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QI: The Book of Animal Ignorance (Hardcover)

by Stephen Fry (Foreword), John Lloyd (Author), John Mitchinson (Author)
4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
RRP: £12.99
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QI: The Book of Animal Ignorance + QI: The Book of General Ignorance (The Noticeably Stouter Edition) + QI: Advanced Banter
Price For All Three: £20.01

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Product details

  • Hardcover: 304 pages
  • Publisher: Faber and Faber (4 Oct 2007)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 0571233708
  • ISBN-13: 978-0571233700
  • Product Dimensions: 20 x 13.4 x 2.6 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 4,914 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

    Popular in these categories:

    #8 in  Books > Science & Nature > Reference > Animal Sciences
    #10 in  Books > Science & Nature > Environment & Ecology > Conservation
    #14 in  Books > Fiction > Authors, A-Z > F > Fry, Stephen

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Product Description

Product Description

Join the QI team for an off-road safari through a hundred of the most interesting members of the animal kingdom, armed with illuminating illustrations and diagrams by award-winning artist Ted Dewan. Meet the water bears that can live in suspension for hundreds of years, the parasite carried by your cat that makes men grumpy and women promiscuous, and the woodlouse that drinks through its bottom. Marvel at elephants that walk on tiptoe, pigs that shine in the dark, and woodpeckers that have ears on the end of their tongues. If you still think a pangolin is a musical instrument, that hyenas are dogs, or that sheep are pointless and stupid, "The Book of Animal Ignorance" has arrived just in time.


From the Publisher

Includes a Foreword by Stephen Fry, and a Forepaw by Alan Davies.
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Inside This Book (Learn More)
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt
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What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

QI: The Book of Animal Ignorance
63% buy the item featured on this page:
QI: The Book of Animal Ignorance 4.4 out of 5 stars (13)
£7.77
QI: The Book of General Ignorance (The Noticeably Stouter Edition)
19% buy
QI: The Book of General Ignorance (The Noticeably Stouter Edition) 4.3 out of 5 stars (27)
£4.77
The Book of General Ignorance (A Quite Interesting Book)
8% buy
The Book of General Ignorance (A Quite Interesting Book) 4.3 out of 5 stars (58)
£7.77
QI: Advanced Banter
8% buy
QI: Advanced Banter 4.4 out of 5 stars (25)
£7.47
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Customer Reviews

13 Reviews
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Average Customer Review
4.4 out of 5 stars (13 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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78 of 96 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Far more interesting and far funnier than the first book, 12 Nov 2007
The Book of Animal Ignorance is quite different from its predecessor, the Book of General Ignorance. The few people that disliked the first QI book complained that its question and answer style made them feel stupid (although the fact that so many people bought it seems to suggest that people quite enjoyed this). You won't get that feeling when reading the latest edition from the QI team.

The book has lost the question and answer style of the book of general ignorance. Instead it has been organised into two-page sections, each concerning one of 100 animals, organised alphabetically. Hence the focus has drifted away from the ignorance and over to the animal. However, that does not mean that the book is any less interesting.

For someone who religiously watches the TV show which the book accompanies, this book is far more rewarding. The first book lifted much of its material from the general ignorance round in the show. That which hadn't been seen by viewers of the show, probably hadn't made the cut. For this book it is clear that a considerable amount of extra research has been done.

Since much of the research has been done exclusively for the book, you can begin to perceive some of the themes that preoccupied the authors and their elves. The etymology of animal names is a clear example. Understanding how an animal was named gives a fascinating insight into what we believed we knew about the animal in the past and how our relationship with it has changed. The mouse is an excellent example:

"The very name `mouse' ultimately derives from the Sanskrit root mush, which means mouse and also to steal. Hence wherever we went thereafter - on foot, in carts, or by ship - the little thief kept us company."

There's also a very strong focus on evolution and how natural selection produced some of the stranger animals in the book. This makes for some interesting discussion, especially for those animals that have existed in isolation for so long.

If the book makes a reference to barbs, spines, nails or unfolding like a Swiss army knife then something about male genitalia is probably about to follow. The topic of animal reproduction and their reproductive organs is something this book doesn't shy away from. It certainly makes for intriguing discussion. Both men and women will find that this book will create feelings of varying degrees of supremacy and inadequacy. However, one must disagree with the claim that "if the Nine-banded armadillo were human its penis would be 4 feet long". If it were human then it would have a human sized penis.

Accompanying the section on each animal is at least one picture drawn by Ted Dewan. Reading a book as interesting as this, it would be easy to rush onto read about the next animal without glancing at these excellent illustrations. Don't! These pictures don't just illustrate what is described in the text but also include some of the most interesting pieces of information in the book. They range from mechanical drawings (Ted Dewan trained as an engineer) to illustrate an owl's ability to move its head around 360 degrees, to the life-like drawing of a catfish. Some will set you laughing out loud like the sketch of a brown bear wandering around a supermarket. Also, don't miss the extra facts and quotes in the grey boxes. The best one accompanies the section about humans.

"Human beings, who are unique in having the ability to learn from the experience of others, are also remarkable for their apparent disinclination to do so" Douglas Adams.

The book includes at its start a foreword by Stephen Fry, a `forepaw' by Alan Davies (which is far bigger than his contribution to the first book) and an introduction by the authors John Lloyd and John Mitchinson. All three are well worth reading and avoid skipping straight into the main text. As they explain, QI is as much a philosophy as a TV show and animals are the bread and butter of interestingness. A quote from Henry Beston in the book:

"In a world older and more complex than ours, they move finished and complete, gifted with the extension of the sense we have lost or never attained, living by voices we shall never hear. They are not brethren, they are not underlings: they are other nations, caught with ourselves in the net of life and time."

The amazing illustrations, the tireless research by the elves and the philosophy of QI have combined to create an excellent book. You can dip into it and be confident that you will always be rewarded with something you didn't know. I sincerely suggest that you take up the author's invitation to "come down to the waterhole of ignorance and wallow with us for a while".
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35 of 43 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Animal Thoughts move on!, 16 Nov 2007
By Jon (Cumbria) - See all my reviews


I did enjoy Stephen Fry's book which certainly got me thinking.
However, something which has done so even more recently is Peter Cave's Can a Robot be Human. If you want to really get your cells working buy the two! Both are extremely readable and remind you that using your brain can be fun!
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18 of 27 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Animals or Robots?!, 20 Nov 2007
By Cathy (Edinburgh) - See all my reviews
Thanks, Jon, for getting me onto Peter Cave's Robots as well as Stephen Fry's Animals. Both books were great and very good for the enquiring mind. Thoroughly recommended.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Useful, Quite Interesting and Hilarious
This is a book of faccts. Animal facts to be precise. Now you may think "That's boring" or "That's been done before!" then think again. Read more
Published 6 months ago by Paton

5.0 out of 5 stars Compelling
This was a present for my dad for Christmas - he loves it. Read through it in one day & is constantly re-reading parts when mum's watching the soaps. A worthy buy
Published 7 months ago by Yorkney

5.0 out of 5 stars A Non-stop Onslaught of Fascinating Facts. Most Interesting Even if you Aren't Particularly An Animal Fan
Even if animal facts aren't particularly your thing, you should still find this book to be nothing short of absolutely fascinating. Read more
Published 8 months ago by Mr. T. White

5.0 out of 5 stars Relentlessly fascinating
I'm a bit of a fanboy when it comes to the QI show and books, but this is book is my favourite offering. Read more
Published 9 months ago by D. Campbell

4.0 out of 5 stars Supprise gift
This book was purchased as a Christmas gift for my son and his daughter to enjoy along with How to Fossilise Your Hamster: And Other Amazing Experiments For The Armchair... Read more
Published 9 months ago by S. Gunner

1.0 out of 5 stars never recieved!
I'm sure that, like the other QI books, this is hilarious and quite interesting, however given i've never recieved mine (ordered on the 1.12.08) i wouldn't know!!!!
Published 9 months ago by Fletot

5.0 out of 5 stars Packed full of information
A wonderful collection of animal miscellany. It is only let down by an absence of references and the fact that one wishes that they covered more animals.
Published 12 months ago by Ibrahim Ali

4.0 out of 5 stars Fabulous
Fabulous fabulous fabulous fabulous fabulous book. Fabulous. Ideal for reading to your other half when lying in bed after an overly heavy meal.
Published 22 months ago by Supertad

4.0 out of 5 stars Quite interesting
Good old Stephen Fry and his cohorts have come up with an eminently readable book about the many things we think we know about animals but have actually got wrong or not quite as... Read more
Published on 6 Nov 2007 by Natureboy

5.0 out of 5 stars Know the animal
Intersting read with a lot of hahas. If you love animal and want to know the facts this book is for you. A great follow up to General Book of Ignorance.
Published on 26 Oct 2007 by Mr. T. Neave

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