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Kenneth C. Davis
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Don't Know Much About Literature: What You Need to Know but Never Learned About Great Books and Authors (Don't Know Much About Series) Kindle Edition

by Kenneth C. Davis (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
3.8 3.8 out of 5 stars 62 ratings
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From Homer to Harry Potter, from Chaucer to Charlotte's Web, acompelling book of quizzes on history's most influential literary worksand writers

  • Did a whale named "Mocha Dick" inspire Melville's masterpiece?
  • Who was the first poet to speak at a presidential inauguration?
  • Which French-speaking high school football star shook up the literary world?

Do you freeze when someone mentions Faulkner? When the conversation turns to the Odyssey, do you want to take a hike? Have no fear. For years, Kenneth C. Davis's New York Times bestselling Don't Know Much About® books have enlightened and enthralled us with a winning blend of fascinating facts and wonderfully irreverent fun. Now he sets his sights on our literary IQ in Don't Know Much About® Literature. With this rich treasure trove of knowledge and intriguing information about the world's great books and authors, Kenneth Davis and his daughter, Jenny, demystify Dracula, capture Kafka, and help you brush up on your Brontë in the inimitable and endlessly entertaining Don't Know Much About® style.

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  1. Part of series
    Don't Know Much About
  2. Print length
    340 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  5. Publisher
    HarperCollins e-books
  6. Publication date
    July 16, 2009
  7. File size
    637 KB
  8. Page Flip
    Enabled
  9. Word Wise
    Enabled
  10. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
  11. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Kenneth C. Davis is the New York Times bestselling author of A Nation Rising; America's Hidden History; and Don't Know Much About® History, which spent thirty-five consecutive weeks on the New York Times bestseller list, sold more than 1.7 million copies, and gave rise to his phenomenal Don't Know Much About® series for adults and children. A resident of New York City and Dorset, Vermont, Davis frequently appears on national television and radio and has been a commentator on NPR's All Things Considered. He blogs regularly at www.dontknowmuch.com.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B002HPRBVW
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ HarperCollins e-books; Original edition (July 16, 2009)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ July 16, 2009
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 637 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 340 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    3.8 3.8 out of 5 stars 62 ratings

About the author

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Kenneth C. Davis

Kenneth C. Davis

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Kenneth C. Davis is the author of Don't Know Much About® History, which spent 35 consecutive weeks on The New York Times bestseller list and gave rise to the Don't Know Much About® series of books and audios.

Davis's success aptly makes the case that Americans don't hate history, just the dull version they slept through in class. Davis's approach is to refresh us on the subjects we should have learned in school. He does it by busting myths and setting the record straight.

Kenneth C. Davis is a frequent media guest and has appeared on hundreds of television and radio shows, including NPR, The Today Show, CBS This Morning, and CNN. He has written for the New York Times Op-Ed page, Smithsonian, Washington Post, and other national publications.

His latest books are the critically acclaimed IN THE SHADOW OF LIBERTY: The Hidden History of Slavery, Four Presidents, and Five Black Lives (2016), MORE DEADLY THAN WAR: The Hidden History of the Spanish Flu and the First World War (2018), and STRONGMAN: The Rise of Five Dictators and the Fall of Democracy (2020).

His forthcoming GREAT SHORT BOOKS: A Year of Reading--Briefly, will be published in November 2022. A compendium of 58 great short works he read during the pandemic lock-down, it is a joyous celebration of reading.

Davis lives in New York City with his wife.

Customer reviews

3.8 out of 5 stars
3.8 out of 5
62 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Nissi
5.0 out of 5 stars SUPERB!!!!!!
Reviewed in the United States on September 18, 2015
Verified Purchase
My son is really into these books. A little expensive so it'll take a while to get all of them, but we plan too do just that. Lot's of information given in a fun way. I'm a teacher and I learn from these books
One person found this helpful
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JG
3.0 out of 5 stars Interesting
Reviewed in the United States on March 10, 2018
Verified Purchase
A lot of the trivia I already knew, so it was mildly interesting, but not as enlightening as I would have liked it to be.
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Stephen Vlam
2.0 out of 5 stars Yikes - Read the reviews!!!!!! Read a sample that extends past the introduction!!!!
Reviewed in the United States on December 19, 2014
Verified Purchase
I glad you are reading the reviews of this book. I only wish I had. This is really an underwhelming effort from Davis who has written some fine, informative, and fun books. I truly don't know what he was thinking. Do yourself a favor and read the rest of these reviews. For each subject there is only a brief blurb that makes the Wikipedia article for the subject seem like the Encyclopedia Britannica. Then there in an inane test where you would have had to already read the book. This is followed by another page with the answers. Therefore each entry is about 3 pages and 2 of those are a quiz and the answers. I am bumping this review to two stars because I have really enjoyed this author's work in the past.
17 people found this helpful
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SUSAN R.
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in the United States on August 18, 2018
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One of my favorite authors, recommended. Easy read, brings you into history
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CynthiaK
2.0 out of 5 stars Disappointed
Reviewed in the United States on March 10, 2023
Verified Purchase
Expected it like the other “Don’t Know Much…books.
It’s a trivia book. Q&A
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Tracy J. Pfeiffer
1.0 out of 5 stars Lackluster effort
Reviewed in the United States on September 2, 2010
Verified Purchase
It seems like this book was put together over a weekend. Most of the "Don't Know Much About" books by Davis are well researched, well written, and obvious effort was put forth to pack so much information into a single book on the given topic. I've greatly enjoyed many of them, but this was a simple and quick way to make money off of the "Don't know much" series popularity, without having to put in any real work. I'm very disappointed that Davis decided to put his integrity on the shelf for a quick publication.
9 people found this helpful
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Elaine Hooper
5.0 out of 5 stars Great review for memory loss
Reviewed in the United States on December 26, 2014
Verified Purchase
Bought for a friend who majored in literature and had a stroke 🎐🎉
2 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

Parmedico Mama
1.0 out of 5 stars Disappointed
Reviewed in Canada on March 22, 2016
Verified Purchase
I feel as though I've been cheated. I have read other Kenneth C Davis "Don't know much about" books and thoroughly enjoyed them. This is such a disappointment. I would be embarrassed to call this a book- it's a quiz on useless knowledge of famous authors and books. Terrible.
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