"With sumptuous, visually stimulating spreads, this book delivers on its promiseâ to unearth strange stories, bizarre facts, or unexpected details about the books on our shelves. Good for curious readers, whether they want to delve into authors and books they love, feel competent faking knowledge about books everyone else seems to have read, or just dip into and out of literary worlds" â Library Journal Readers rejoice! From Mental Floss, an online destination for more than a billion curious minds since its founding in 2001, comes the ultimate book for lovers of literature. From Americanah to War and Peace, from Chinua Achebe and Jane Austen to Jesmyn Ward and George R.R. Martin, learn surprising facts about the worldâs most famous novels and novelists. The Curious Reader will delight bookworms everywhere. This literary compendium from Mental Floss reveals fascinating facts about the worldâs most famous authors and their literary works. Readers will learn about George Orwellâs near-death experience during the writing of 1984; meet the real man who may have inspired Pride and Prejudiceâs Mr. Darcy; discover which famous author kept her husbandâs heart after he passed away; and learn about the influence of psychedelics on Dune. The Curious Reader also contains the most-loved book-related articles from 20 years of Mental Floss, including âCat-Loving Writers,â âFamous Authorsâ Unfinished Manuscripts,â âLiterary Characters Based on Real People,â and âBooks You Didnât Know Were Self-Published.â This literary miscellany is certain to inspire book lovers, aspiring writers, students, and teachers alike to discover a diverse selection of curated literary worksâleading to an expansion of their library!