way also.

If you are a fan of Mental Floss (trivia with a sense of humor) you will love this book.