What on Earth is Going On?
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Review
`A sharp and sober collection of succinct, background briefings on the current-affairs subjects we all pretend to know about ... the perfect topical catch-up.' --Sunday Times (Stocking Filler of the Year)
`An incredibly clear, easy to read and, dare I say it, revelatory, crash course in current affairs.' --Easy Living
`A chirpy, amiable volume, which does exactly what it purports to do: it condenses every conceivable current newsworthy subject into a few pages of lively, well-written summary which will arm you for any conversation...clear-cut and intelligent, an excellent volume to keep within arm's reach.' --Literary Review
'Elucidates all those big questions that you see in the newspapers every day but still aren't quite up to speed on.' --Independent (50 best winter reads)
'Help for the perplexed.'
--The Times
`An incredibly clear, easy to read and, dare I say it, revelatory, crash course in current affairs.' --Easy Living
`A chirpy, amiable volume, which does exactly what it purports to do: it condenses every conceivable current newsworthy subject into a few pages of lively, well-written summary which will arm you for any conversation...clear-cut and intelligent, an excellent volume to keep within arm's reach.' --Literary Review
'Elucidates all those big questions that you see in the newspapers every day but still aren't quite up to speed on.' --Independent (50 best winter reads)
'Help for the perplexed.'
--The Times
Product Description
"Everybody gets so much information all day long that they lose their common sense." Gertrude Stein
The world's a complex and bewildering place. Every day we are bombarded with far information than we can possibly hope to absorb. We don't have the time, energy or patience to process it all and select what's important, and sometimes it's tempting to drop the news section straight in the bin and curl up on the sofa with the colour supplements instead.
But there are a lot of things happening in the world that we simply can't afford to ignore. What On Earth Is Going On? fills in the background to the key issues of our times – from Climate Change to the Credit Crunch, Darfur to Devolution – taking the form of an alphabetical glossary that can be consulted at convenient moments. This is a book for the bedside table, the morning commute or the downstairs loo. A rich hotchpotch of world events, current affairs, historical background and amusing trivia, it is a gentle survival guide for people of all ages who wish they knew a little bit more about what on earth is going on.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
22 of 22 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
I first heard about this book when I heard the writers being interviewed on a radio show and from their description I thought I would give it a go.
The book contains a large number of alphabetically arranged sections dealing with issues such as climate change, credit crunch, banking, US electoral system and the European Community. Each section takes up around 4 to 5 pages. What you get is a brief background into each issue that should help readers understand news stories better.
The written style is non-technical and I think quite engaging.
A friend of mine teaches citizenship at school and explained the need for encouraging school children to find answers to questions like, "why are people protesting at the G8 summit?" I think this book helps to answer such questions. I showed him the book and he was certainly of this view himself.
If I have any criticism, it would be that it is likely that within a short time the most burning issues of the day will have changed. It can only ever be a book of its time. I was hoping to get information setting out the origins and issues surrounding AIDS and am surprised that space was not found for this issue. I was also dubious as to the value of such a book given that most of the information can be found on-line. However, it is an attractive book and it is useful to have so much information found in book form.
The book contains a large number of alphabetically arranged sections dealing with issues such as climate change, credit crunch, banking, US electoral system and the European Community. Each section takes up around 4 to 5 pages. What you get is a brief background into each issue that should help readers understand news stories better.
The written style is non-technical and I think quite engaging.
A friend of mine teaches citizenship at school and explained the need for encouraging school children to find answers to questions like, "why are people protesting at the G8 summit?" I think this book helps to answer such questions. I showed him the book and he was certainly of this view himself.
If I have any criticism, it would be that it is likely that within a short time the most burning issues of the day will have changed. It can only ever be a book of its time. I was hoping to get information setting out the origins and issues surrounding AIDS and am surprised that space was not found for this issue. I was also dubious as to the value of such a book given that most of the information can be found on-line. However, it is an attractive book and it is useful to have so much information found in book form.
12 of 12 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
I consider myself to be an intelligent person: I studied at a good school; I read the news; and I'd describe myself as pretty socially aware. But could I explain intelligently what is going on in Sri Lanka; what Hedge Funds actually do; or why we have troops in Afghanistan?
If like me you'd like a quick refresher (or more likely a quick lesson from scratch) on a whole range of subjects that are important and discussed every day in the news, this book offers an entertaining, informative and accurate summary of what on earth is going on. It also succeeds in not insulting your intelligence; I think the authors have pitched it at exactly the right level.
Oh, and if you think you know everything already, you can always buy it for your friend and feel smug about how well versed in current affairs you are...!
I'm sure it'll make an ideal stocking filler!
If like me you'd like a quick refresher (or more likely a quick lesson from scratch) on a whole range of subjects that are important and discussed every day in the news, this book offers an entertaining, informative and accurate summary of what on earth is going on. It also succeeds in not insulting your intelligence; I think the authors have pitched it at exactly the right level.
Oh, and if you think you know everything already, you can always buy it for your friend and feel smug about how well versed in current affairs you are...!
I'm sure it'll make an ideal stocking filler!
16 of 17 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
This is an enormously useful book. The authors deserve plaudits merely for thinking it up as a concept and seeing it through to a final result. Moreover, they have done themselves credit by producing a nicely balanced overview of the various issues that they address. They keep it factual and it's hard to know what they actually think about each subject, but they are not above leavening the facts with some humour. One might quibble with what they have included and what they have ommitted, but disagreements are inevitable about such things. One might also say that many of the entries are rather simplistic and lack depth. However, that is the academic in me talking. I have to accept that such simplification is inevitable if one wants to reach a wide audience and deal with a sufficient range of topics. As it is, this book is a model of its kind. For a relatively uneducated lay audience who nevertheless want to see behind the headlines, this will be enormously helpful. As the authors point out, in a world of 24-hour news we are increasingly confused by instant stories that we haven't the time to begin to understand. It was US author and screenwriter Ben Hecht who said that `Trying to determine what is going on in the world by reading newspapers is like trying to tell the time by watching the second hand of a clock'. His point is even more relevant to the shallow world of television. This book doesn't take us all the way to the hour hand and the correct time, but at least it moves us beyond mere surface impressions. Whilst this book could easily become dated, I hope that the authors will use that problem to good effect. A regularly updated version could, I think, become an invaluable aid to many people.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
Fantastic whistle-stop tour!
This book covers everything from the Cuban missile crisis to the ins and outs of stocks and shares. It's a great introduction to current affairs and gives a great starting point. Read more
Published 4 months ago by S. Brown
An illuminating guide to current affairs.
'What on Earth is Going On?' is a fascinating and illuminating guide to current affairs covering 63 key issues ranging from Climate Change and the Credit Crunch to Hedge Funds and... Read more
Published 23 months ago by Jazzrook
Nutshell
This book purports or attempts to be a kind of nutshell guide to world and current affairs. It is organized on a straight A-Z basis, without any distinction made between countries,... Read more
Published 24 months ago by Ian Millard
Now we know...
This is an excellent quick reference book.
Short, sharp and snappy explanations written in lay terms explain the background to many current news stories- HIV , Burma, GM... Read more
Short, sharp and snappy explanations written in lay terms explain the background to many current news stories- HIV , Burma, GM... Read more
Published on 6 Feb 2010 by Mr. Chris Pearson
Now I know what on earth is going on.....
A really helpful book that explains immediate and important issues accessibly. I imagine though it would need to be updated regularly... Read more
Published on 11 Jan 2010 by Judith Baker
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