QI: The Second Book of General Ignorance

Loading Images...
Double-tap to zoom
Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.
Used – Good
USD 2.44
FREE delivery 29 July - 5 August on your first order to UK or Ireland. Order within 3 hrs 18 mins. Details
Only 6 left in stock.
Buy with confidence from a huge UK seller, all items despatched next day directly from the UK. All items are quality guaranteed.
Sold by musicMagpie
USD USD 2.44 () Includes selected options. Includes initial monthly payment and selected options. Details
Price
Subtotal
USD USD 2.44
Subtotal
Initial payment breakdown
Delivery cost, delivery date and order total (including tax) shown at checkout.
Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Book details

  1. Book 2 of 3
    Qi: Book of General Ignorance
  2. Print length
    368 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Publisher
    Faber & Faber
  5. Publication date
    7 Oct. 2010
  6. Dimensions
    13.4 x 3.2 x 20.4 cm
  7. ISBN-10
    0571269656
  8. ISBN-13
    978-0571269655
Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Just when you thought it was safe to start showing off again, the bestselling authors of The Book of General Ignorance and 1,277 QI Facts To Blow Your Socks Off are back. With a foreword by Stephen Fry, this parcel of unimaginable information is here to solve a few common misconceptions, mistakes and misunderstandings.

Octopuses have six legs, oranges aren't orange, bats aren't blind, napoleon wasn't short, vikings didn't wear horned helmets, there is no such thing as a fish.

QI: The Second Book of General Ignorance is the essential set text for everyone who's proud to admit that they don't know everything, and an ideal stick with which to beat people who think they do.

John Lloyd and John Mitchinson are the bestselling authors of QI: The Book of General Ignorance and 1,277 QI Facts To Blow Your Socks Off. Here they present a wonderful collection of astonishingly interesting facts, perfect for pub quiz lovers, trivia buffs and general knowledge experts alike.

Book Description

QI: The Second Book of General Ignorance by John Lloyd and John Mitchinson is the sequel to the phenomenal international bestseller QI: The Book of General Ignorance, with, as ever, a foreword by Stephen Fry.

About the Author

John Lloyd CBE is the creator of QI and founding producer of The News Quiz, Not the Nine O'Clock News, Spitting Image, Blackadder and No Such Thing As The News.

John Mitchinson is from the world of books. The original Marketing Director of Waterstone's, he became Managing Director of Cassell, where he published The Beatles, Michael Palin and Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, and now runs Unbound. He's with Einstein: 'There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.'

About the authors

Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.
John Lloyd
John Lloyd
Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

John Lloyd is the founder of QI and the producer of some of Britain’s best-loved TV shows. He is of the same opinion as Plato: unmitigated seriousness has no place in human affairs. On the other hand, he also likes A. N. Whitehead’s assertion that it’s more important for something to be interesting than true (although it’s more likely to be interesting if it is true).

John Mitchinson
John Mitchinson
Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

John is a writer and publisher. He was Waterstone’s first marketing director before becoming a publisher at the Harvill Press and then Cassell & Co. His authors included the Beatles, Michael Palin, Richard Ford, Haruki Murakami and a woman who knitted with doghair. In 2001 he joined TV producer John Lloyd to set up QI Ltd (www.qi.com). They have recently produced the tenth series of the BBC TV show, and their series of bestselling QI books have been translated into 29 languages. John is also a Vice-President of the Hay Festival and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts. He writes a weekly QI column in the Saturday Telegraph. His latest venture is co-founding Unbound (www.unbound.co.uk), the UK’s first crowd-funded publishing house which won the 2011 Futurebook Innovation Award for Best Startup in 2011.

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Features & details

Features

  • New
  • Mint Condition
  • Dispatch same day for order received before 12 noon
  • Guaranteed packaging
  • No quibbles returns

Product Information

Publisher Faber & Faber
Publication date 7 Oct. 2010
Edition Main
Language ‎English
Print length 368 pages
ISBN-10 0571269656
ISBN-13 978-0571269655
Item weight ‎432 g
Dimensions 13.4 x 3.2 x 20.4 cm
Book 2 of 3 Qi: Book of General Ignorance
Best Sellers Rank
Customer Reviews 4.5 out of 5 stars 603Reviews

Related books

Sponsored
  1. Shop the store on Amazon ›
    The Book of Unusual Sports Knowledge
    The Book of Unusual Sports Knowledge
    4.14.1 out of 5 stars21
    USD10.76

Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars
603 global ratings

Customers say

Customers find this book well-documented and enjoyable to dip into occasionally, praising its useful facts and well-written content. Moreover, the book is simple to read and makes an excellent gift, with one customer noting it's brilliant for the whole family. Additionally, customers consider it worth the price.
AI Generated from the text of customer reviews

Select to learn more

64 customers mention content, 62 positive, 2 negative
Customers find the book engaging and well-documented, describing it as a nice fun book to pick up occasionally.AI Generated from the text of customer reviews
Great service, great book. Bargain. I even bought more.Read more
Exactly as described and great fun and facts!Read more
...I wasn't interested in, but the stuff I did want to read was very interesting and excellently explained.Read more
This is an enjoyable read. It's the sort of book that you can pick up and put down again and dip in and out of at random....Read more
28 customers mention informative, 28 positive, 0 negative
Customers find the book informative, describing it as a great trivia book full of useful facts that is both interesting and enlightening.AI Generated from the text of customer reviews
Bought as a gift. I already had one of these and find it informative and easy to just open a page and read something newRead more
...Interesting facts like which animal saved the most human lives and what causes pins and needles. Overall an enjoyable read.Read more
Spectacular, funny n very informative. Just like the TV showRead more
Exactly as described and great fun and facts!Read more
10 customers mention value for money, 9 positive, 1 negative
Customers find the book worth the money, describing it as a bargain.AI Generated from the text of customer reviews
Worth exploring if you enjoyed the first BoGI.....! So worth picking up off the shelf or easier still, downloading via Kindle.Read more
...generally good but lacks the humour of the TV presentation, still worth a look if you are aQI person. GeegRead more
...Definitely worth a punt...give it a go!Read more
Looks great not shabby at all and well worth it. Father-in-law loves it and quite an interesting read if you like that sort of thing.Read more
8 customers mention gift, 8 positive, 0 negative
Customers find the book makes an excellent gift, with one mentioning it's brilliant for the whole family.AI Generated from the text of customer reviews
...astute, brainy, bright, clever, discerning, eggheaded, expert, genius, gifted, ingenious, intellectual, inventive, knowing, knowledgeable, masterly,...Read more
Bought as a present.Read more
Bought as a gift.Read more
...missedc the first few series so this is catch up - brilliant for all the family. learning CAN be fun!Read more
8 customers mention writing quality, 7 positive, 1 negative
Customers praise the writing quality of the book, finding it very well written, with one customer noting it is as entertaining as the first book in the series.AI Generated from the text of customer reviews
highly entertaining and full of 'useful' facts well written and a good read. if you like the TV program you will like this bookRead more
Very informative and thoroughly enjoyable. Very well written and I loved it....Read more
...gifted, ingenious, intellectual, inventive, knowing, knowledgeable, masterly, penetrating, profound, quick, quick-witted, sharp, smart............Read more
Very funny and easy to read and confirms Plato's writings about Socrates 'I know that I know nothing'....Read more
7 customers mention readability, 5 positive, 2 negative
Customers find the book simple to read, with one mentioning it's easy to dip in and out of.AI Generated from the text of customer reviews
averaging one sentence direct question with answer per page. Easy to dip in and out of....Read more
...is as good as the foist a well documneted read making it nice and simple to read and nice quotest to followRead more
...have the first and this second did not disappoint - however less convenient to dip into as a Kindle version - needs easier access to indexing -...Read more
Very funny and easy to read and confirms Plato's writings about Socrates 'I know that I know nothing'....Read more

Top reviews from the United Kingdom

  • Amazon Customer
    5 out of 5 stars
    Verified Purchase

    Great book!

    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 15 September 2024
    Format: Paperback
    Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    Fast delivery. A great quiz book!

    Sending feedback...
    Thank you for your feedback.
    Share
    Sending feedback...
    Thank you. We’ll investigate in the next few days.
  • Steve firetrap
    5 out of 5 stars
    Verified Purchase

    Expand ya mind

    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 30 September 2024
    Format: Hardcover
    Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    Great service, great book. Bargain. I even bought more.

    Sending feedback...
    Thank you for your feedback.
    Share
    Sending feedback...
    Thank you. We’ll investigate in the next few days.
  • Mark Chisholm
    4 out of 5 stars
    Verified Purchase

    Great Fun - Let Down By Slight Errors

    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 25 May 2013
    Format: Kindle Edition
    Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    As per usual a book filled with fun facts and of course challenges to the standard authordoxy that we believe in. All great fun told with some verve and with a tongue in cheek style.

    What is wonderful about this book - and others in the series - is that it informs and entertains in equal measure. If school books were this good, I'm sure that more children would take an interest. However there are as in any book of this kind a few hiccups.

    Firstly we are told that the yak has the longest hair of any animal at 60cm - around 2ft. Earlier on there is another article that goes on to point out that humans - at least the hair on their head, does not stop growing unlike all other animals. In fact there are many ladies and a few men in day to day life with hair longer than 2ft.

    The second wrong fact is Richard the 3rd. The article finishes off with the rather smug assumption that Shakespeare was wrong and that by all accounts Richard III was in fact a good height and handsome without any known disfigurement. Of course the fact that he has been dug up in a car park and matches perfectly with the stories of a hunchbacked near dwarf somewhat renders the entire chapter null and void.

    And that's the problem with books that are entirely based upon the accuracy of their facts, because when they are not correct it calls into question the rest of the statements. Generally I do believe most of what has been written but if I can spot a couple of mistakes easily then I'm sure that others will find more.

    5 people found this helpful
    Sending feedback...
    Thank you for your feedback.
    Share
    Sending feedback...
    Thank you. We’ll investigate in the next few days.
  • heidi kirby
    5 out of 5 stars
    Verified Purchase

    Great book

    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 22 December 2024
    Format: Paperback
    Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    Great book, very interesting

    Sending feedback...
    Thank you for your feedback.
    Share
    Sending feedback...
    Thank you. We’ll investigate in the next few days.
  • A. Howes
    5 out of 5 stars
    Verified Purchase

    Great fun ! Excellent price, swift delivery

    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 14 June 2024
    Format: Paperback
    Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    It's a hoot !

    Sending feedback...
    Thank you for your feedback.
    Share
    Sending feedback...
    Thank you. We’ll investigate in the next few days.
  • Dave Phelan-Player
    3 out of 5 stars
    Verified Purchase

    Bedtime Reading

    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 8 January 2017
    Format: Kindle Edition
    Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    Perfect bedtime reading. This helped my kid to sleep for numerous nights. I don't know what I will do now it's finished...

    Sending feedback...
    Thank you for your feedback.
    Share
    Sending feedback...
    Thank you. We’ll investigate in the next few days.
  • Unhappy Goose
    5 out of 5 stars
    Verified Purchase

    Excellent Gift Idea

    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 25 April 2011
    Format: Hardcover
    Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    I brought this book as a birthday present for my father, a typical example of a man who had everything. He loved it, infact the whole family loved it, as we held a "made at home" version of QI, with my father, armed with this book, acting as Stephan Fry.

    The success of the book means its definately a winning present for awkard people, or any QI or general knowledge fan. It also is a great buy for yourself of course, and who ever you get it for, they will enjoy it immensley!

    3 people found this helpful
    Sending feedback...
    Thank you for your feedback.
    Share
    Sending feedback...
    Thank you. We’ll investigate in the next few days.
  • Joachim O.
    4 out of 5 stars
    Verified Purchase

    Lot of interesting facts

    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 6 September 2012
    Format: Kindle Edition
    Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    This is an interesting collection of more or less interesting facts which you were probably not aware of, or thought you knew them, but then it turns out just to be an urban myth. Every fact starts with a question where you might think to know the answer just to be proven wrong a few paragraphs later.

    Ever heard that urinating on a jellyfish sting might help, well this is just wrong.

    Interesting facts like which animal saved the most human lives and what causes pins and needles.

    Overall an enjoyable read.

    Sending feedback...
    Thank you for your feedback.
    Share
    Sending feedback...
    Thank you. We’ll investigate in the next few days.
See more reviews

Top reviews from other countries

  • Pixfan
    5 out of 5 stars
    Verified Purchase

    Informative

    Reviewed in Australia on 1 June 2026
    Format: Kindle Edition
    Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    Like Book 1, this edition is just as concise and an easy read. Full of surprising details and information.

    Sending feedback...
    Thank you. We’ll investigate in the next few days.
    • Translated by Amazon
    See original
  • Vitry, Karen
    5 out of 5 stars
    Verified Purchase

    A book for curious and humble people

    Reviewed in France on 12 April 2021
    Format: Paperback
    Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    Absolument parfait

    Sending feedback...
    Thank you. We’ll investigate in the next few days.
    Translated from French by Amazon
    See original
  • Susana
    4 out of 5 stars
    Verified Purchase

    Interesante

    Reviewed in Spain on 7 October 2018
    Format: Kindle Edition
    Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    En general es interesante. Al incluir muchos artículos, algunos me han gustado más que otros. Es un tipo de lectura que puede apetecer en ocasiones; no hay un hilo conductor, así que se puede dejar sin leer tanto tiempo como se quiera y después retomarlo al cabo de una temporada.

    Sending feedback...
    Thank you. We’ll investigate in the next few days.
    Translated from Spanish by Amazon
    See original
  • Booky Nights
    5 out of 5 stars
    Verified Purchase

    Great trivia!

    Reviewed in the United States on 26 May 2021
    Format: Paperback
    Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    Humorous and packed with information! A trivia lover's delight. Beware, though - much of what you know is wrong!

    Sending feedback...
    Thank you. We’ll investigate in the next few days.
  • Shoko Strawn
    5 out of 5 stars
    Verified Purchase

    NIce and interesting

    Reviewed in Japan on 24 April 2014
    Format: Kindle Edition
    Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    INTERESTING. you sure can fool your friends with this!

    Sending feedback...
    Thank you. We’ll investigate in the next few days.
See more reviews

How customer reviews and ratings work

Customer Reviews, including Product Star Ratings, help customers to learn more about the product and decide whether it is the right product for them.Learn more how customers reviews work on Amazon

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Videos for this product

Page 1 of 1Start Again