What's In Store
Give Yourself a Good Reference
by Randy Dotinga
Give yourself a good reference
These days, reference books seem about as relevant as a Dukakis-Bentsen button.
Want to know the gross national product of Australia? Just press a few keys and voila! No need to go digging around in an encyclopedia or almanac that probably has out-of-date numbers anyway. But people still buy reference books, and a whole slew of new 2009 almanacs landed on bookstore shelves last fall. So should you buy one? Maybe. Many almanacs are dirt cheap, and you may stumble upon story ideas by simply browsing them on a slow afternoon. Here's a look at several almanacs:
The World Almanac and Book of Facts 2009. 1,008 pages. Paperback. $12.99.
What's in it: An endless parade of facts and statistics. Background: This is the granddaddy almanac of them all. It turned 140 years old in 2008. Interesting tidbit: In 1900, just four percent of Americans were 65 and older; the number in 2006 was 12 percent. Should you buy it: If you need an almanac, this is the one to get. The price is right, and it truly does have (almost) everything.
Time Almanac 2009, 960 pages. Paperback. $13.99
What's in it: This almanac is "powered" by Encyclopedia Britannica, whatever that means, and has a partnership with Time Magazine. It features a lot of articles from Time interspersed among the usual statistics, lists of presidents and celebrities, and so on. The 2008 edition included a Time story called "One Day in Iraq," for example, and a feature on the magazine's Person of the Year. Background: This used to be the "Information Please" almanac, named after an old-time radio show. Interesting tidbit: Kids who take part in the National Spelling Bee seem to be a lot smarter than they used to be, according to a list of the winners and winning words since 1953. In the 1950s and 1960s, kids won by spelling such easy words as "condominium, "sycophant" and "croissant." More recently, they've had to cope with "ursprache," "serrefine" and "appoggiature." Should you buy it? No. Nothing really sets it apart from more well-known almanacs, and the Time articles are distracting.
The New York Times Almanac 2009: The Almanac of Record, Penguin, 2009. Paperback. 1,024 pages. $11.95.
What's in it: The usual almanac data and statistics. It touts itself as listing all major Oscar winners, all Nobel laureates, and more sports coverage than other almanacs. Background: This is a fairly new almanac: It's only been around since 1998. Interesting tidbit: The last episode of "M*A*S*H" in 1983 remains the highest-rated TV show of all time, followed by 1980's "Who Shot J.R.?" episode of "Dallas." Should you buy it? Sure. It's two bucks cheaper than the Time almanac and will make you look smart by sitting on your bookshelf.
Schott's Miscellany 2009: An Almanac, Bloomsbury USA, 2009. 368 pages. Hardback. $30.
Background: This is a nontraditional almanac compiled by Ben Schott, a young Englishman who's become a best-selling author thanks to his ability to wittily compile unusual facts and bits of trivia. What's in it: Useful and useless statistics along with lots of other stuff, including an exegesis on the origin of the phrase "drinking the Kool-Aid" and a guide to symbols on the $1 bill. Interesting tidbit: Words of the year include "DWP" (driving while primping) and "deskwich" (a sandwich eaten at one's desk). Should you buy it? Not for $30 you shouldn't. It's a fun book and perfect bathroom reading, but not worth the price.
The Old Farmer's Almanac 2009. 288 pages. Paperback. $6.95.
What's in it: You're never likely to find a stranger almanac than this one, which includes weather predictions, famous last words and gardening tips based on astrology. Yes, astrology. (Someone has a geranium in the cranium.) Background: The Farmer's Almanac has been published since 1818. It doesn't look a day over 191. Interesting tidbit: It's too hard to choose: Just about everything in this almanac is "interesting." And also dumbfounding. Should you buy it: Not unless "Reader's Digest" is your speed. The almanac is cheap, all right, but it's geared toward the lowest common denominator and chock full of those low-rent ads that you find in newspaper coupon sections on Sundays.
The CIA World Factbook 2009, Skyhorse Publishing, 2009. 864 pages. Paperback. $12.95
What's in it: Scads of information about every country on earth, from life expectancy and "political pressure groups and leaders" to natural hazards, literacy rates and international treaties signed. Background: Yes, this is written by that CIA. The agency initially published it for the government, but editions became available to the public in 1975. Interesting tidbit: The island nation of Nauru is home to 13,770 people. They live in the world's smallest independent republic, 10 percent of the size of Washington D.C. Should you buy it: Yes, if you write about countries outside the U.S. While the book is large-sized and a bit unwieldy —unlike other almanacs—you might find story ideas in its pages.
