{"product_id":"brainiac-adventures-in-the-curious-competitive-compulsive-world-of-trivia-buffs-9780812974997","title":"Brainiac: Adventures in the Curious, Competitive, Compulsive World of Trivia Buffs","description":"\u003cb\u003eNATIONAL BESTSELLER \u003c\/b\u003e- \u003cb\u003eA witty, charming, and engaging dive into trivia's colorful history, from America's highest-earning game show contestant of all time and host of \u003ci\u003eJeopardy!\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\"Insightful, informative, and written with a strong dose of humor and humility. . . . I loved this book.\"--Will Shortz, crossword editor, \u003ci\u003eThe New York Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eKen Jennings is trivia's undisputed king--and as he traces his rise from anonymous computer programmer to nerd folk icon, he explores his newly conquered kingdom: the world of trivia itself. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTrivia, he has found, is centuries older than his childhood obsession with it. Whisking us from the coffeehouses of seventeenth-century London to the Internet age, Jennings chronicles the ups and downs of the trivia fad: the quiz book explosion of the Jazz Age; the rise, fall, and rise again of TV quiz shows; the nostalgic campus trivia of the 1960s; and the 1980s, when Trivial Pursuit(R) again made it fashionable to be a know-it-all. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eJennings also investigates the shadowy demimonde of today's trivia subculture, guiding us on a tour of trivia across America. He goes head-to-head with the blowhards and diehards of the college quiz-bowl circuit, the slightly soused faithful of the Boston pub trivia scene, and the raucous participants in the annual Q\u0026amp;A marathon in Stevens Point, Wisconsin, \"The World's Largest Trivia Contest.\" And, of course, he takes us behind the scenes of his improbable 75-game run on \u003ci\u003eJeopardy!\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eBut above all, \u003ci\u003eBrainiac\u003c\/i\u003e is a love letter to the useless fact. (Who knew that there's a crater on Venus named after Laura Ingalls Wilder? Ken Jennings, that's who.) Engaging and erudite, \u003ci\u003eBrainiac\u003c\/i\u003e is an irresistible celebration of nostalgia, curiosity, and geeky obsession--in a word, trivia.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Villard Books\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 10\/30\/2007\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780812974997\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 288\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.50lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 8.16h x 5.60w x 0.62d","brand":"Ken Jennings","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":43732978368693,"sku":"9780812974997","price":14.45,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0473\/0804\/6492\/files\/img_433e18b8-62df-4b20-bd42-33d12e23c365.jpg?v=1710256382","url":"https:\/\/pastforward.org\/products\/brainiac-adventures-in-the-curious-competitive-compulsive-world-of-trivia-buffs-9780812974997","provider":"Past Forward","version":"1.0","type":"link"}