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lisawhelpley's review against another edition
adventurous
informative
lighthearted
fast-paced
5.0
If you love maps, read this book. If you enjoy roads in particular, read chapter 9. For me, it felt like I found my people. I learned so much!
The book is dated now and there are too many bad jokes, but if you can get over that, the book is fascinating.
The book is dated now and there are too many bad jokes, but if you can get over that, the book is fascinating.
ponch22's review against another edition
4.0
[a:Ken Jennings|45003|Ken Jennings|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1201968928p2/45003.jpg] is not your average trivia nerd (see [b:Ken Jennings's Trivia Almanac: 8,888 Questions in 365 Days|1453128|Ken Jennings's Trivia Almanac 8,888 Questions in 365 Days|Ken Jennings|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1320434685s/1453128.jpg|1443880]) and Jeopardy! champion (see [b:Brainiac: Adventures In The Curious, Competitive, Compulsive World Of Trivia Buffs|79195|Brainiac Adventures In The Curious, Competitive, Compulsive World Of Trivia Buffs|Ken Jennings|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1170964693s/79195.jpg|1153503]). If you follow @kenjennings on Twitter, you know he's actually quite funny (to wit, "My kids think a turtle's shell is called a "dammitdammitshit" now thank you very much Mario Kart"). So, while you may imagine a book about maps would be a boring and difficult read, Jennings sprinkles enough humor throughout to change your mind.
The book covers almost everything dealing with maps--human history of making them, present day collectors buying antique maps, fantasy authors creating fictional maps, the internet craze of geocaching, the future of maps thanks to Google Earth--but it is never boring. Jennings admits he was always into maps as a young child and explores what makes "Mapheads" tick. In a world where every smart phone comes with GPS software (right now I'm zoomed in and the GPS signal pins me within a 25' radius with the center of this dot mere feet away from my couch where I'm actually sitting!), maps are more in our lives than ever, but Jennings explores the fact that every few months there's another news report or Jaywalking segment featuring college students who don't know where Africa is on a map. A quick and fun read that covers wide swaths of topics, it's highly recommended for anyone who has wasted away hours looking at atlases or Google Earth, and still recommended for anyone curious about maps who enjoys well-written, self-deprecating humorous prose.
The book covers almost everything dealing with maps--human history of making them, present day collectors buying antique maps, fantasy authors creating fictional maps, the internet craze of geocaching, the future of maps thanks to Google Earth--but it is never boring. Jennings admits he was always into maps as a young child and explores what makes "Mapheads" tick. In a world where every smart phone comes with GPS software (right now I'm zoomed in and the GPS signal pins me within a 25' radius with the center of this dot mere feet away from my couch where I'm actually sitting!), maps are more in our lives than ever, but Jennings explores the fact that every few months there's another news report or Jaywalking segment featuring college students who don't know where Africa is on a map. A quick and fun read that covers wide swaths of topics, it's highly recommended for anyone who has wasted away hours looking at atlases or Google Earth, and still recommended for anyone curious about maps who enjoys well-written, self-deprecating humorous prose.
gfmatt's review against another edition
4.0
Excellent book, educational and entertaining. I'll be visiting the nearby degree confluence later this week.
alexmusic's review against another edition
slow-paced
3.0
As a map person I had high expectations. I was a bit disappointed in the people he interviewed. It came off a bit like map loving was a boy’s club. I was unsatisfied when he tried to tackle the disparity between genders and he went for the “boys were hunters and girls were gatherers” explanation based on… nothing really. As a geography student, this field is extremely diverse. The gender gap is self-reinforcing after centuries of keeping women out of science and exploration. Anyways, there were some very cool facts and revelations but also some completely unnecessary ramblings. This is maybe nitpicking but if you think you need footnotes in a book, you probably don’t. It’s either important enough to include in the main text or unnecessary to include at all. In this book it was mostly the latter. Overall, was somewhat enjoyable to read but nothing special.
dsjoholm19's review against another edition
funny
informative
lighthearted
fast-paced
3.75
Lighthearted, fun read. Lots of fun interviews and personal anecdotes.
mquig's review against another edition
4.0
I love a Ken Jennings book! It's like listening to a friend talk endlessly about their nerd passion - except im not expected to respond with the appropriate enthusiasm. I can just enjoy their enthusiasm. I love maps and geography, and it got my nerdiness going. Other than the section on geocashing, I loved every moment.