Highly recommended, but beware! Exercise caution. Dip into it when you have plenty of time to spare or be prepared to employ more self-discipline than I've yet managed -- harden your resolve and snap it shut when you've found the information you were seeking (if you're will-power is strong enough).

Then there's the reassuring wieght of the book. This hefty door-stop belies an incredible weight of publishing history (the book has been developed through successive editions from 1870) and information. And what information. This is a truly unique cultural compendium of events, organisations, names, and characters, all of which cross and re-cross various boundaries, such as the worlds of fact and fiction. The book encourages strangely enriching journeys through its' contents. As you follow up a reference for some phrase or name, you'll get hooked by a cross-reference, or your eye will be caught by something completely unrelated. Either way you'll be spent spinning on various weird and wonderful tangents. Also useful and entertaing are quotations and illustrations which put the information in context.

Its' uses must be diverse. From my own experience as a habitual crossword solver, it's shed light on some clues that, for example pre-suppose a knowledge of 'Giotto's O' (see page 496) and of the nature of a 'Tail-end Charlie' (see page 1150)!

Terry Pratchett in his short foreword gives a witty and illuminating decription of the books' unique character. It is, he says, "'An Education' in the truest sense."

It makes a really lovely present for young and old: it looks suitably impressive, has fairly universal appeal provided they're a fan of the written word, and is far livelier than the standard reference books that get trotted out on Important Occasions. I have given this to my best friend, my step-dad, and a second cousin who has just come of age; the latter (aged 13) hasn't been heard from yet (we calculated that there's a pretty good chance he's going to read it, unlike most of the books he's bound to have received), but the other two have adored it, and friends who have been introduced to my copy usually end up spending a good hour leafing through it. A huge number of phrases, expressions, and characters from myth, history and literature are there, but I still want to know where the word "codswallop" comes from...

The references inside cover a multitude of different things. There are references to mythology, ancient history, everyday expressions, and new or relatively new words that creep into the language - words like Paparazzi, or Godzilla. The book is really a mix of language and general knowledge.

There are entries for real people, and also for characters from legends, fairy tales and plays. If you're like me and are full of useless information and trivia, then you'll love this book, because it's full of stuff like that. This is where it differs from an ordinary dictionary, or encyclopaedia. You can pick it up any time and find something of interest. Many of the entries are like very short synopses or stories in their own right. This book is a great tool for anyone needing a prompt, or ideas, to write an essay, or article. Because of it's broad range of subjects and the way they are presented.

Open the book at any page and something will catch your eye. You'll find yourself saying, "I didn't know that" or " Oh that's why we say that"
The book is well laid out and each entry includes the origin of the phrase or word. It's a large book at almost 1300 pages but it does cover an awful lot of different subject areas. While it is basically sold as a reference book it's far more than that, it's also enjoyable and good fun to read.