Reference : Trivia

Every common expression has a history, and it's often not what one would expect. I Didn't Know That offers a lighthearted yet enlightening look at the unusual origins of hundreds of words and sayings that pepper our language. From ''ants in the pants'' (a questionable old English home remedy) to the ''whole nine yards'' (which has nothing to do with lengths of fabric), here are the surprising and often amusing stories behind the phrases we use every day. more...

Price: $9.99

Nowadays, the word ‘cynic’ has been relegated to a synonym of ‘doubter’, ‘pessimist’ or ‘sceptic’. But, given our modern preoccupations with pleasure, fame, fortune and power, maybe we need cynics more than ever. Perhaps theirs is that small, sane voice amid the roar of instant gratification, 24-hour television, media manipulation and marketing. Or perhaps we just wanted to sell a book. But, of course – we’re not that cynical. Are we? more...

Price: $5.99

A collection of over 800 trivia questions about Quakers, as well as essays dealing with the education, business, industry, politics, and more. An excellent reference for adults and teenagers. more...

Price: $6.50

What’s in a name? For Philip Dodd, this question led to an international hunt for the best stories of eponymous heroes-- an extraordinarily diverse group of people with just one thing in common: by chance or deliberately, they have left their names deeply embedded in the language and consciousness of future generations. A few, such as instrument-maker Adolphe Sax, set out to achieve immortality. A handful – Joseph-Ignace Guillotin, for example – positively shunned the prospect. But the majority, like Joseph P. Frisbie or Ernst Gräfenberg (the G in G- spot), simply had no idea that some strange quirk of their lives, work, or personalities would catapult them to fame, or that one day their family name would become a household word. Tracing their varied paths to glory has taken Philip Dodd on a worldwide quest. He has voyaged to the desolate Matagorda peninsula on the Gulf Coast of Texas to find out the truth about the notorious cattle rancher Samuel Maverick. He has been to Happy Valley, California, to find Roy Jacuzzi, alive and well and still bubbling with ideas. He has followed the story of Joseph P. Frisbie from a former pie factory in Bridgeport, Connecticut, to the headquarters of Wham-O, trying the fledgling sport of ‘Frisbie golf’ and taking home a rather strange and macabre memento… And, of course, he has ventured to the St Ann’s River in Trinidad to see for himself the spot where Robert Lechmere Guppy, naturalist extraordinaire, first collected a certain small freshwater fish. His discoveries breathe life back into words that we too readily take for granted. Philip Dodd’s globetrotting, personal approach brings these idiosyncratic, occasionally bizarre stories to vivid life— armchair travel at its best. In this marvelous tribute to the forgotten people who changed our language, we learn that the prospect of immortality is only a fluke away. In an age of instant 15-minute celebrity, that's a reassuring tho more...

Price: $20.00

Everything you always wanted to know about the one subject that never gets old… When it comes to sex, a little knowledge goes a long, long way. Here, at last, is the perfect little book to tease your imagination and test your sexual IQ (ever heard of the Turtle Stirs position?). more...

Price: $7.99