Overview

A sparkling miscellany of literary trivia Who had birds called Death, Wigs and Spinach? How do you spell the noise of a door slamming? Whose working title was The Chronic Argonauts? Henry Eliot - author, editor and insatiable bookworm - has ransacked the libraries and archives of world literature, compiling hundreds of bookish lists. This eclectic gallimaufry showcases his favourites- we witness the tragic ends of the Ancient Greek tragedians, learn the name of George Orwell's pet cockerel and rummage through Joan Didion's travelling bag; we consider the history of literary fart jokes, orbit the Shakespearean moons of Uranus and meet several pigs with wings. From the sublime to the ridiculous - and everything in between -- Eliot's lists, recommendations and nuggets of trivia will delight, inspire and surprise anyone who loves reading. Beautifully presented with supplementary maps and illustrations, Henry Eliot's Book of Bookish Lists is the essential gift for book-lovers.

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9780241562727

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An eccentric idea beautifully executed -- Louis de Bernieres Hours of innocent snacking -- Iain Sinclair

An eccentric idea beautifully executed -- Louis de Bernieres Hours of innocent snacking -- Iain Sinclair A rich, dense bouillabaisse, so brim-full of piquant and scrumptious surprises that you may need a little lie-down to digest each spoonful -- John Lloyd Eliot's Book of Bookish Lists is as addictive as any opiate. Open it at any page and consider yourself hooked. Here - to cite but a few examples - be books that David Bowie cherished, books that were banned, books that were written in a jiffy, and books that their authors left unfinished. I loved Eliot's book for its wit, learning, eccentricity and unrepentant bookishness -- Alan Taylor An absolute delight - Borges meets with Buzzfeed, to gloriously informative effect -- Tom Holland Who doesn't love a good list? Eliot's Book of Bookish Lists is a trove of treasures from start to finish, from the handy to the fascinating to the downright silly. One to keep by the bedside to be reminded of the quirky, any-angled joys residing in the books we've read and the ones we still have to read -- Dennis Duncan Henry Eliot's Book of Bookish Lists deserves its place on the desk or bedside table of every bibliobibuli. Not only is it useful - helping you tell your pipes (|) from your pilcrows () and your iambs from your spondees - but it's bursting with joyous disjecta membra (Mervyn Peake designed the Pan logo! Robert Louis Stevenson died making mayonnaise!) Buried deep in the etymology of the word 'list' is the notion of pleasure. Mr Eliot's marvellous vade mecum reminds us why -- John Mitchinson The product of a great literary mind. A thoroughly enjoyable book made possible only by Eliot's curiosity, intense love of literature and boundless humour. As amusing as it is informing. A gift for bluffers. Writing was invented to make lists, and now Eliot makes lists into inventive writing. It's difficult to list all the things that make this book entertaining -- Michael Portillo If there was a list of books about lists, Eliot's Book of Bookish Lists would be in the top one -- Philip Pullman A gorgeous confection of a book. I defy any reader not to lose themselves in its pages and forget their to do lists. How do I love this book? Let me list the ways -- Chris Riddell

The ideal companion, quick words, smart disjunctions, for a long cold bath. In fact, this book goes straight to the top of my waterproof list -- Iain Sinclair

The ultimate book for lovers of lists and literature . . . surprising, inspiring and amusing -- Denise O'Donoghue * Irish Examiner * Eliot's books have been my equivalent of big game almanacs. This book is half a delight and half a gauntlet -- Stuart Kelly * Scotsman * An eccentric idea beautifully executed -- Louis de Bernieres If there was a list of books about lists, Eliot's Book of Bookish Lists would be top -- Philip Pullman Hours of innocent snacking -- Iain Sinclair An absolute delight - Borges meets with Buzzfeed -- Tom Holland A gorgeous confection . . . How do I love this book? Let me list the ways . . . -- Chris Riddell Brim-full of piquant and scrumptious surprises -- John Lloyd Thoroughly enjoyable... As amusing as it is informing -- Michael Portillo Buried deep in the etymology of the word 'list' is the notion of pleasure. Mr Eliot's marvellous vade mecum reminds us why -- John Mitchinson I loved Eliot's book for its wit, learning, eccentricity and unrepentant bookishness -- Alan Taylor A trove of treasures from start to finish -- Dennis Duncan

Author Information

Henry Eliot is the author of The Penguin Classics Book, The Penguin Modern Classics Book, Follow This Thread and Curiocity- An Alternative A-Z of London. An inveterate bookworm, Henry has tackled a number of bookish adventures, such as recreating Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, leading pilgrims from Southwark to Canterbury and retelling the tales along the way; mounting a quest for the Holy Grail based on Malory's Morte d'Arthur; swimming across the Hellespont from Europe to Asia on the bicentenary of Lord Byron's crossing (the subject of Byron's 1810 poem, 'Written after Swimming from Sestos to Abydos'); and reading Ulysses in real-time on Bloomsday, 16 June, starting at 8am with grilled kidneys and finishing in the early hours of the following morning. He produced an interactive edition of Shakespeare's The Tempest in collaboration with Sir Ian McKellen and Professor Sir Jonathan Bate, which Apple named one of the '10 best apps of 2016', and for five years he was an editor of the Penguin Classics series in London. Today he is one of the QI research elves and hosts the podcast On the Road with Penguin Classics, in which he travels to discuss books with guests including Frank Cottrell Boyce, Louis de Berni res, Rachel Joyce, Patience Agbabi, Andrew Motion and Will Self.

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