Historical
Some books are meant to be read cover to cover. This is not one of them, and that’s part of the appeal.
I keep coming back to Tim Brooks’ directory because it behaves more like a very opinionated map than a normal book. Useful when you want a fact, slightly maddening when you want it to be neat, and weirdly addictive once you start arguing with it. Television history in one volume sounds dry on paper. In practice, it’s exactly the sort of reference you end up flicking through for “just one thing” and then losing half an hour to.
I keep coming back to Tim Brooks’ directory because it behaves more like a very opinionated map than a normal book. Useful when you want a fact, slightly maddening when you want it to be neat, and weirdly addictive once you start arguing with it. Television history in one volume sounds dry on paper. In practice, it’s exactly the sort of reference you end up flicking through for “just one thing” and then losing half an hour to.
Reference books have a particular charm when they refuse to behave. I like the idea of one that rewards dipping in and out rather than dutifully going from page one to the end. It sounds a bit like the book equivalent of a filing cabinet with opinions, which is not nothing.
Also, anything that can turn “I’ll just check one thing” into an hour is probably doing its job.
Also, anything that can turn “I’ll just check one thing” into an hour is probably doing its job.
This is exactly the sort of book that would make me abandon any intention of being “just a quick lookup” person. Reference books with a bit of attitude are hard to resist.
I also like that it sounds useful in the most unglamorous way possible, which is often the best kind. Not everything on a shelf needs a narrative arc. Some things just need to be the place you go when you want the answer, and preferably an argument with the answer too.
I also like that it sounds useful in the most unglamorous way possible, which is often the best kind. Not everything on a shelf needs a narrative arc. Some things just need to be the place you go when you want the answer, and preferably an argument with the answer too.