Customer Reviews

The New York Times Almanac 2009: The Almanac of Record

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I received this Almanac a month ago.
I had anticipated loads of info, but I was surprised about the way they were so neatly organized in a manner that is very useful even when you want to access information fast and do not have much time to go through many books, or the web.
I recommend this Almanac to anyone who wants to get a hold of up to date info as well as general knowledge.

In an era when Google has made dictionaries almost obsolete, it is comforting to have a "hard copy" on hand to provide the charts and tables and detail to expand on what we find on Google.

It is true that the book is incredibly informative and certainly worth having; but I was very surprised to learn that Italy still uses the Italian Lira.... Strange, I am Italian and I was sure we'd been using the Euro for over 7 years... Jokes aside, I guess that part hasn't been proof-read for the last 7 years. I hope there aren't many such mistakes.

A lot of good information is included in this Almanac. On the other hand, a lot of the information is out of date and some bits of information doesn't match from different sections of the book, in fact they contradict each other. Most of the problems seems to be just sloppy proofreading and nothing more. It seems as if the information was cut and pasted from another source. All in all, it wasn't a bad purchase.

The volume provides a plethora of relevant facts
on global affairs. Just in this country, the
rendition reports some of the highlights of the
current Bush Administration. i.e.

o the trillion dollar tax cut of 6-7-2001 (kudos)

o the 15 billion dollars to combat Aids in Africa (kudos)

o the 15 billion dollar airline bailout
( a skeleton by today's bailouts)

o the Office of Home Security (10-08-2001)
(perhaps the greatest expansion of government in history)

o Microsoft multi-million dollar settlement with the
government

o 2002 Moscow Treaty reducing nuclear warheads (kudos)

o research into hydrogen and other alternative energies for
the automobile industry (kudos)

o 4-3-03 USA entry into Baghdad
(leave this for historians to rate)

o 2004 National World War II Monument opened (kudos)

o Dr. Rice becomes the first African American woman
to become the Secretary of State (kudos)

o 1-1-07 surge in Iraq ( again leave this to historians)

o Fisa surveillance ( potentially unconstitutional )

o Congress approves a badly needed increase in the
national minimum wage (kudos with more to come )

o a 5 year freeze on interest rates for some mortgage
holders ( kudos )

o fuel economy standards to 35 MPG by 2030
( a downpayment on energy efficiency)

The purchase would be very helpful for the serious
student in the house. The contents provide a good
reference point for fact checking.

my mother loves this book. facts never change except for countries in Africa and Asia (for starters). it is very handy for New York Times' crossword puzzles. a must have for everyone.