The best gets better every year, 02 Oct 2008
I still buy and read the Guinness Record book every year, because it's become like an old friend that I like to catch up with, but I have to disagree with Birch East. I like the way it has changed and brings out a fresh look each year. The changes, like holograms, 3D whatever, make it fresh every year. My nephews also are big fans of the 3D gimmick.

I do agree with the recommendation for Getting Into Guinness: One Man's Longest, Fastest, Highest Journey Inside the World's Most Famous Record Book, the new book by Larry Olmsted about the history and culture of the Guinness World Records book. After reading his review I snapped up a copy and it is great--very entertaining and a fun read! I have read the record book for years but never stopped to wonder where it came from (Guinness Stout of course!), how it got so big, and how large a role it has played in pop culture, and just how crazy some of the record holders seem to be. Getting Into Guinness is the story behind the records and a fun, well researched, adult read.

Always the best, but this year I discovered something that makes it even better, 28 Sep 2008
I first read the Guinness Book of World Records when I was kid back in the 70s, and it's comforting to see it still going strong. I'll say that I definitely preferred the old school text-heavy versions from back in the day to the flourescent lime, 3D photography, picture-fest of today. It's a new world we live in now, so I guess it's hard to fault the Big G for keeping up with the times.

As much as I've long loved the Guinness book itself, I was always a little disappointed that there wasn't a good resource written ABOUT Guinness -- its history, evolution, and especially about how it became the phenomenon that inspires people to carry out such dedicated acts of nuttiness. A few weeks ago in New York, I saw a book profiled in the newspaper titled GETTING INTO GUINNESS by Larry Olmsted. Olmsted is a journalist as well as a two-time GBWR record-holder, and I gave it a try. Well, it's the perfect companion piece to the Guinness book; it puts everything into context and lets you feel like a real insider. 300 pages of fascinating real life stories about the quest for Guinness recordhood, and Amazon has it for under nine pounds. I'll be giving them together as a gift to my nephew. Buy them as a tandem (which is what I should have done) and you'd even get free shipping with Prime! Getting into Guinness: One Man's Longest, Fastest, Highest Journey Inside the World's Most Famous Record Book

No wonder this is the world's best selling book!, 23 Sep 2008
After having received Guinness World Records 2009, as a gift, I've realised just how good it is. I was in Tesco a few days ago, and flicked through it then. I thought it was good. But now I own it, it's enabled me to see the extent of just how good it is.

Saying that it's the best edition of Guinness World Records to date, and it is (no worries there), isn't really that much of an achievement. Saying, however, it's the best book I've ever read...the best book ever made...is.
And this is. It's crammed full of amazing achievements, epic engineering, fantastic feats, and much more amazing stuff to feast your eyes on.

Leaving `Ripley's: Believe It Or Not' for dead, GWR really have excelled themselves this time. It really is astonishing.
This year's edition also includes huge, awe-inspiring fold out 3D features, which are apparently obvious when you wear the 3D-glasses that are provided.
It's awesome!

- Revealed: the world's strongest man
- The record-breaking world of Harry Potter
- Inside the Hollywood Hall of Fame
- The top ten videogames of the year
- Face to face with dinosaurs in exciting 3D!
- Plus your favourite records country by country

All this can be found in the spectacular book that is Guinness World Records 2009.

I'd suggest going over to that bookshop, right this second, and buying a copy.
Guaranteed - you won't be disappointed.

The best gets better every year, 02 Oct 2008
I still buy and read the Guinness Record book every year, because it's become like an old friend that I like to catch up with, but I have to disagree with Birch East. I like the way it has changed and brings out a fresh look each year. The changes, like holograms, 3D whatever, make it fresh every year. My nephews also are big fans of the 3D gimmick.

I do agree with the recommendation for Getting Into Guinness: One Man's Longest, Fastest, Highest Journey Inside the World's Most Famous Record Book, the new book by Larry Olmsted about the history and culture of the Guinness World Records book. After reading his review I snapped up a copy and it is great--very entertaining and a fun read! I have read the record book for years but never stopped to wonder where it came from (Guinness Stout of course!), how it got so big, and how large a role it has played in pop culture, and just how crazy some of the record holders seem to be. Getting Into Guinness is the story behind the records and a fun, well researched, adult read.

Always the best, but this year I discovered something that makes it even better, 28 Sep 2008
I first read the Guinness Book of World Records when I was kid back in the 70s, and it's comforting to see it still going strong. I'll say that I definitely preferred the old school text-heavy versions from back in the day to the flourescent lime, 3D photography, picture-fest of today. It's a new world we live in now, so I guess it's hard to fault the Big G for keeping up with the times.

As much as I've long loved the Guinness book itself, I was always a little disappointed that there wasn't a good resource written ABOUT Guinness -- its history, evolution, and especially about how it became the phenomenon that inspires people to carry out such dedicated acts of nuttiness. A few weeks ago in New York, I saw a book profiled in the newspaper titled GETTING INTO GUINNESS by Larry Olmsted. Olmsted is a journalist as well as a two-time GBWR record-holder, and I gave it a try. Well, it's the perfect companion piece to the Guinness book; it puts everything into context and lets you feel like a real insider. 300 pages of fascinating real life stories about the quest for Guinness recordhood, and Amazon has it for under nine pounds. I'll be giving them together as a gift to my nephew. Buy them as a tandem (which is what I should have done) and you'd even get free shipping with Prime! Getting into Guinness: One Man's Longest, Fastest, Highest Journey Inside the World's Most Famous Record Book

No wonder this is the world's best selling book!, 23 Sep 2008
After having received Guinness World Records 2009, as a gift, I've realised just how good it is. I was in Tesco a few days ago, and flicked through it then. I thought it was good. But now I own it, it's enabled me to see the extent of just how good it is.

Saying that it's the best edition of Guinness World Records to date, and it is (no worries there), isn't really that much of an achievement. Saying, however, it's the best book I've ever read...the best book ever made...is.
And this is. It's crammed full of amazing achievements, epic engineering, fantastic feats, and much more amazing stuff to feast your eyes on.

Leaving `Ripley's: Believe It Or Not' for dead, GWR really have excelled themselves this time. It really is astonishing.
This year's edition also includes huge, awe-inspiring fold out 3D features, which are apparently obvious when you wear the 3D-glasses that are provided.
It's awesome!

- Revealed: the world's strongest man
- The record-breaking world of Harry Potter
- Inside the Hollywood Hall of Fame
- The top ten videogames of the year
- Face to face with dinosaurs in exciting 3D!
- Plus your favourite records country by country

All this can be found in the spectacular book that is Guinness World Records 2009.

I'd suggest going over to that bookshop, right this second, and buying a copy.
Guaranteed - you won't be disappointed.


Excellent guide - informative and comprehensive, 14 Oct 2008
"The Writers' and Artist's Yearbook" (W&AY), published by A&C Black, has a long-standing reputation as a 'must-have' for any writer looking to get into publication. While a number of similar books now exist - including "The Writer's Handbook" (TWH), published by Macmillan, and "Writer's Market" (WM), published by David & Charles Ltd - W&AY remains the original font of knowledge, and for me, the premier choice.

All of these books contain roughly the same extensive listings of publishers, agents, print media, producers etc, and in truth there is little to choose between them. Indeed the competition is gradually catching up, and it is notable that TWH has undergone a major facelift for this year. Of course a lot will come down to personal preference regarding the layout of the different books, and so if you can get the chance to compare them before you buy, all the better.

What makes the W&AY stand out is the wealth of advice it contains (nearly 200 pages' worth) from professional writers, publishers, agents and producers. In separate articles, famous authors such as Joanna Trollope, Terry Pratchett, Bernard Cornwell and J.K. Rowling address various aspects of the writing process and discuss a wide variety of genres. Many other highly informative pieces cover diverse issues such as self-publishing, marketing your book, writing for TV, radio and theatre, the electronic world of websites and e-publishing, and financial aspects such as tax. This makes the W&AY more than simply a listings book - it is, in effect, an introduction to the entire world of writing. Much overlooked is of course the fact that this is a yearbook for artists too. Correspondingly there are sections for the budding illustrator and photographer in the W&AY which are not to be found in the other guides.

There is much that is new for 2009, too. Although a couple of articles have been dropped, 7 new ones have been added, as well as a fresh foreword by Kate Mosse (author of 'Labyrinth' and 'Sepulchre', among other works). These new articles cover a range of topics including mind, body and spirit writing, e-books and books published from blogs. There are also new pieces from Neil Gaiman, celebrated poet Benjamin Zephaniah and Archers' scriptwriter Mary Cutler. Is it worth upgrading to the 2009 edition, then? For the articles alone - fascinating though they are - probably not. On the other hand, the advantage of having fully up-to-date listings counts for a great deal, especially if you are already looking for an agent or publisher. And at the price it is currently being offered by Amazon, it is surely a worthwhile investment.

All in all, this is an excellent and comprehensive guide. Definitely recommended for the aspiring writer or artist.

The best gets better every year, 02 Oct 2008
I still buy and read the Guinness Record book every year, because it's become like an old friend that I like to catch up with, but I have to disagree with Birch East. I like the way it has changed and brings out a fresh look each year. The changes, like holograms, 3D whatever, make it fresh every year. My nephews also are big fans of the 3D gimmick.

I do agree with the recommendation for Getting Into Guinness: One Man's Longest, Fastest, Highest Journey Inside the World's Most Famous Record Book, the new book by Larry Olmsted about the history and culture of the Guinness World Records book. After reading his review I snapped up a copy and it is great--very entertaining and a fun read! I have read the record book for years but never stopped to wonder where it came from (Guinness Stout of course!), how it got so big, and how large a role it has played in pop culture, and just how crazy some of the record holders seem to be. Getting Into Guinness is the story behind the records and a fun, well researched, adult read.

Always the best, but this year I discovered something that makes it even better, 28 Sep 2008
I first read the Guinness Book of World Records when I was kid back in the 70s, and it's comforting to see it still going strong. I'll say that I definitely preferred the old school text-heavy versions from back in the day to the flourescent lime, 3D photography, picture-fest of today. It's a new world we live in now, so I guess it's hard to fault the Big G for keeping up with the times.

As much as I've long loved the Guinness book itself, I was always a little disappointed that there wasn't a good resource written ABOUT Guinness -- its history, evolution, and especially about how it became the phenomenon that inspires people to carry out such dedicated acts of nuttiness. A few weeks ago in New York, I saw a book profiled in the newspaper titled GETTING INTO GUINNESS by Larry Olmsted. Olmsted is a journalist as well as a two-time GBWR record-holder, and I gave it a try. Well, it's the perfect companion piece to the Guinness book; it puts everything into context and lets you feel like a real insider. 300 pages of fascinating real life stories about the quest for Guinness recordhood, and Amazon has it for under nine pounds. I'll be giving them together as a gift to my nephew. Buy them as a tandem (which is what I should have done) and you'd even get free shipping with Prime! Getting into Guinness: One Man's Longest, Fastest, Highest Journey Inside the World's Most Famous Record Book

No wonder this is the world's best selling book!, 23 Sep 2008
After having received Guinness World Records 2009, as a gift, I've realised just how good it is. I was in Tesco a few days ago, and flicked through it then. I thought it was good. But now I own it, it's enabled me to see the extent of just how good it is.

Saying that it's the best edition of Guinness World Records to date, and it is (no worries there), isn't really that much of an achievement. Saying, however, it's the best book I've ever read...the best book ever made...is.
And this is. It's crammed full of amazing achievements, epic engineering, fantastic feats, and much more amazing stuff to feast your eyes on.

Leaving `Ripley's: Believe It Or Not' for dead, GWR really have excelled themselves this time. It really is astonishing.
This year's edition also includes huge, awe-inspiring fold out 3D features, which are apparently obvious when you wear the 3D-glasses that are provided.
It's awesome!

- Revealed: the world's strongest man
- The record-breaking world of Harry Potter
- Inside the Hollywood Hall of Fame
- The top ten videogames of the year
- Face to face with dinosaurs in exciting 3D!
- Plus your favourite records country by country

All this can be found in the spectacular book that is Guinness World Records 2009.

I'd suggest going over to that bookshop, right this second, and buying a copy.
Guaranteed - you won't be disappointed.


Excellent guide - informative and comprehensive, 14 Oct 2008
"The Writers' and Artist's Yearbook" (W&AY), published by A&C Black, has a long-standing reputation as a 'must-have' for any writer looking to get into publication. While a number of similar books now exist - including "The Writer's Handbook" (TWH), published by Macmillan, and "Writer's Market" (WM), published by David & Charles Ltd - W&AY remains the original font of knowledge, and for me, the premier choice.

All of these books contain roughly the same extensive listings of publishers, agents, print media, producers etc, and in truth there is little to choose between them. Indeed the competition is gradually catching up, and it is notable that TWH has undergone a major facelift for this year. Of course a lot will come down to personal preference regarding the layout of the different books, and so if you can get the chance to compare them before you buy, all the better.

What makes the W&AY stand out is the wealth of advice it contains (nearly 200 pages' worth) from professional writers, publishers, agents and producers. In separate articles, famous authors such as Joanna Trollope, Terry Pratchett, Bernard Cornwell and J.K. Rowling address various aspects of the writing process and discuss a wide variety of genres. Many other highly informative pieces cover diverse issues such as self-publishing, marketing your book, writing for TV, radio and theatre, the electronic world of websites and e-publishing, and financial aspects such as tax. This makes the W&AY more than simply a listings book - it is, in effect, an introduction to the entire world of writing. Much overlooked is of course the fact that this is a yearbook for artists too. Correspondingly there are sections for the budding illustrator and photographer in the W&AY which are not to be found in the other guides.

There is much that is new for 2009, too. Although a couple of articles have been dropped, 7 new ones have been added, as well as a fresh foreword by Kate Mosse (author of 'Labyrinth' and 'Sepulchre', among other works). These new articles cover a range of topics including mind, body and spirit writing, e-books and books published from blogs. There are also new pieces from Neil Gaiman, celebrated poet Benjamin Zephaniah and Archers' scriptwriter Mary Cutler. Is it worth upgrading to the 2009 edition, then? For the articles alone - fascinating though they are - probably not. On the other hand, the advantage of having fully up-to-date listings counts for a great deal, especially if you are already looking for an agent or publisher. And at the price it is currently being offered by Amazon, it is surely a worthwhile investment.

All in all, this is an excellent and comprehensive guide. Definitely recommended for the aspiring writer or artist.

Excellent book regardless of previous knowledge on the subject, 22 Sep 2008
I already had a good knowledge of the financial systems, but wanted a book that would provide me a complete insight into all areas of the financial world. I have read many academic style books over the years and this is by far the best.
The authors style is clear and very easy to read. He explains things in a very simple way to digest and understand without dumbing down content.
Overall a fantastic easy to read guide to the intricacies of the financial city and the types of people and businesses that operate within it.

Loads of information, and very easy to read..., 27 Aug 2008
I now know a lot more about the workings of the City, including how banks really work. This book has also helped me to understand a lot of the jargon in the Financial Times. It's a very enjoyable read - the author uses simple analogies to explain some of the concepts, making it a lot quicker to learn them than from a textbook.

Whether it's "all" depends on who "you" are - but excellent for most outsiders and debutantes, 02 May 2008
Chris Stoakes trained as a solicitor at Freshfields ( one of the "magic circle" City law firms), was marketing partners in a medium-sized City firm, and is now Head of Legal Training at Lovells (another very big one). In this the 2008/09 second edition, which seems to have been updated following the event of the "credit crunch" in early 2008 (references to sub-prime mortgages, for example), he provides an overview, a context and an often humorous analogy for just about every financial transaction in "the City", including the insurance market. The book is based on a series of training sessions that he has delivered over the years.

I came at this as a reasonably well informed outsider (I have never worked in the City of London, and probably never will) and found this is an excellent book to improve on my broad understanding of the financial markets. Whether it would be right for you will depend on how sophisticated your current understanding is. Stoakes places his book as follows: he starts by saying "I've had to cut corners, leave things out and tell a few fibs in the interests of getting the message across quickly and simply". At the end, under "Where Next?" he recommends The Economist's books on The City, Wall Street and "The Financial Markets" - written by Richard Roberts and Marc Levinson respectively - as "the next step up". He also gives specific recommendations for particular areas, such as Finance & banking, Investment Banking, Commercial banking, Economics, Risk etc.

If you want to be able to differentiate senior debt from junior or subordinated debt, know the principle of mezzanine debt, understand the difference between a merchant and an investment bank, or understand the difference between LIBOR and the base rate, this is the book for you. For my own purposes I see little need to delve deeper, although I may well read Stoakes' other book, "All you need to know about Commercial Awareness" in due course.


Good read, 17 Oct 2007
This book is laid out in a very legible format for most users. It gives a good idea to the reader of what is out there in the financial markets. Would definitely recommend it to anyone who wants a flavour of things.

Chris has shown us the cards, what we need to do now is learn how to play them.

Informative, easy to digest, and, above all, interesting! , 13 Jun 2007
I came across this book when I was just starting out in the City and it helped me immensely. The author's conversational tone makes for a great read, and the book really does pack everything you need to know into 224 relaxed pages. I had a muddled understanding of how everything connected in the financial market, but this book completely demystified everything. I can now converse with City types about derivatives, hedge funds and securitisation without breaking a sweat!

I would highly recommend it to anyone working in the City - from newbies who are starting out and need to know what all the unfamiliar jargon means, to those who've been at it for a while but need to brush up or clarify something. This book will answer all the questions you were too embarrassed to ask without being patronising or going all 'boring textbook' on you.

Definitely a must-read.

The best gets better every year, 02 Oct 2008
I still buy and read the Guinness Record book every year, because it's become like an old friend that I like to catch up with, but I have to disagree with Birch East. I like the way it has changed and brings out a fresh look each year. The changes, like holograms, 3D whatever, make it fresh every year. My nephews also are big fans of the 3D gimmick.

I do agree with the recommendation for Getting Into Guinness: One Man's Longest, Fastest, Highest Journey Inside the World's Most Famous Record Book, the new book by Larry Olmsted about the history and culture of the Guinness World Records book. After reading his review I snapped up a copy and it is great--very entertaining and a fun read! I have read the record book for years but never stopped to wonder where it came from (Guinness Stout of course!), how it got so big, and how large a role it has played in pop culture, and just how crazy some of the record holders seem to be. Getting Into Guinness is the story behind the records and a fun, well researched, adult read.

Always the best, but this year I discovered something that makes it even better, 28 Sep 2008
I first read the Guinness Book of World Records when I was kid back in the 70s, and it's comforting to see it still going strong. I'll say that I definitely preferred the old school text-heavy versions from back in the day to the flourescent lime, 3D photography, picture-fest of today. It's a new world we live in now, so I guess it's hard to fault the Big G for keeping up with the times.

As much as I've long loved the Guinness book itself, I was always a little disappointed that there wasn't a good resource written ABOUT Guinness -- its history, evolution, and especially about how it became the phenomenon that inspires people to carry out such dedicated acts of nuttiness. A few weeks ago in New York, I saw a book profiled in the newspaper titled GETTING INTO GUINNESS by Larry Olmsted. Olmsted is a journalist as well as a two-time GBWR record-holder, and I gave it a try. Well, it's the perfect companion piece to the Guinness book; it puts everything into context and lets you feel like a real insider. 300 pages of fascinating real life stories about the quest for Guinness recordhood, and Amazon has it for under nine pounds. I'll be giving them together as a gift to my nephew. Buy them as a tandem (which is what I should have done) and you'd even get free shipping with Prime! Getting into Guinness: One Man's Longest, Fastest, Highest Journey Inside the World's Most Famous Record Book

No wonder this is the world's best selling book!, 23 Sep 2008
After having received Guinness World Records 2009, as a gift, I've realised just how good it is. I was in Tesco a few days ago, and flicked through it then. I thought it was good. But now I own it, it's enabled me to see the extent of just how good it is.

Saying that it's the best edition of Guinness World Records to date, and it is (no worries there), isn't really that much of an achievement. Saying, however, it's the best book I've ever read...the best book ever made...is.
And this is. It's crammed full of amazing achievements, epic engineering, fantastic feats, and much more amazing stuff to feast your eyes on.

Leaving `Ripley's: Believe It Or Not' for dead, GWR really have excelled themselves this time. It really is astonishing.
This year's edition also includes huge, awe-inspiring fold out 3D features, which are apparently obvious when you wear the 3D-glasses that are provided.
It's awesome!

- Revealed: the world's strongest man
- The record-breaking world of Harry Potter
- Inside the Hollywood Hall of Fame
- The top ten videogames of the year
- Face to face with dinosaurs in exciting 3D!
- Plus your favourite records country by country

All this can be found in the spectacular book that is Guinness World Records 2009.

I'd suggest going over to that bookshop, right this second, and buying a copy.
Guaranteed - you won't be disappointed.


Excellent guide - informative and comprehensive, 14 Oct 2008
"The Writers' and Artist's Yearbook" (W&AY), published by A&C Black, has a long-standing reputation as a 'must-have' for any writer looking to get into publication. While a number of similar books now exist - including "The Writer's Handbook" (TWH), published by Macmillan, and "Writer's Market" (WM), published by David & Charles Ltd - W&AY remains the original font of knowledge, and for me, the premier choice.

All of these books contain roughly the same extensive listings of publishers, agents, print media, producers etc, and in truth there is little to choose between them. Indeed the competition is gradually catching up, and it is notable that TWH has undergone a major facelift for this year. Of course a lot will come down to personal preference regarding the layout of the different books, and so if you can get the chance to compare them before you buy, all the better.

What makes the W&AY stand out is the wealth of advice it contains (nearly 200 pages' worth) from professional writers, publishers, agents and producers. In separate articles, famous authors such as Joanna Trollope, Terry Pratchett, Bernard Cornwell and J.K. Rowling address various aspects of the writing process and discuss a wide variety of genres. Many other highly informative pieces cover diverse issues such as self-publishing, marketing your book, writing for TV, radio and theatre, the electronic world of websites and e-publishing, and financial aspects such as tax. This makes the W&AY more than simply a listings book - it is, in effect, an introduction to the entire world of writing. Much overlooked is of course the fact that this is a yearbook for artists too. Correspondingly there are sections for the budding illustrator and photographer in the W&AY which are not to be found in the other guides.

There is much that is new for 2009, too. Although a couple of articles have been dropped, 7 new ones have been added, as well as a fresh foreword by Kate Mosse (author of 'Labyrinth' and 'Sepulchre', among other works). These new articles cover a range of topics including mind, body and spirit writing, e-books and books published from blogs. There are also new pieces from Neil Gaiman, celebrated poet Benjamin Zephaniah and Archers' scriptwriter Mary Cutler. Is it worth upgrading to the 2009 edition, then? For the articles alone - fascinating though they are - probably not. On the other hand, the advantage of having fully up-to-date listings counts for a great deal, especially if you are already looking for an agent or publisher. And at the price it is currently being offered by Amazon, it is surely a worthwhile investment.

All in all, this is an excellent and comprehensive guide. Definitely recommended for the aspiring writer or artist.

Excellent book regardless of previous knowledge on the subject, 22 Sep 2008
I already had a good knowledge of the financial systems, but wanted a book that would provide me a complete insight into all areas of the financial world. I have read many academic style books over the years and this is by far the best.
The authors style is clear and very easy to read. He explains things in a very simple way to digest and understand without dumbing down content.
Overall a fantastic easy to read guide to the intricacies of the financial city and the types of people and businesses that operate within it.

Loads of information, and very easy to read..., 27 Aug 2008
I now know a lot more about the workings of the City, including how banks really work. This book has also helped me to understand a lot of the jargon in the Financial Times. It's a very enjoyable read - the author uses simple analogies to explain some of the concepts, making it a lot quicker to learn them than from a textbook.

Whether it's "all" depends on who "you" are - but excellent for most outsiders and debutantes, 02 May 2008
Chris Stoakes trained as a solicitor at Freshfields ( one of the "magic circle" City law firms), was marketing partners in a medium-sized City firm, and is now Head of Legal Training at Lovells (another very big one). In this the 2008/09 second edition, which seems to have been updated following the event of the "credit crunch" in early 2008 (references to sub-prime mortgages, for example), he provides an overview, a context and an often humorous analogy for just about every financial transaction in "the City", including the insurance market. The book is based on a series of training sessions that he has delivered over the years.

I came at this as a reasonably well informed outsider (I have never worked in the City of London, and probably never will) and found this is an excellent book to improve on my broad understanding of the financial markets. Whether it would be right for you will depend on how sophisticated your current understanding is. Stoakes places his book as follows: he starts by saying "I've had to cut corners, leave things out and tell a few fibs in the interests of getting the message across quickly and simply". At the end, under "Where Next?" he recommends The Economist's books on The City, Wall Street and "The Financial Markets" - written by Richard Roberts and Marc Levinson respectively - as "the next step up". He also gives specific recommendations for particular areas, such as Finance & banking, Investment Banking, Commercial banking, Economics, Risk etc.

If you want to be able to differentiate senior debt from junior or subordinated debt, know the principle of mezzanine debt, understand the difference between a merchant and an investment bank, or understand the difference between LIBOR and the base rate, this is the book for you. For my own purposes I see little need to delve deeper, although I may well read Stoakes' other book, "All you need to know about Commercial Awareness" in due course.


Good read, 17 Oct 2007
This book is laid out in a very legible format for most users. It gives a good idea to the reader of what is out there in the financial markets. Would definitely recommend it to anyone who wants a flavour of things.

Chris has shown us the cards, what we need to do now is learn how to play them.

Informative, easy to digest, and, above all, interesting! , 13 Jun 2007
I came across this book when I was just starting out in the City and it helped me immensely. The author's conversational tone makes for a great read, and the book really does pack everything you need to know into 224 relaxed pages. I had a muddled understanding of how everything connected in the financial market, but this book completely demystified everything. I can now converse with City types about derivatives, hedge funds and securitisation without breaking a sweat!

I would highly recommend it to anyone working in the City - from newbies who are starting out and need to know what all the unfamiliar jargon means, to those who've been at it for a while but need to brush up or clarify something. This book will answer all the questions you were too embarrassed to ask without being patronising or going all 'boring textbook' on you.

Definitely a must-read.

QI - Quite Interesting and quite informative, really!, 14 Oct 2008
As an Australian fan of QI, but still catching up on the publications, I'm a recent reader of a few QI books. The QI Annual brought back meories of the annuals of my childhood, but without the daft makeup tips and silly advice on boys! The QI Annual doesn't aim to be a deadly serious tome full of staid facts and figures, the QI team have done a fabulous job in making the books informative yet fun. I've read the Annual several times, yet I always manage to find something interesting I didn't see earlier. Great for trivia buffs and myth exploders, or anyone who has a fascination for interesting tidbits. A great companion to the show, and a must for all QI Fans.
I already have the QI Annual 2009 on pre-order!

Amazing, 22 Jan 2008
If you like the series, then you will love the book. It is split in very small pieces of information, which makes it ideal for commuting. I recommend it!

Barely interesting and doesn't transfer, 13 Jan 2008
I love the TV show QI. I'm a fan of most of the guests, have seen several in live gigs or else read a number of their various books, I've got the first series box set, the first DVD game and the Book of General Ignorance. Like I say, I'm a fan.

I'm also a fan of the TV comedy spin-off book - the Goodies books, the Young Ones, Morcambe and Wise, the New Statesman for example - were all grab bags of daft snippets, spoof documents, and other original material. This is genre of book which seemed to have gone out of favour for a while but has come back well lately with Al Murray's Pub Landlord's Book of British Common Sense and Borat's Touristic Guidings.

The QI Annual is along similar lines. It is stylishly presented - having a nice Beano annual look - and the contents are a more or less original miscellany of sideways-looking snippets, interesting facts and articles.

There are, to my mind, two vital ingredients to the concept and the appeal of QI: one is the spontaneous interplay between the guests and the other is the overturning of received wisdom. The currency of the show - its interesting facts - are usually all the more interesting because they are so little-known and bizarre or because they refute commonly held 'knowledge'. Both of these key ingredients are totally absent from the book.

The guest interplay is of course impossible to reflect in an annual but that needn't have undermined the QI Annual necessarily if the trivia was interesting and humorously communicated, but it's not. It's decidely dull and mundane. Jeremy Clarkson contributes a heavily padded out section, the basic gist of which is that people around the world eat stuff like dogs, guinea pigs and insects - hardly news to anyone. Clive Anderson delivers an essay on the English Elm...that's it...no angle, no punchline...just a dry couple of pages about an inappropriately named species of tree.

There are brief moments of edutainment (the spoof, Boys Own style cartoon adventures of Stephen Fry for example) but essentially this is a very shallow, sketchy sub-Schott book of unfunny, widely known trivia. If the book was not associated with the TV series, and the same content was compiled and attributed to some nobody researcher, then I doubt it would get published.

A very nice Annual for the series, 08 Jan 2008
A very nice read with plenty of toilet humour and interesting facts to impress your friends. To be honest some of he features of members from the show seem to lack any actual input from them at all as they cover random subjects like the Elm tree and What animals you wouldnt normally eat but still a very nice giggle at the end of the day and any fan of the show should own it

Really funny, 18 Dec 2007
I bought this for someone else for Xmas but I've managed to read just about all of it myself. Its really very funny and would appeal to almost anyone. It's an ideal gift, but one you might think about keeping for yourself.

The best gets better every year, 02 Oct 2008
I still buy and read the Guinness Record book every year, because it's become like an old friend that I like to catch up with, but I have to disagree with Birch East. I like the way it has changed and brings out a fresh look each year. The changes, like holograms, 3D whatever, make it fresh every year. My nephews also are big fans of the 3D gimmick.

I do agree with the recommendation for Getting Into Guinness: One Man's Longest, Fastest, Highest Journey Inside the World's Most Famous Record Book, the new book by Larry Olmsted about the history and culture of the Guinness World Records book. After reading his review I snapped up a copy and it is great--very entertaining and a fun read! I have read the record book for years but never stopped to wonder where it came from (Guinness Stout of course!), how it got so big, and how large a role it has played in pop culture, and just how crazy some of the record holders seem to be. Getting Into Guinness is the story behind the records and a fun, well researched, adult read.

Always the best, but this year I discovered something that makes it even better, 28 Sep 2008
I first read the Guinness Book of World Records when I was kid back in the 70s, and it's comforting to see it still going strong. I'll say that I definitely preferred the old school text-heavy versions from back in the day to the flourescent lime, 3D photography, picture-fest of today. It's a new world we live in now, so I guess it's hard to fault the Big G for keeping up with the times.

As much as I've long loved the Guinness book itself, I was always a little disappointed that there wasn't a good resource written ABOUT Guinness -- its history, evolution, and especially about how it became the phenomenon that inspires people to carry out such dedicated acts of nuttiness. A few weeks ago in New York, I saw a book profiled in the newspaper titled GETTING INTO GUINNESS by Larry Olmsted. Olmsted is a journalist as well as a two-time GBWR record-holder, and I gave it a try. Well, it's the perfect companion piece to the Guinness book; it puts everything into context and lets you feel like a real insider. 300 pages of fascinating real life stories about the quest for Guinness recordhood, and Amazon has it for under nine pounds. I'll be giving them together as a gift to my nephew. Buy them as a tandem (which is what I should have done) and you'd even get free shipping with Prime! Getting into Guinness: One Man's Longest, Fastest, Highest Journey Inside the World's Most Famous Record Book

No wonder this is the world's best selling book!, 23 Sep 2008
After having received Guinness World Records 2009, as a gift, I've realised just how good it is. I was in Tesco a few days ago, and flicked through it then. I thought it was good. But now I own it, it's enabled me to see the extent of just how good it is.

Saying that it's the best edition of Guinness World Records to date, and it is (no worries there), isn't really that much of an achievement. Saying, however, it's the best book I've ever read...the best book ever made...is.
And this is. It's crammed full of amazing achievements, epic engineering, fantastic feats, and much more amazing stuff to feast your eyes on.

Leaving `Ripley's: Believe It Or Not' for dead, GWR really have excelled themselves this time. It really is astonishing.
This year's edition also includes huge, awe-inspiring fold out 3D features, which are apparently obvious when you wear the 3D-glasses that are provided.
It's awesome!

- Revealed: the world's strongest man
- The record-breaking world of Harry Potter
- Inside the Hollywood Hall of Fame
- The top ten videogames of the year
- Face to face with dinosaurs in exciting 3D!
- Plus your favourite records country by country

All this can be found in the spectacular book that is Guinness World Records 2009.

I'd suggest going over to that bookshop, right this second, and buying a copy.
Guaranteed - you won't be disappointed.


Excellent guide - informative and comprehensive, 14 Oct 2008
"The Writers' and Artist's Yearbook" (W&AY), published by A&C Black, has a long-standing reputation as a 'must-have' for any writer looking to get into publication. While a number of similar books now exist - including "The Writer's Handbook" (TWH), published by Macmillan, and "Writer's Market" (WM), published by David & Charles Ltd - W&AY remains the original font of knowledge, and for me, the premier choice.

All of these books contain roughly the same extensive listings of publishers, agents, print media, producers etc, and in truth there is little to choose between them. Indeed the competition is gradually catching up, and it is notable that TWH has undergone a major facelift for this year. Of course a lot will come down to personal preference regarding the layout of the different books, and so if you can get the chance to compare them before you buy, all the better.

What makes the W&AY stand out is the wealth of advice it contains (nearly 200 pages' worth) from professional writers, publishers, agents and producers. In separate articles, famous authors such as Joanna Trollope, Terry Pratchett, Bernard Cornwell and J.K. Rowling address various aspects of the writing process and discuss a wide variety of genres. Many other highly informative pieces cover diverse issues such as self-publishing, marketing your book, writing for TV, radio and theatre, the electronic world of websites and e-publishing, and financial aspects such as tax. This makes the W&AY more than simply a listings book - it is, in effect, an introduction to the entire world of writing. Much overlooked is of course the fact that this is a yearbook for artists too. Correspondingly there are sections for the budding illustrator and photographer in the W&AY which are not to be found in the other guides.

There is much that is new for 2009, too. Although a couple of articles have been dropped, 7 new ones have been added, as well as a fresh foreword by Kate Mosse (author of 'Labyrinth' and 'Sepulchre', among other works). These new articles cover a range of topics including mind, body and spirit writing, e-books and books published from blogs. There are also new pieces from Neil Gaiman, celebrated poet Benjamin Zephaniah and Archers' scriptwriter Mary Cutler. Is it worth upgrading to the 2009 edition, then? For the articles alone - fascinating though they are - probably not. On the other hand, the advantage of having fully up-to-date listings counts for a great deal, especially if you are already looking for an agent or publisher. And at the price it is currently being offered by Amazon, it is surely a worthwhile investment.

All in all, this is an excellent and comprehensive guide. Definitely recommended for the aspiring writer or artist.

Excellent book regardless of previous knowledge on the subject, 22 Sep 2008
I already had a good knowledge of the financial systems, but wanted a book that would provide me a complete insight into all areas of the financial world. I have read many academic style books over the years and this is by far the best.
The authors style is clear and very easy to read. He explains things in a very simple way to digest and understand without dumbing down content.
Overall a fantastic easy to read guide to the intricacies of the financial city and the types of people and businesses that operate within it.

Loads of information, and very easy to read..., 27 Aug 2008
I now know a lot more about the workings of the City, including how banks really work. This book has also helped me to understand a lot of the jargon in the Financial Times. It's a very enjoyable read - the author uses simple analogies to explain some of the concepts, making it a lot quicker to learn them than from a textbook.

Whether it's "all" depends on who "you" are - but excellent for most outsiders and debutantes, 02 May 2008
Chris Stoakes trained as a solicitor at Freshfields ( one of the "magic circle" City law firms), was marketing partners in a medium-sized City firm, and is now Head of Legal Training at Lovells (another very big one). In this the 2008/09 second edition, which seems to have been updated following the event of the "credit crunch" in early 2008 (references to sub-prime mortgages, for example), he provides an overview, a context and an often humorous analogy for just about every financial transaction in "the City", including the insurance market. The book is based on a series of training sessions that he has delivered over the years.

I came at this as a reasonably well informed outsider (I have never worked in the City of London, and probably never will) and found this is an excellent book to improve on my broad understanding of the financial markets. Whether it would be right for you will depend on how sophisticated your current understanding is. Stoakes places his book as follows: he starts by saying "I've had to cut corners, leave things out and tell a few fibs in the interests of getting the message across quickly and simply". At the end, under "Where Next?" he recommends The Economist's books on The City, Wall Street and "The Financial Markets" - written by Richard Roberts and Marc Levinson respectively - as "the next step up". He also gives specific recommendations for particular areas, such as Finance & banking, Investment Banking, Commercial banking, Economics, Risk etc.

If you want to be able to differentiate senior debt from junior or subordinated debt, know the principle of mezzanine debt, understand the difference between a merchant and an investment bank, or understand the difference between LIBOR and the base rate, this is the book for you. For my own purposes I see little need to delve deeper, although I may well read Stoakes' other book, "All you need to know about Commercial Awareness" in due course.


Good read, 17 Oct 2007
This book is laid out in a very legible format for most users. It gives a good idea to the reader of what is out there in the financial markets. Would definitely recommend it to anyone who wants a flavour of things.

Chris has shown us the cards, what we need to do now is learn how to play them.

Informative, easy to digest, and, above all, interesting! , 13 Jun 2007
I came across this book when I was just starting out in the City and it helped me immensely. The author's conversational tone makes for a great read, and the book really does pack everything you need to know into 224 relaxed pages. I had a muddled understanding of how everything connected in the financial market, but this book completely demystified everything. I can now converse with City types about derivatives, hedge funds and securitisation without breaking a sweat!

I would highly recommend it to anyone working in the City - from newbies who are starting out and need to know what all the unfamiliar jargon means, to those who've been at it for a while but need to brush up or clarify something. This book will answer all the questions you were too embarrassed to ask without being patronising or going all 'boring textbook' on you.

Definitely a must-read.

QI - Quite Interesting and quite informative, really!, 14 Oct 2008
As an Australian fan of QI, but still catching up on the publications, I'm a recent reader of a few QI books. The QI Annual brought back meories of the annuals of my childhood, but without the daft makeup tips and silly advice on boys! The QI Annual doesn't aim to be a deadly serious tome full of staid facts and figures, the QI team have done a fabulous job in making the books informative yet fun. I've read the Annual several times, yet I always manage to find something interesting I didn't see earlier. Great for trivia buffs and myth exploders, or anyone who has a fascination for interesting tidbits. A great companion to the show, and a must for all QI Fans.
I already have the QI Annual 2009 on pre-order!

Amazing, 22 Jan 2008
If you like the series, then you will love the book. It is split in very small pieces of information, which makes it ideal for commuting. I recommend it!

Barely interesting and doesn't transfer, 13 Jan 2008
I love the TV show QI. I'm a fan of most of the guests, have seen several in live gigs or else read a number of their various books, I've got the first series box set, the first DVD game and the Book of General Ignorance. Like I say, I'm a fan.

I'm also a fan of the TV comedy spin-off book - the Goodies books, the Young Ones, Morcambe and Wise, the New Statesman for example - were all grab bags of daft snippets, spoof documents, and other original material. This is genre of book which seemed to have gone out of favour for a while but has come back well lately with Al Murray's Pub Landlord's Book of British Common Sense and Borat's Touristic Guidings.

The QI Annual is along similar lines. It is stylishly presented - having a nice Beano annual look - and the contents are a more or less original miscellany of sideways-looking snippets, interesting facts and articles.

There are, to my mind, two vital ingredients to the concept and the appeal of QI: one is the spontaneous interplay between the guests and the other is the overturning of received wisdom. The currency of the show - its interesting facts - are usually all the more interesting because they are so little-known and bizarre or because they refute commonly held 'knowledge'. Both of these key ingredients are totally absent from the book.

The guest interplay is of course impossible to reflect in an annual but that needn't have undermined the QI Annual necessarily if the trivia was interesting and humorously communicated, but it's not. It's decidely dull and mundane. Jeremy Clarkson contributes a heavily padded out section, the basic gist of which is that people around the world eat stuff like dogs, guinea pigs and insects - hardly news to anyone. Clive Anderson delivers an essay on the English Elm...that's it...no angle, no punchline...just a dry couple of pages about an inappropriately named species of tree.

There are brief moments of edutainment (the spoof, Boys Own style cartoon adventures of Stephen Fry for example) but essentially this is a very shallow, sketchy sub-Schott book of unfunny, widely known trivia. If the book was not associated with the TV series, and the same content was compiled and attributed to some nobody researcher, then I doubt it would get published.

A very nice Annual for the series, 08 Jan 2008
A very nice read with plenty of toilet humour and interesting facts to impress your friends. To be honest some of he features of members from the show seem to lack any actual input from them at all as they cover random subjects like the Elm tree and What animals you wouldnt normally eat but still a very nice giggle at the end of the day and any fan of the show should own it

Really funny, 18 Dec 2007
I bought this for someone else for Xmas but I've managed to read just about all of it myself. Its really very funny and would appeal to almost anyone. It's an ideal gift, but one you might think about keeping for yourself.

Murakami cool, in diary form!, 18 Sep 2008
This is a sweet little diary full of quotes, book covers and associated Murakami paraphernalia; liberally sprinkled with book histories, publishing dates and Japanese holidays.

It's very beautiful, and even comes in a dust jacket, and despite all there is to be enjoyed it still feels quite minimalist; the black and white and red styling complimenting the character of Murakami's novels perfectly.

From a bibliophile's point of view, it is certainly a valued item to keep alongside Murakami's wonderful novels. The only problem i can see is exactly why you would want to write in it at all!

Very good, 07 Sep 2008
Firstly the price on Amazon is really good (£9.99 in stores) and secondly its a beautiful diary as odd and as surreal as Murakami Diary ought to be. Its full off quotes, pictures and facts about the books.However, some of the days are that full after a quote its hard to fit any writing in, plus it comes in a dust cover which most people like but i find really annoying, because underneath its plain white and looks dull. But over all its a unique diary and a must have for Murakami Fans! P.S If there was a 4.5 option I would have given it that!!!

The best gets better every year, 02 Oct 2008
I still buy and read the Guinness Record book every year, because it's become like an old friend that I like to catch up with, but I have to disagree with Birch East. I like the way it has changed and brings out a fresh look each year. The changes, like holograms, 3D whatever, make it fresh every year. My nephews also are big fans of the 3D gimmick.

I do agree with the recommendation for Getting Into Guinness: One Man's Longest, Fastest, Highest Journey Inside the World's Most Famous Record Book, the new book by Larry Olmsted about the history and culture of the Guinness World Records book. After reading his review I snapped up a copy and it is great--very entertaining and a fun read! I have read the record book for years but never stopped to wonder where it came from (Guinness Stout of course!), how it got so big, and how large a role it has played in pop culture, and just how crazy some of the record holders seem to be. Getting Into Guinness is the story behind the records and a fun, well researched, adult read.

Always the best, but this year I discovered something that makes it even better, 28 Sep 2008
I first read the Guinness Book of World Records when I was kid back in the 70s, and it's comforting to see it still going strong. I'll say that I definitely preferred the old school text-heavy versions from back in the day to the flourescent lime, 3D photography, picture-fest of today. It's a new world we live in now, so I guess it's hard to fault the Big G for keeping up with the times.

As much as I've long loved the Guinness book itself, I was always a little disappointed that there wasn't a good resource written ABOUT Guinness -- its history, evolution, and especially about how it became the phenomenon that inspires people to carry out such dedicated acts of nuttiness. A few weeks ago in New York, I saw a book profiled in the newspaper titled GETTING INTO GUINNESS by Larry Olmsted. Olmsted is a journalist as well as a two-time GBWR record-holder, and I gave it a try. Well, it's the perfect companion piece to the Guinness book; it puts everything into context and lets you feel like a real insider. 300 pages of fascinating real life stories about the quest for Guinness recordhood, and Amazon has it for under nine pounds. I'll be giving them together as a gift to my nephew. Buy them as a tandem (which is what I should have done) and you'd even get free shipping with Prime! Getting into Guinness: One Man's Longest, Fastest, Highest Journey Inside the World's Most Famous Record Book

No wonder this is the world's best selling book!, 23 Sep 2008
After having received Guinness World Records 2009, as a gift, I've realised just how good it is. I was in Tesco a few days ago, and flicked through it then. I thought it was good. But now I own it, it's enabled me to see the extent of just how good it is.

Saying that it's the best edition of Guinness World Records to date, and it is (no worries there), isn't really that much of an achievement. Saying, however, it's the best book I've ever read...the best book ever made...is.
And this is. It's crammed full of amazing achievements, epic engineering, fantastic feats, and much more amazing stuff to feast your eyes on.

Leaving `Ripley's: Believe It Or Not' for dead, GWR really have excelled themselves this time. It really is astonishing.
This year's edition also includes huge, awe-inspiring fold out 3D features, which are apparently obvious when you wear the 3D-glasses that are provided.
It's awesome!

- Revealed: the world's strongest man
- The record-breaking world of Harry Potter
- Inside the Hollywood Hall of Fame
- The top ten videogames of the year
- Face to face with dinosaurs in exciting 3D!
- Plus your favourite records country by country

All this can be found in the spectacular book that is Guinness World Records 2009.

I'd suggest going over to that bookshop, right this second, and buying a copy.
Guaranteed - you won't be disappointed.


Excellent guide - informative and comprehensive, 14 Oct 2008
"The Writers' and Artist's Yearbook" (W&AY), published by A&C Black, has a long-standing reputation as a 'must-have' for any writer looking to get into publication. While a number of similar books now exist - including "The Writer's Handbook" (TWH), published by Macmillan, and "Writer's Market" (WM), published by David & Charles Ltd - W&AY remains the original font of knowledge, and for me, the premier choice.

All of these books contain roughly the same extensive listings of publishers, agents, print media, producers etc, and in truth there is little to choose between them. Indeed the competition is gradually catching up, and it is notable that TWH has undergone a major facelift for this year. Of course a lot will come down to personal preference regarding the layout of the different books, and so if you can get the chance to compare them before you buy, all the better.

What makes the W&AY stand out is the wealth of advice it contains (nearly 200 pages' worth) from professional writers, publishers, agents and producers. In separate articles, famous authors such as Joanna Trollope, Terry Pratchett, Bernard Cornwell and J.K. Rowling address various aspects of the writing process and discuss a wide variety of genres. Many other highly informative pieces cover diverse issues such as self-publishing, marketing your book, writing for TV, radio and theatre, the electronic world of websites and e-publishing, and financial aspects such as tax. This makes the W&AY more than simply a listings book - it is, in effect, an introduction to the entire world of writing. Much overlooked is of course the fact that this is a yearbook for artists too. Correspondingly there are sections for the budding illustrator and photographer in the W&AY which are not to be found in the other guides.

There is much that is new for 2009, too. Although a couple of articles have been dropped, 7 new ones have been added, as well as a fresh foreword by Kate Mosse (author of 'Labyrinth' and 'Sepulchre', among other works). These new articles cover a range of topics including mind, body and spirit writing, e-books and books published from blogs. There are also new pieces from Neil Gaiman, celebrated poet Benjamin Zephaniah and Archers' scriptwriter Mary Cutler. Is it worth upgrading to the 2009 edition, then? For the articles alone - fascinating though they are - probably not. On the other hand, the advantage of having fully up-to-date listings counts for a great deal, especially if you are already looking for an agent or publisher. And at the price it is currently being offered by Amazon, it is surely a worthwhile investment.

All in all, this is an excellent and comprehensive guide. Definitely recommended for the aspiring writer or artist.

Excellent book regardless of previous knowledge on the subject, 22 Sep 2008
I already had a good knowledge of the financial systems, but wanted a book that would provide me a complete insight into all areas of the financial world. I have read many academic style books over the years and this is by far the best.
The authors style is clear and very easy to read. He explains things in a very simple way to digest and understand without dumbing down content.
Overall a fantastic easy to read guide to the intricacies of the financial city and the types of people and businesses that operate within it.

Loads of information, and very easy to read..., 27 Aug 2008
I now know a lot more about the workings of the City, including how banks really work. This book has also helped me to understand a lot of the jargon in the Financial Times. It's a very enjoyable read - the author uses simple analogies to explain some of the concepts, making it a lot quicker to learn them than from a textbook.

Whether it's "all" depends on who "you" are - but excellent for most outsiders and debutantes, 02 May 2008
Chris Stoakes trained as a solicitor at Freshfields ( one of the "magic circle" City law firms), was marketing partners in a medium-sized City firm, and is now Head of Legal Training at Lovells (another very big one). In this the 2008/09 second edition, which seems to have been updated following the event of the "credit crunch" in early 2008 (references to sub-prime mortgages, for example), he provides an overview, a context and an often humorous analogy for just about every financial transaction in "the City", including the insurance market. The book is based on a series of training sessions that he has delivered over the years.

I came at this as a reasonably well informed outsider (I have never worked in the City of London, and probably never will) and found this is an excellent book to improve on my broad understanding of the financial markets. Whether it would be right for you will depend on how sophisticated your current understanding is. Stoakes places his book as follows: he starts by saying "I've had to cut corners, leave things out and tell a few fibs in the interests of getting the message across quickly and simply". At the end, under "Where Next?" he recommends The Economist's books on The City, Wall Street and "The Financial Markets" - written by Richard Roberts and Marc Levinson respectively - as "the next step up". He also gives specific recommendations for particular areas, such as Finance & banking, Investment Banking, Commercial banking, Economics, Risk etc.

If you want to be able to differentiate senior debt from junior or subordinated debt, know the principle of mezzanine debt, understand the difference between a merchant and an investment bank, or understand the difference between LIBOR and the base rate, this is the book for you. For my own purposes I see little need to delve deeper, although I may well read Stoakes' other book, "All you need to know about Commercial Awareness" in due course.


Good read, 17 Oct 2007
This book is laid out in a very legible format for most users. It gives a good idea to the reader of what is out there in the financial markets. Would definitely recommend it to anyone who wants a flavour of things.

Chris has shown us the cards, what we need to do now is learn how to play them.

Informative, easy to digest, and, above all, interesting! , 13 Jun 2007
I came across this book when I was just starting out in the City and it helped me immensely. The author's conversational tone makes for a great read, and the book really does pack everything you need to know into 224 relaxed pages. I had a muddled understanding of how everything connected in the financial market, but this book completely demystified everything. I can now converse with City types about derivatives, hedge funds and securitisation without breaking a sweat!

I would highly recommend it to anyone working in the City - from newbies who are starting out and need to know what all the unfamiliar jargon means, to those who've been at it for a while but need to brush up or clarify something. This book will answer all the questions you were too embarrassed to ask without being patronising or going all 'boring textbook' on you.

Definitely a must-read.

QI - Quite Interesting and quite informative, really!, 14 Oct 2008
As an Australian fan of QI, but still catching up on the publications, I'm a recent reader of a few QI books. The QI Annual brought back meories of the annuals of my childhood, but without the daft makeup tips and silly advice on boys! The QI Annual doesn't aim to be a deadly serious tome full of staid facts and figures, the QI team have done a fabulous job in making the books informative yet fun. I've read the Annual several times, yet I always manage to find something interesting I didn't see earlier. Great for trivia buffs and myth exploders, or anyone who has a fascination for interesting tidbits. A great companion to the show, and a must for all QI Fans.
I already have the QI Annual 2009 on pre-order!

Amazing, 22 Jan 2008
If you like the series, then you will love the book. It is split in very small pieces of information, which makes it ideal for commuting. I recommend it!

Barely interesting and doesn't transfer, 13 Jan 2008
I love the TV show QI. I'm a fan of most of the guests, have seen several in live gigs or else read a number of their various books, I've got the first series box set, the first DVD game and the Book of General Ignorance. Like I say, I'm a fan.

I'm also a fan of the TV comedy spin-off book - the Goodies books, the Young Ones, Morcambe and Wise, the New Statesman for example - were all grab bags of daft snippets, spoof documents, and other original material. This is genre of book which seemed to have gone out of favour for a while but has come back well lately with Al Murray's Pub Landlord's Book of British Common Sense and Borat's Touristic Guidings.

The QI Annual is along similar lines. It is stylishly presented - having a nice Beano annual look - and the contents are a more or less original miscellany of sideways-looking snippets, interesting facts and articles.

There are, to my mind, two vital ingredients to the concept and the appeal of QI: one is the spontaneous interplay between the guests and the other is the overturning of received wisdom. The currency of the show - its interesting facts - are usually all the more interesting because they are so little-known and bizarre or because they refute commonly held 'knowledge'. Both of these key ingredients are totally absent from the book.

The guest interplay is of course impossible to reflect in an annual but that needn't have undermined the QI Annual necessarily if the trivia was interesting and humorously communicated, but it's not. It's decidely dull and mundane. Jeremy Clarkson contributes a heavily padded out section, the basic gist of which is that people around the world eat stuff like dogs, guinea pigs and insects - hardly news to anyone. Clive Anderson delivers an essay on the English Elm...that's it...no angle, no punchline...just a dry couple of pages about an inappropriately named species of tree.

There are brief moments of edutainment (the spoof, Boys Own style cartoon adventures of Stephen Fry for example) but essentially this is a very shallow, sketchy sub-Schott book of unfunny, widely known trivia. If the book was not associated with the TV series, and the same content was compiled and attributed to some nobody researcher, then I doubt it would get published.

A very nice Annual for the series, 08 Jan 2008
A very nice read with plenty of toilet humour and interesting facts to impress your friends. To be honest some of he features of members from the show seem to lack any actual input from them at all as they cover random subjects like the Elm tree and What animals you wouldnt normally eat but still a very nice giggle at the end of the day and any fan of the show should own it

Really funny, 18 Dec 2007
I bought this for someone else for Xmas but I've managed to read just about all of it myself. Its really very funny and would appeal to almost anyone. It's an ideal gift, but one you might think about keeping for yourself.

Murakami cool, in diary form!, 18 Sep 2008
This is a sweet little diary full of quotes, book covers and associated Murakami paraphernalia; liberally sprinkled with book histories, publishing dates and Japanese holidays.

It's very beautiful, and even comes in a dust jacket, and despite all there is to be enjoyed it still feels quite minimalist; the black and white and red styling complimenting the character of Murakami's novels perfectly.

From a bibliophile's point of view, it is certainly a valued item to keep alongside Murakami's wonderful novels. The only problem i can see is exactly why you would want to write in it at all!

Very good, 07 Sep 2008
Firstly the price on Amazon is really good (£9.99 in stores) and secondly its a beautiful diary as odd and as surreal as Murakami Diary ought to be. Its full off quotes, pictures and facts about the books.However, some of the days are that full after a quote its hard to fit any writing in, plus it comes in a dust cover which most people like but i find really annoying, because underneath its plain white and looks dull. But over all its a unique diary and a must have for Murakami Fans! P.S If there was a 4.5 option I would have given it that!!!

new format, 20 Aug 2008
This bigger issue with it's extra coverage on the dance world by Gavin Roebuck is excellent and makes it a valuable tool for all in arts and showbiz world.

very helpful for actors wanting to be famous!, 31 Dec 2002
This book is brilliant, i'm 15 years old and wanting to get into film acting, and this book is great. It lists thousands of different agencies for stage, television, film and radio, and all aspects of them such as acting, modelling, costume design, make up, everything, is really is a must for people wanting to get into the entertainment business even if you're not sure which part of entertainment yet, this will help you immediately when you have chosen, it even gives you routes to get to the places and contact addresses, numbers and websites. ITS ESSENTIAL!

A must for Actors, 06 Nov 2002
This is an absolutely essential book for anyone working in the industry. Published every October, this revised edition lists agents, casting directors, television and theatre production companies, and radio contacts. It is especially useful for actors, as it has details of all the drama schools, agents and even photographers and 'digs guide' for when working away in theatre. I cannot emphasise enough how crucial it is to own a copy of this book which will soon become your career bible.

i highly recommend this book to anyone wishing to enter showbusiness..., 30 Apr 2002
for years, i have searched far and wide for a list of reputable agencies and schools, and one day casually I searched amazon, not looking for anything perticular. imagine my delight when this came up! its easy to use, and contains no end of agencies, schools, direstors and (you guessed it!) contacts! i highly recommend this book to anyone wishing to enter showbuisness, and also to anyone wishing to join an agency that is a member of spotlight.

Fantastic reverence for all your contact needs, 29 Apr 2002
Contacts is the ultimate book for what ever contact you want, which include contacts from agencies to all your entertaining needs. If you want to find addresses and fast then buy the original and best, buy contacts.

The best gets better every year, 02 Oct 2008
I still buy and read the Guinness Record book every year, because it's become like an old friend that I like to catch up with, but I have to disagree with Birch East. I like the way it has changed and brings out a fresh look each year. The changes, like holograms, 3D whatever, make it fresh every year. My nephews also are big fans of the 3D gimmick.

I do agree with the recommendation for Getting Into Guinness: One Man's Longest, Fastest, Highest Journey Inside the World's Most Famous Record Book, the new book by Larry Olmsted about the history and culture of the Guinness World Records book. After reading his review I snapped up a copy and it is great--very entertaining and a fun read! I have read the record book for years but never stopped to wonder where it came from (Guinness Stout of course!), how it got so big, and how large a role it has played in pop culture, and just how crazy some of the record holders seem to be. Getting Into Guinness is the story behind the records and a fun, well researched, adult read.

Always the best, but this year I discovered something that makes it even better, 28 Sep 2008
I first read the Guinness Book of World Records when I was kid back in the 70s, and it's comforting to see it still going strong. I'll say that I definitely preferred the old school text-heavy versions from back in the day to the flourescent lime, 3D photography, picture-fest of today. It's a new world we live in now, so I guess it's hard to fault the Big G for keeping up with the times.

As much as I've long loved the Guinness book itself, I was always a little disappointed that there wasn't a good resource written ABOUT Guinness -- its history, evolution, and especially about how it became the phenomenon that inspires people to carry out such dedicated acts of nuttiness. A few weeks ago in New York, I saw a book profiled in the newspaper titled GETTING INTO GUINNESS by Larry Olmsted. Olmsted is a journalist as well as a two-time GBWR record-holder, and I gave it a try. Well, it's the perfect companion piece to the Guinness book; it puts everything into context and lets you feel like a real insider. 300 pages of fascinating real life stories about the quest for Guinness recordhood, and Amazon has it for under nine pounds. I'll be giving them together as a gift to my nephew. Buy them as a tandem (which is what I should have done) and you'd even get free shipping with Prime! Getting into Guinness: One Man's Longest, Fastest, Highest Journey Inside the World's Most Famous Record Book

No wonder this is the world's best selling book!, 23 Sep 2008
After having received Guinness World Records 2009, as a gift, I've realised just how good it is. I was in Tesco a few days ago, and flicked through it then. I thought it was good. But now I own it, it's enabled me to see the extent of just how good it is.

Saying that it's the best edition of Guinness World Records to date, and it is (no worries there), isn't really that much of an achievement. Saying, however, it's the best book I've ever read...the best book ever made...is.
And this is. It's crammed full of amazing achievements, epic engineering, fantastic feats, and much more amazing stuff to feast your eyes on.

Leaving `Ripley's: Believe It Or Not' for dead, GWR really have excelled themselves this time. It really is astonishing.
This year's edition also includes huge, awe-inspiring fold out 3D features, which are apparently obvious when you wear the 3D-glasses that are provided.
It's awesome!

- Revealed: the world's strongest man
- The record-breaking world of Harry Potter
- Inside the Hollywood Hall of Fame
- The top ten videogames of the year
- Face to face with dinosaurs in exciting 3D!
- Plus your favourite records country by country

All this can be found in the spectacular book that is Guinness World Records 2009.

I'd suggest going over to that bookshop, right this second, and buying a copy.
Guaranteed - you won't be disappointed.


Excellent guide - informative and comprehensive, 14 Oct 2008
"The Writers' and Artist's Yearbook" (W&AY), published by A&C Black, has a long-standing reputation as a 'must-have' for any writer looking to get into publication. While a number of similar books now exist - including "The Writer's Handbook" (TWH), published by Macmillan, and "Writer's Market" (WM), published by David & Charles Ltd - W&AY remains the original font of knowledge, and for me, the premier choice.

All of these books contain roughly the same extensive listings of publishers, agents, print media, producers etc, and in truth there is little to choose between them. Indeed the competition is gradually catching up, and it is notable that TWH has undergone a major facelift for this year. Of course a lot will come down to personal preference regarding the layout of the different books, and so if you can get the chance to compare them before you buy, all the better.

What makes the W&AY stand out is the wealth of advice it contains (nearly 200 pages' worth) from professional writers, publishers, agents and producers. In separate articles, famous authors such as Joanna Trollope, Terry Pratchett, Bernard Cornwell and J.K. Rowling address various aspects of the writing process and discuss a wide variety of genres. Many other highly informative pieces cover diverse issues such as self-publishing, marketing your book, writing for TV, radio and theatre, the electronic world of websites and e-publishing, and financial aspects such as tax. This makes the W&AY more than simply a listings book - it is, in effect, an introduction to the entire world of writing. Much overlooked is of course the fact that this is a yearbook for artists too. Correspondingly there are sections for the budding illustrator and photographer in the W&AY which are not to be found in the other guides.

There is much that is new for 2009, too. Although a couple of articles have been dropped, 7 new ones have been added, as well as a fresh foreword by Kate Mosse (author of 'Labyrinth' and 'Sepulchre', among other works). These new articles cover a range of topics including mind, body and spirit writing, e-books and books published from blogs. There are also new pieces from Neil Gaiman, celebrated poet Benjamin Zephaniah and Archers' scriptwriter Mary Cutler. Is it worth upgrading to the 2009 edition, then? For the articles alone - fascinating though they are - probably not. On the other hand, the advantage of having fully up-to-date listings counts for a great deal, especially if you are already looking for an agent or publisher. And at the price it is currently being offered by Amazon, it is surely a worthwhile investment.

All in all, this is an excellent and comprehensive guide. Definitely recommended for the aspiring writer or artist.

Excellent book regardless of previous knowledge on the subject, 22 Sep 2008
I already had a good knowledge of the financial systems, but wanted a book that would provide me a complete insight into all areas of the financial world. I have read many academic style books over the years and this is by far the best.
The authors style is clear and very easy to read. He explains things in a very simple way to digest and understand without dumbing down content.
Overall a fantastic easy to read guide to the intricacies of the financial city and the types of people and businesses that operate within it.

Loads of information, and very easy to read..., 27 Aug 2008
I now know a lot more about the workings of the City, including how banks really work. This book has also helped me to understand a lot of the jargon in the Financial Times. It's a very enjoyable read - the author uses simple analogies to explain some of the concepts, making it a lot quicker to learn them than from a textbook.

Whether it's "all" depends on who "you" are - but excellent for most outsiders and debutantes, 02 May 2008
Chris Stoakes trained as a solicitor at Freshfields ( one of the "magic circle" City law firms), was marketing partners in a medium-sized City firm, and is now Head of Legal Training at Lovells (another very big one). In this the 2008/09 second edition, which seems to have been updated following the event of the "credit crunch" in early 2008 (references to sub-prime mortgages, for example), he provides an overview, a context and an often humorous analogy for just about every financial transaction in "the City", including the insurance market. The book is based on a series of training sessions that he has delivered over the years.

I came at this as a reasonably well informed outsider (I have never worked in the City of London, and probably never will) and found this is an excellent book to improve on my broad understanding of the financial markets. Whether it would be right for you will depend on how sophisticated your current understanding is. Stoakes places his book as follows: he starts by saying "I've had to cut corners, leave things out and tell a few fibs in the interests of getting the message across quickly and simply". At the end, under "Where Next?" he recommends The Economist's books on The City, Wall Street and "The Financial Markets" - written by Richard Roberts and Marc Levinson respectively - as "the next step up". He also gives specific recommendations for particular areas, such as Finance & banking, Investment Banking, Commercial banking, Economics, Risk etc.

If you want to be able to differentiate senior debt from junior or subordinated debt, know the principle of mezzanine debt, understand the difference