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The Curious Reader: Facts About Famous Authors and Novels
Readers rejoice! Learn amazing facts about authors and their books, from Jane Austen to JRR Tolkien.
From Mental Floss, an online destination for more than a billion curious minds since its founding in 2001, comes the ultimate book for lovers of literature. From Americanah to War and Peace, from Chinua Achebe and Jane Austen to Jesmyn Ward and George R.R. Martin, learn surprising facts about the world’s most famous novels and novelists.
The Curious Reader will delight bookworms everywhere. This literary compendium from Mental Floss reveals fascinating facts about the world’s most famous authors and their literary works. Readers will learn about George Orwell’s near-death experience during the writing of 1984; meet the real man who may have inspired Pride and Prejudice’s Mr. Darcy; discover which famous author kept her husband’s heart after he passed away; and learn about the influence of psychedelics on Dune. The Curious Reader also contains the most-loved book-related articles from 20 years of Mental Floss, including “Cat-Loving Writers,” “Famous Authors’ Unfinished Manuscripts,” “Literary Characters Based on Real People,” and “Books You Didn’t Know Were Self-Published.”
This literary miscellany is certain to inspire book lovers, aspiring writers, students, and teachers alike to discover a diverse selection of curated literary works—leading to an expansion of their library!
From Mental Floss, an online destination for more than a billion curious minds since its founding in 2001, comes the ultimate book for lovers of literature. From Americanah to War and Peace, from Chinua Achebe and Jane Austen to Jesmyn Ward and George R.R. Martin, learn surprising facts about the world’s most famous novels and novelists.
The Curious Reader will delight bookworms everywhere. This literary compendium from Mental Floss reveals fascinating facts about the world’s most famous authors and their literary works. Readers will learn about George Orwell’s near-death experience during the writing of 1984; meet the real man who may have inspired Pride and Prejudice’s Mr. Darcy; discover which famous author kept her husband’s heart after he passed away; and learn about the influence of psychedelics on Dune. The Curious Reader also contains the most-loved book-related articles from 20 years of Mental Floss, including “Cat-Loving Writers,” “Famous Authors’ Unfinished Manuscripts,” “Literary Characters Based on Real People,” and “Books You Didn’t Know Were Self-Published.”
This literary miscellany is certain to inspire book lovers, aspiring writers, students, and teachers alike to discover a diverse selection of curated literary works—leading to an expansion of their library!
288 pages, Hardcover
First published May 4, 2021
18 people are currently reading
458 people want to read
About the author
Erin McCarthy
2 booksLibrarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads database.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 53 reviews
June 22, 2021
What's the difference between reading a literary website - with its sweeping overviews of books and writers, plus listicles of literary curios - and a book that does exactly the same thing? I don't know. I used to go on Cracked all the time and I loved their book-themed lists (until they had this hyperbolic listicle about Lovecraft that was both factually wrong and unappealing to read), but before that, I loved nonfiction books about books. I think I might have spent upwards of a year of my life reading and re-reading that John Bear book about the New York Times #1 Bestseller. So when I saw The Curious Reader in a bookstore in New York, I bought it ASAP and dove in.
What a book like this does is make you aware of other books - some part of the canon, some not, all worthy from one or more points of view. I kept waiting to "feel bad" for not reading some of the most defining works of literature, as this book tackles most of them: Crime & Punishment, Wuthering Heights, War & Peace. I ended up not feeling weird or guilty because I realize, now that I'm in my forties, that I am capable of reading these books. I earnestly think that reading Moby-Dick changed everything for me, expanding my mind and my sense of my own abilities as a reader. Plus, I'm not saying that it's not satisfying to say I've read Moby-Dick.
What I am saying is that this book presented these classics (and new classics) in a way that made them seem accessible to who I am now. I kind of want to read Crime & Punishment and Anna Karenina and Beloved. I want to re-read The Color Purple. I've wanted to read The Joy Luck Club for years! I should read that! Let's make that happen!
PS this book also taught me that I never, ever, ever want to read Ulysses. Because sometimes the canon can fuck itself.
What a book like this does is make you aware of other books - some part of the canon, some not, all worthy from one or more points of view. I kept waiting to "feel bad" for not reading some of the most defining works of literature, as this book tackles most of them: Crime & Punishment, Wuthering Heights, War & Peace. I ended up not feeling weird or guilty because I realize, now that I'm in my forties, that I am capable of reading these books. I earnestly think that reading Moby-Dick changed everything for me, expanding my mind and my sense of my own abilities as a reader. Plus, I'm not saying that it's not satisfying to say I've read Moby-Dick.
What I am saying is that this book presented these classics (and new classics) in a way that made them seem accessible to who I am now. I kind of want to read Crime & Punishment and Anna Karenina and Beloved. I want to re-read The Color Purple. I've wanted to read The Joy Luck Club for years! I should read that! Let's make that happen!
PS this book also taught me that I never, ever, ever want to read Ulysses. Because sometimes the canon can fuck itself.
July 3, 2022
A fun coffee table–ish book that collects trivia about classic and popular novels from the last 150 years or so. I’m always up for interesting facts!
The editors did a generally good job of including women writers and writers of color in this collection, but I would have liked to see a couple more queer books discussed (like Maurice!). Also, a few mistakes made it past the proofreaders—nothing egregious, but a couple of repeated lines and an apostrophe turned the wrong way.
Thank you to the publisher for providing a copy of the book!
The editors did a generally good job of including women writers and writers of color in this collection, but I would have liked to see a couple more queer books discussed (like Maurice!). Also, a few mistakes made it past the proofreaders—nothing egregious, but a couple of repeated lines and an apostrophe turned the wrong way.
Thank you to the publisher for providing a copy of the book!
May 31, 2021
3 stars for my enjoyment, but I'm not at all surprised to discover this was published by the same company that released Sawbones out into the wild. There were bizarre typos (> was used multiple times in place of '), grammatical errors, (one literary character is described as "a wealthy"), and - like with Sawbones - The Curious Reader even includes a paragraph that's completed duplicated in two sections.
In the Pride and Prejudice entry, there's a full paragraph that's originally in the text as trivia that the book was first published anonymously...and then that same paragraph - 102 words - are completely repeated somehow under a section about the novel's tv and film adaptations. No, I lied, there is one difference: the original paragraph has the word It>s while the mistakenly duplicated paragraph has It's.
Sloppy. Lazy. Also, is Mental Floss now owned by Goodreads? I was surprised to see GR listed in numerous entries as a source...that also seemed lazy to me.
In the Pride and Prejudice entry, there's a full paragraph that's originally in the text as trivia that the book was first published anonymously...and then that same paragraph - 102 words - are completely repeated somehow under a section about the novel's tv and film adaptations. No, I lied, there is one difference: the original paragraph has the word It>s while the mistakenly duplicated paragraph has It's.
Sloppy. Lazy. Also, is Mental Floss now owned by Goodreads? I was surprised to see GR listed in numerous entries as a source...that also seemed lazy to me.
July 4, 2021
Like all the other mental floss pubs, this one has just the right amount of info to make it educational, yet entertaining. It’s also a great source for adding classics to your tbr list.
January 12, 2024
You'd think a purported labour of love (about books of all things) wouldn't have so many errors! I really can't recall ever reading any book with so many mistakes that range from repeated paragraphs one after the other to basic lapses in punctuation. Spoiler tags are inconsistently applied to the point it would have been better leaving them out entirely, as their apparent presence leads one into having a false sense of security, only to end up reading spoilers where the warning is absent (not to mention that they seem to have been totally forgotten by the second half).
I was hoping I might find something new in here to add to my to-read list but I didn't. Most all of the choices seem to be either the typical classics ('Moby Dick', 'Pride and Prejudice') or contemporary progressive novels ('Americanah', 'The Joy Luck Club'). The imagery was far more neatly presented than the words - this is a well illustrated work. I learned some things for sure (wow, Tolstoy was kind of a jerk!) but much of it just seemed like common knowledge; especially to a frequent reader. With a better editor it could have been four-stars.
I was hoping I might find something new in here to add to my to-read list but I didn't. Most all of the choices seem to be either the typical classics ('Moby Dick', 'Pride and Prejudice') or contemporary progressive novels ('Americanah', 'The Joy Luck Club'). The imagery was far more neatly presented than the words - this is a well illustrated work. I learned some things for sure (wow, Tolstoy was kind of a jerk!) but much of it just seemed like common knowledge; especially to a frequent reader. With a better editor it could have been four-stars.
August 22, 2022
•The Doors named their band after one of Aldous Huxley’s novels,
•Octavia E. Butler’s famed novel Kindred nearly featured a male protagonist, and
•Agatha Christie penned her first novel on a dare.
Did you also know?
•Amy Tan wrote most of The Joy Luck Club in only four months,
•Mary Shelley got the idea for Frankenstein from a vision, and
•Colson Whitehead is one of only four authors to have won two Pulitzer Prizes for Fiction.
Discover hundreds of fascinating and surprising literary facts like these in today’s “Librarian Recommends” selection: The Curious Reader: A Literary Miscellany of Novels & Novelists. With something intriguing for everyone, this book is a fun, informative, and mind-expanding read!
•Octavia E. Butler’s famed novel Kindred nearly featured a male protagonist, and
•Agatha Christie penned her first novel on a dare.
Did you also know?
•Amy Tan wrote most of The Joy Luck Club in only four months,
•Mary Shelley got the idea for Frankenstein from a vision, and
•Colson Whitehead is one of only four authors to have won two Pulitzer Prizes for Fiction.
Discover hundreds of fascinating and surprising literary facts like these in today’s “Librarian Recommends” selection: The Curious Reader: A Literary Miscellany of Novels & Novelists. With something intriguing for everyone, this book is a fun, informative, and mind-expanding read!
November 13, 2021
I love Mental Floss and they’re my number one place to go to learn book/author trivia so I was incredibly excited to see this book! A compilation of articles they’ve done over the years, this is a must read for any literary fan. You are bound to learn something new and interesting! (Side note: I did notice several instances where the editing could have been better. For example, in some places the punctuation was messed up and there were several instances where text was accidentally repeated. Hopefully they can get that fixed up!)
April 6, 2022
A compilation of bonbons, of trivia nuggets about a well-known book and its author, The Curious Reader is entertaining, but it is best read a bit at a time, much as one would eat bonbons. Of course you can, as I did, scarf the whole book in a short period, but even the best bonbons are less delicious when you get to the twentieth in a sitting.
December 22, 2021
This book was fun to read in its hard copy. The cover was interesting as were the pictures and formatting. I added several books to my want to read list based off the author profiles.
This might be good on a table if you’re hosting a gathering.
This might be good on a table if you’re hosting a gathering.
February 7, 2022
Full of interesting facts about a wide variety of exceptional authors. I enjoyed this one!
August 6, 2021
Entertaining. Some of it is a little overfamiliar if you've read a lot of books about books and writers, but there were plenty of interesting tidbits to make it worthwhile.
June 27, 2021
If you love books about books, this one should do nicely. Not only about books, but the authors who write them. A miscellany of the many things you wish you knew about your favorite books and authors. Produced by the folks at Mental Floss. I cannot imagine a bibliophile without this on their shelf.
March 2, 2022
3.5 Stars
Setting aside the criminally missed opportunity for the pagination of the Hitchhiker’s Guide entry and an egregious copy error in the Jane Eyre/ Charlotte Bronte entry, this coffee-table tome presents a “Must Read” compendium with a dose of random (sometimes quirky) Wikipedia-esque factoids on novelists, the publishing industry, and beloved characters alike.
For certain readers, this book and its accompanying factoids per entry will offer a tailored list of side quests to pursue given many of the books spotlighted are well-known and are often already featured on “Greatest Books / Must Read” lists of various and sundry authority.
Having no experience with the Mental Floss brand, I knew not what to expect with this collection. Overall, I found myself pleasantly surprised by the general diversity of the collection with many of the related entry facts serving as curiosity prompts for my future reading. However, 273 entries is a not insignificant number to slog through and I felt my interest waning as the entries themselves began to stack up like my “to read” pile.
Setting aside the criminally missed opportunity for the pagination of the Hitchhiker’s Guide entry and an egregious copy error in the Jane Eyre/ Charlotte Bronte entry, this coffee-table tome presents a “Must Read” compendium with a dose of random (sometimes quirky) Wikipedia-esque factoids on novelists, the publishing industry, and beloved characters alike.
For certain readers, this book and its accompanying factoids per entry will offer a tailored list of side quests to pursue given many of the books spotlighted are well-known and are often already featured on “Greatest Books / Must Read” lists of various and sundry authority.
Having no experience with the Mental Floss brand, I knew not what to expect with this collection. Overall, I found myself pleasantly surprised by the general diversity of the collection with many of the related entry facts serving as curiosity prompts for my future reading. However, 273 entries is a not insignificant number to slog through and I felt my interest waning as the entries themselves began to stack up like my “to read” pile.
August 14, 2021
The Curious Reader has many fascinating facts such as, "Aldous Huxley was almost blind as a teenager, taught George Orwell, and worked as a screenwriter in Hollywood. Another cool fact about the banned book "Jinnah of Pakistan" - this biography claims Pakistan's founder enjoyed wine and pork. Pakistan has banned this book. Also, many would say the Harry Potter series is one of the 8 best-selling books in history (minus religious texts) but Betty Crocker's Cookbook rounded out in 8th place.
Naturally, it also covers some of the great literary novelists such as Mary Shelly, Toni Morrison, George R.R. Martin, and so many more. Spellbinding and an absolute must-read for lovers and book geeks like me. What I loved most is always hearing myself say, “I didn’t know that!” and loving every minute of all the wonderful tidbits and information on books and authors from all types of genres.
Naturally, it also covers some of the great literary novelists such as Mary Shelly, Toni Morrison, George R.R. Martin, and so many more. Spellbinding and an absolute must-read for lovers and book geeks like me. What I loved most is always hearing myself say, “I didn’t know that!” and loving every minute of all the wonderful tidbits and information on books and authors from all types of genres.
March 1, 2022
A massive tome of fascinating facts about the literary canon, bouncing between styles, eras, and motifs. Erin McCarthy and the mental floss crew did their homework, and drop knowledge bombs about some of the most famous books in modern history. I love the side bars and the design is excellent. Fun read if you're a book trivia type.
May 28, 2021
I really loved the concept of this book, but was a bit disappointed in the actual execution. There doesn't seem to be any kind of organization or logic behind the progression of stories. Nor any rhyme or reason as to the selection of titles included. Also, there is a lot of superfluous information that just clutters the book.
The writing isn't very interesting or creative, in fact it gets quite dry in places.
I guess if I'm going to teach a certain book or author I could refer to this volume for some clever introduction to offer my students, but I'm not guaranteed what I'm looking for will even be included.
I'm just not a fan, sorry.
Thank you to Edelweiss+ and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for my honest opinions.
The writing isn't very interesting or creative, in fact it gets quite dry in places.
I guess if I'm going to teach a certain book or author I could refer to this volume for some clever introduction to offer my students, but I'm not guaranteed what I'm looking for will even be included.
I'm just not a fan, sorry.
Thank you to Edelweiss+ and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for my honest opinions.
June 9, 2022
I've read a few lists and fun tidbits from Mental Floss in the past, but this is the first book of theirs (the Mental Floss team) that I've read. It was so much fun! It had all sorts of interesting information--some of it rather straightforward and some quite quirky and silly--about all sorts of writers and their books. There are authors going back to the sixteenth century (Cervantes) and up to the twenty-first century (Cormac McCarthy), and the lists interspersed after each section about the writers are marvelous. There are lists of banned books, Nobel Prize winners, Pulitzer Prize winners, books about mental illness, harsh reviews of famous books, you name it. From Lord of the Rings to Lord of the Flies, this book has a bit of everything, and it certainly kept me entertained.
November 21, 2021
This is so well researched and written! I learned so many interesting facts about some of my favorite authors and their books. Mary Shelley's real life was just as morbid as her book "Frankenstein". Kurt Vonnegut's "Slaughterhouse Five" was based on real experiences. This is one of those books you have to take your time reading, because there's so much info to be absorbed. At this point I'm not sure which is more interesting: the books or their authors.
January 28, 2022
This was basically the perfect book for me - full of loads of interesting information & anecdotes about some of the world’s most celebrated novels and the writers that created them. I devoured the book, but it still took me awhile to finish because I kept wanting to Google each author after I finished reading about them. I feel like I learned SO much…and now have many more classic novels on my “to be read” list. And also some to avoid!
May 28, 2021
This is a great read for anyone that wants to learn fascinating facts and tidbits about the books and authors they love. It has books from every genre, books that are well known as well as hidden gems. I was able to uncover lots of great stuff about my favorite books and I'm pulling out some of my well worn books to read again with new insight. Highly recommend this one.
July 28, 2021
Really a fun read about authors and their most successful titles. Some I have read, some I will read, some I will only read about. Each one is accompanied with gossipy tidbits about the author. It is a book nerds delight. Of course, I loved it. I am proud to say that I have read War and Peace, and I probably never read Ulysses.
August 17, 2021
interesting book about tidbits of author's life and their writings. some of the entries make me want to read some of the titles I have been avoiding. it seems like there could have been just a bit more thought given to the organization of content. kept wondering which author I would learn about next. will be sending this book to my grandson as he is a historical book reader.
November 4, 2021
It's Mental Floss in physical book form! Some of the books are questionable. Some are obvious. Others are damn interesting, and I should probably read them.
The commentary is entertaining, regardless. Is there an order of "priority"? Probably. But mostly, I just wanted to learn more trivia for those long lost/forgotten bar nights.
The commentary is entertaining, regardless. Is there an order of "priority"? Probably. But mostly, I just wanted to learn more trivia for those long lost/forgotten bar nights.
November 17, 2022
A fun read, but like most tombs that spotlight great writers, the presentation is skewed to the left, as one would expect. To its credit though, it does at least mention some more conservative thinkers, like Ayn Rand, an author who is usually wholly overlooked.
June 30, 2024
It's OK
As the 21st century nears the quarter mark, I find myself drawn more and more to books. This is a decent book for those who need some direction in discovering what classics to read.
As the 21st century nears the quarter mark, I find myself drawn more and more to books. This is a decent book for those who need some direction in discovering what classics to read.
September 25, 2024
July seems to be the month of this type of book. Heck, it may be the year of the short vignettes. This book is supposed from Mental Floss, so you know the nature of the stories of famous authors and events.
July 3, 2021
Ultimately just a coffee table book, but so fun. Ignites passion for reading and adds shade to authors beyond their mystique.
Came away with several books to add to my reading list
Came away with several books to add to my reading list
July 22, 2021
This was an interesting book. I can definitely see this being given as a gift for the holidays.
August 3, 2021
Plenty of information about books and authors. Made me want to go back and reread some books and added a whole lot more to my reading list!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 53 reviews