World Book Encyclopedia (Hardcover)

~ World Book editors (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

World Book (WB) continues to be a first choice for libraries, schools, and homes. The 2003 print edition has 114 new articles. They include Blood doping, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals , Hot spot , and Intellectual property. John Ashcroft, Hugh Masekela, Marcia Muller, and Sara Paretsky are a few the people covered in new biographical entries. Some 184 articles have been extensively revised or rewritten, among them Cancer (disease), Basques, Element--chemical, Immigration and Naturalization Service, Khyber Pass, and Food additive. More than 190 maps have been revised, and 350 new photographs have been added. The editors have revised 294 bibliographies. This year's special volume is World Book Focus on Terrorism, which contains encyclopedia articles and special reports on topics such as "The Attacks of September 11" and "Homeland Security: Fighting Terrorism at Home."

World Book is almost always up-to-date, although its early revision deadline--printing of the 2003 edition began in October--means that it misses events that some other encyclopedias are able to include. New entries cover the Department of Homeland Security, al-Qaeda, Tom Ridge, and the Taliban. The Afghanistan entry has been rewritten and is current through the establishment of the transitional government in April 2002. The article on terrorism covers new airport security procedures. The entries on Tony Blair and George W. Bush both make reference to the war in Afghanistan but have not yet been updated to reflect later events. Also not yet updated are the entries for Saddam Hussein and Iraq. There is no entry for Hamid Karzai. The index is detailed and easy to use, including page numbers for illustrations and maps.

Conclusion: World Book is recommended for its high-quality, current, and accurate information in an attractive package. RBB
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.

Review

"Highly recommended." -- Catholic World Library, November 2002

"The Best in Family Reference Books." -- Family Life, April 2002

"World Book Encyclopedia is an outstanding, beautifully illustrated, current general reference source for all age levels." -- Booklist, August 2002

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover
• Publisher: World Book (September 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0716601028
• ISBN-13: 978-0716601029
• Product Dimensions: 17.8 x 13.2 x 12.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 63 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,324,538 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Best, November 18, 2005

By	Penny Dreadful (Under Your Skin) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

Even in the age of the internet, a good set of encyclopedias on a bookshelf adds dignity, depth and quality to a home library, and of all the encyclopedias available on the market, I have always found World Book to be the most readable, comprehensive and all-around best when it comes to being up-to-date. As far as reference material goes, World Book is more approachable than all its competitors and it imparts information without pedantic verbosity. I also love the illustrations and maps, many of which qualify in their own right as impressive works of art. World Book is a sheer joy to read and worth the investment.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A MUST FOR THOSE IN THE "KNOW"!, May 16, 2006

By	M. E Grant "MacGyver of the Books" (Clinton Twp., Michigan) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The World Book Encyclopedia (Hardcover)

It's hard to stop reading the World Book Encyclopedia. They're so jammed with thorough and timely information that you'll feel your brain bursting with new knowledge. I sat down one afternoon with a glass of milk and a bag of Oreos and before I knew it the sun had gone down and I was already reading about Zimbabwe.

IT'S THAT GOOD!

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Beautifully produced, but...., October 7, 2007

By	Sanjay Agarwal (India) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I bought a set of the World Book Encyclopaedia about 10 years ago, paying a huge sum of Rs.35,000 at that time. Later I found out that the local salesperson had cheated me, by telling me that a CD version was not available. Actually, the CD version is much cheaper, almost 1/20th the price, and easier to use. However, you don't get the same sense of satisfaction from the CD version.

These books are beautifully crafted (I have an edition bound in leather, and edged in gold) and are a joy to behold and refer to. They take up a lot of shelf space though, and it's a bit cumbersome to locate information, especially now that we are all so used to clicking across an ocean of cross-references. Nevertheless, there is a special charm to rummaging through these books, and I have spent many leisurely afternoons flipping through them. I have also picked up many useful items of information at times, for use in my work. The illustrations, and drawings are simply superb. The entries are written with a nice flow, neither too technical, nor too verbose. However, you must keep in mind that this product is primarily designed for school students, and may not be useful for any serious work.

The only worries that I have are about the reliability of information. For instance, I found that a river in Arunachal Pradesh (India) has been named wrongly, and the people of the region do not recognise the name at all. Similarly, in the entry related to Lord Shri Ram, worshipped by millions of Hindus, there is no mention that he is viewed as divinity by Hindus. This obviously raises doubts whether information related to other cultures or topics is also erroneous.

This kind of errors could be on account of the selection of biased writers (I saw Mr. K.N. Pannikar on the advisory board), or it could be on account of simple errors that anyone could make. Unfortunately, the problem is compounded by the non-responsive attitude of World Book editors. For instance, I wrote to them a couple of time on e-mail, pointing out these discrepancies, but there was no response.

Overall, a beautifully crafted product, one that you will love to own. I only wish that the information in between the binding was as reliable as the binding itself!