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What are the Seven Wonders of the World?: And 100 Other Great Cultural Lists—Fully Explicated
Can you name... Newton's 3 laws of motion? The 4 horsemen of the Apocalypse? The 5 pillars of Islam? The 6 wives of Henry VIII? The 7 kinds of plane triangles? The 8 Beatitudes? If you're not sure about the answers to the above, this is the book for you. A compendium of 101 culturally significant particulars from the fields of mythology, religion, literature, history, science, mathematics, art, and music, What Are the 7 Wonders of the World? is a stimulating fusion of facts and fun that makes for an invaluable reference and an entertaining diversion.
Questions are grouped in sections according to the number of items in their answer (all the 3s, all the 4s, all the 5s, etc.), so that the answers are in the form of easily memorized lists. You won't find Luther's 95 theses, or the 264 Popes, for example, but you will find everything from the 3 sons of Adam and Eve all the way up to the 24 letters of the ancient Greek alphabet.
This clever format lends itself well to quizzing and guessing, which gives it a deliciously sophisticated parlor-game quality. But for those who wish to delve a little deeper, there are thoughtful essays to go with each answer that include fascinating details and place the list in its larger cultural or historical context. Much more than a book of trivia, What Are the 7 Wonders of the World? offers a grand overview of the knowledge needed to appreciate many of the finest things in our cultural and intellectual life.
Questions are grouped in sections according to the number of items in their answer (all the 3s, all the 4s, all the 5s, etc.), so that the answers are in the form of easily memorized lists. You won't find Luther's 95 theses, or the 264 Popes, for example, but you will find everything from the 3 sons of Adam and Eve all the way up to the 24 letters of the ancient Greek alphabet.
This clever format lends itself well to quizzing and guessing, which gives it a deliciously sophisticated parlor-game quality. But for those who wish to delve a little deeper, there are thoughtful essays to go with each answer that include fascinating details and place the list in its larger cultural or historical context. Much more than a book of trivia, What Are the 7 Wonders of the World? offers a grand overview of the knowledge needed to appreciate many of the finest things in our cultural and intellectual life.
560 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1998
33 people are currently reading
811 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews
December 31, 2022
I chose to read this book while I am at work and facing some inactive (down) times. I haven't read it thoroughly, — my wish being to have an overall cover of the extensive variety of topics it explores.
It conveys a wealth of information.
It conveys a wealth of information.
December 9, 2014
A great book for browsing or reading straight through. Facts grouped by numbers, includes some obscure things like "What are the 9 Confucian Classics" but great for magpie brains & quiz-lovers alike .
September 8, 2022
This is a beast of a book and took me over a year to finish, mostly because I read it in small doses. While visiting my sister one weekend, she saw the book askew on the counter and asked, “Whatcha reading?”
I showed her the cover and explained the premised.
“Oh, I see,” she smiled. “It’s one of those books you read just to get smarter.”
She’s not wrong– this book consists of 101 lists, fully explicated, covering a range of topics such as the three sons of Adam and Eve to the unofficial Homeric titles in James Joyce’s Ulysses. I only questioned the utility of some of the information I was getting smarter about.
For instance:
I mustered up curiosity over the 4 voyages of Lemuel Gulliver, the 5 events of the ancient Olympic pentathlon, the 6 major European invasions of Russia since the days of Peter the Great, and the 9 royal houses of England after 1066. However, I flinched at the 4 Horsemen of the Apocalypse, the 3 stages of Hegel’s dialectic, the 14 points of Woodrow Wilson, and the 7 main levels of taxonomic classifications.
I was bewildered by the 3 ages of Vico’s historical cycle, the 3 furies, the 3 members of first and second Triumvirate, 6 trigonometric functions, 7 metals of alchemy, 12 Olympian gods and their Roman equivalents, and the 12 main branches of the Indo-European language family. But I reexamined with interest the 3 temptations of Christ, the 4 Bronte siblings, the 6 wives of Henry VII, the 7 deadly sins, and the 8 Beatitudes.
I inhaled the 4 freedoms of FDR, the 12 knights of the round table, the 4 assassinated U.S. Presidents and their killers, the 4 Last Things, the 10 major U.S. wars, and the 15 decisive battle of the world according to Edward Creasy in 1851. But I yawned at the 4 conic sections, the 6 flavors of quarks, the 7 hills of Rome, the 7 sages of Greece, the Latin names of the 12 months, and the 24 letters of the Greek alphabet.
All these topics could easily be googled…but why would you? Especially when you can read all about it in these pages.
I expect to be found on the official list of smart people now.
I showed her the cover and explained the premised.
“Oh, I see,” she smiled. “It’s one of those books you read just to get smarter.”
She’s not wrong– this book consists of 101 lists, fully explicated, covering a range of topics such as the three sons of Adam and Eve to the unofficial Homeric titles in James Joyce’s Ulysses. I only questioned the utility of some of the information I was getting smarter about.
For instance:
I mustered up curiosity over the 4 voyages of Lemuel Gulliver, the 5 events of the ancient Olympic pentathlon, the 6 major European invasions of Russia since the days of Peter the Great, and the 9 royal houses of England after 1066. However, I flinched at the 4 Horsemen of the Apocalypse, the 3 stages of Hegel’s dialectic, the 14 points of Woodrow Wilson, and the 7 main levels of taxonomic classifications.
I was bewildered by the 3 ages of Vico’s historical cycle, the 3 furies, the 3 members of first and second Triumvirate, 6 trigonometric functions, 7 metals of alchemy, 12 Olympian gods and their Roman equivalents, and the 12 main branches of the Indo-European language family. But I reexamined with interest the 3 temptations of Christ, the 4 Bronte siblings, the 6 wives of Henry VII, the 7 deadly sins, and the 8 Beatitudes.
I inhaled the 4 freedoms of FDR, the 12 knights of the round table, the 4 assassinated U.S. Presidents and their killers, the 4 Last Things, the 10 major U.S. wars, and the 15 decisive battle of the world according to Edward Creasy in 1851. But I yawned at the 4 conic sections, the 6 flavors of quarks, the 7 hills of Rome, the 7 sages of Greece, the Latin names of the 12 months, and the 24 letters of the Greek alphabet.
All these topics could easily be googled…but why would you? Especially when you can read all about it in these pages.
I expect to be found on the official list of smart people now.
June 6, 2015
What are the seven wonders? Let me count the ways. Terse, yet succinct, and surprisingly well written for a set of cultural lists. Great time-killers.
May 6, 2021
"What Are The Seven Wonders Of The World?" is a collection of lists. I know a few of the Seven Wonders of the World off the top of my head, but it is good to have a reference.
The authors include an essay with each list. As of right now, the only wonder still standing is the Great Pyramid of Khufu. Technically, there are only six because The Hanging Gardens of Babylon have little to no evidence, but it is tradition to include it. From what I remember, we have the Pyramids, the Hanging Gardens, the Lighthouse of Alexandria, the Colossus of Rhodes, The Mausoleum of Mauselos, the Statue of Zeus, and I don't remember the last one.
The book covers more than just legendary architecture. It lists the Three Laws of Thermodynamics, the names of the Three Musketeers, the three Sons of Adam and Eve, and so on. Some of the lists are fascinating. The Story of Adam and Eve always bothered me since I think incest is weird. The Bible makes no mention of them having other children or God creating other people. So I always assumed that Eve and the kids got it on.
Anyway, the book is good. It is slightly out of date due to one list; the Nine Planets of the Solar System. The International Astronomers Association demoted Pluto back in 2006. However, they published this book in 1998, and no one predicts the future that well.
The authors include an essay with each list. As of right now, the only wonder still standing is the Great Pyramid of Khufu. Technically, there are only six because The Hanging Gardens of Babylon have little to no evidence, but it is tradition to include it. From what I remember, we have the Pyramids, the Hanging Gardens, the Lighthouse of Alexandria, the Colossus of Rhodes, The Mausoleum of Mauselos, the Statue of Zeus, and I don't remember the last one.
The book covers more than just legendary architecture. It lists the Three Laws of Thermodynamics, the names of the Three Musketeers, the three Sons of Adam and Eve, and so on. Some of the lists are fascinating. The Story of Adam and Eve always bothered me since I think incest is weird. The Bible makes no mention of them having other children or God creating other people. So I always assumed that Eve and the kids got it on.
Anyway, the book is good. It is slightly out of date due to one list; the Nine Planets of the Solar System. The International Astronomers Association demoted Pluto back in 2006. However, they published this book in 1998, and no one predicts the future that well.
December 21, 2021
The answer to "What are the Seven Wonders of the World?" is in a chapter of lists seven items long. Nonets make up their own chapter and sets of ten are in their own. The list chapter are arranged in size. It feels largely to be history with a smattering of science topics. The writing is lively and engaging. However, once the lists start to get into double digits and the answers grow longer in proportion the reading drags as the same details of the smaller lists is used.
November 28, 2020
I really enjoyed all the detailed information the book provided about each question, especially since a lot of them focused on history. My one complaint was that when the question numbers got long, I felt the sections dragged on too much (especially the 20 regions of Italy).
December 1, 2024
Picked this up at a used book sale because it looked interesting and, based on the title, I thought I’d learn some cool stuff about the world. At least 75% of the book was stuff related to religion/mythology which just doesn’t interest me at all sry
November 9, 2021
Fascinating facts with more depth than other similar books.
February 2, 2010
Definitely a 4+! All sorts of interesting "groups" are listed and explained in numerical order. Want to know about the 3 furies? The 3 musketeers? What about the 5 pillars of Islam? the 6 wives of Henry the VIII? The 7 virtues or the 7 deadly sins? The 9 orders of angels, or 9 royal houses of England? I think you get it--there are lots of fascinating groups or lists in this volume--101 of them to be exact.
This isn't the sort of book to read from cover to cover. Just dip in, skip around, and discover all sorts of fascinating facts!
This isn't the sort of book to read from cover to cover. Just dip in, skip around, and discover all sorts of fascinating facts!
December 6, 2008
Well, I was excited for the IDEA of this book. But it is far too sloppily and coarsely done. I wouldn't let a young person read the salacious details trotted out about the various mythologies of the world, and the religious sections were pure poppycock. Adam and Eve had only three sons, and we are all descended from Seth? Oh, please. I wasn't expecting great erudition here but I was extremely disappointed with this book.
October 20, 2011
This is a book going over several lists of things, like the 3 Furies, the 10 Commandments, and Wilson's 14 points. Some of the information was quite interesting, and then other parts really dragged. I think this was partially dependent on the subject matter, but I also think there was some smugness on the part of the authors that would come through at times and annoy. The book was uneven, but it definitely had it's points.
September 1, 2011
I found this interesting book via a book club I belong to. I've used it extensively in research for debating as well as writing fanfiction. Encyclopedic in nature (it covers a wealth of subjects from history to science to the arts) and intelligently written, I'd recommend it to anyone who enjoys learning.
January 8, 2012
I found this interesting book via a book club I belong to. I've used it extensively in research for debating as well as writing fanfiction. Encyclopedic in nature (it covers a wealth of subjects from history to science to the arts) and intelligently written, I'd recommend it to anyone who enjoys learning.
February 27, 2014
Not much really to say on this book other than is packed with little known knowledge on historical information. It is rather heavily slanted to mythology and such, and though interesting at times it is not clear if one could retain a lot of what is here because there is so much. Also not sure how one can use it.
October 8, 2015
I ate up the Wallace's Books of Lists in the 1970s, so when I saw this on the clearance shelf, I picked it up out of curiosity. More substantial than the Wallace entries - it's 560 pages, and these 101 lists were "fully explicated" - they nonetheless have arbitrary (regions of Italy?) mixed with traditional lists. Interesting light diversion.
Currently reading
July 14, 2008I keep this book handy. When I have a few minutes I read a little from it. The book lends itself to just taking 10 minutes and reading something interesting, and trivial. I am about half way through it. I plan on leaving it in the SEEK room for students to look at.
October 19, 2010
If you're looking for interesting, but ultimately unprofitable, information (practically speaking, though you'll no doubt impress a few people down the line), this is the book for you. Knowledge for knowledge's sake!
May 2, 2016
It takes a long time to get through this book because of the subject material and the density of the knowledge contained in each "chapter." Well written for the most part. Enjoyable. Surprisingly, I found myself laughing out loud occasionally while reading it.
February 27, 2009
Like lists? Really interesting lists? Here's one for you! The chapters are entitled "2" and "8", etc., to represent the number of items in the lists in that chapter. VERY kewl!
April 7, 2011
Great for off the wall reference.
February 16, 2011
A list and description of things I had never even thought of before. Educational.
December 18, 2011
This one I think I will buy. It will make a great party trivia-game resource or something.
December 17, 2014
Excellent read if you are prepping to appear on Jeopardy......
September 21, 2014
Not much editorializing or idiosyncrasy, but I still enjoy browsing this sort of book (even if technology has rendered the straightforward info dump book obsolete).
January 7, 2015
Awesome book!
July 3, 2024
Plenty of details provided on all topics, including some rare facts.
Read
August 4, 2012This is a great book to keep in your car. Short vignettes on groups of 3, 4, 5 and so on.
Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews