Synopsis
The latest collection of suprising "imponderables" answers such eternal questions as "Why are there holes in saltines?" and "Why is Rhode Island called an island?"
Reviews
YA-- Highly readable questions and answers explaining the unusual and heretofore unanswered questions of life. Researchers can use the index to locate specific information and browsers can just enjoy. Creative illustrations further entice, interest, and tickle the funnybone. Readers are invited to submit new imponderables or to assist in solving ``frustables.''
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.
``They sure do, although they are discreetly hidden underneath their feathers,'' answers Feldman in this latest addition to his best-selling ``Imponderables'' series (Why Do Clocks Run Clockwise?, etc.). ``What causes the green-tinged potato chips we sometimes find?''; ``How do they fork split English muffins''?; ``What happens to your Social Security number when you die?''-- these and 141 other brain-itching questions are expertly scratched by the author in lighthearted short-take responses, usually informed by expert advice from a manufacturer, scientist, sociologist, etc. And as in previous volumes, this congenial work, as addictive as a box of bon-bons, ends with a flurry of ``Frustables''--that is, possible unanswerables, e.g., ``Why do you so often see one shoe lying on the side of the road?'' (For those who can't wait until pub date: the green in potato chips is caused by chlorophyll; English muffins are split by being passed through two spinning wheels with Roman spear forks; and when you die, your Social Security number goes with you.) -- Copyright ©1991, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.
This is the sixth in a series of "Imponderables" books by Feldman. Most questions in this volume have been posed by readers of the previous volumes, and the author asks his reading public to submit questions for future books. Experts in the various fields are either quoted or paraphrased in the answer along with commentary from the author. The final section of the book is devoted to "Frustables" (unanswerable "imponderables")--new, updated, and those that "will not die." The index is thorough and useful; however, reference librarians would find a cumulative index extremely helpful. Buy if you have the other titles or for browsing and YA collections.
- Paula M. Zieselman, Fulbright & Jaworski, New York
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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