As a former knowledge bowl kid, this book was right up my alley. It didn't hurt that it was by the delightful Ken Jennings, and is in the same vein as [b:Word Freak|8954|Word Freak Heartbreak, Triumph, Genius, and Obsession in the World of Competitive SCRABBLE Players|Stefan Fatsis|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1389250256s/8954.jpg|3163711] and [b:The Know-It-All|17562178|The Know-it-all Girl|Joanna Foreman|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1362834375s/17562178.jpg|24493822], both of which I loved.

If anyone is going to take your hand and whisk you through the history of trivia, it'd better be Ken Jennings. In addition to being the indisputably most famous trivia persona in the nation - admittedly, not a field with a lot of competition - he's smart as hell, has all the wit you could ask for, and is just a fun, funny guy who knows how to not take himself too seriously.

The book itself is well put together - wandering purposefully but amblingly through the history of trivia, from the first primordial question-answer games to the first of the great quiz shows, through the juggernaut that is Trivial Pursuit with all of its quirks and legal intricacies, up to the modern-day TV pushbutton trivia, quiz bowl, and crazy regional trivia contests. The book is chock full of fun facts and tidbits, but more enjoyably, a whole lot of interesting, quirky, and fun people that Ken meets along the way, gets to know, and introduces us to.

I'd totally recommend this book to anyone, but if you're a trivia fan - be it a pub trivia regular or a knowledge/quiz bowl alum - you definitely need to pick it up.