The Book of General Ignorance contains a list of 230 questions, most of which previously appeared in episodes of QI. Each question explains the correct answer, and usually attempts to show why people tend to make the wrong assumptions, or believe certain myths. Each book contains two forewords, one by Fry, the other by Davies. Davies' initial "foreword" was credited as "Four words," which read simply: "Will this do, Stephen?" [17] Critical reception [ edit ] An earlier version of the cover, playing on the idea of ignorance with a typo As well as correcting these "all-too-common" mistakes, the book(s) attempt to explain how the errors have been perpetuated, and why people believe incorrect 'facts' to be true. [4] Publication history [ edit ] Marcus Berkmann drew attention to the over-abundance of similarly themed books (to which the QI title—and series—clearly owe a certain debt), commenting that: Berkman's complaints, however, are countered by his admission that "this book is already the amusing trivia success of the season," containing many "eye-watering" and "eyebrow-raising" facts, even if he thinks it a little smug. [24]

Mitchinson, John; Lloyd, John (5 October 2006). QI: The Book of General Ignorance. Faber and Faber. pp.xv. ISBN 0-571-23368-6. This is the 23rd QI title to be published by Faber. Worldwide, QI titles have sold almost 4.5 million copies.Davies, Alan; Lloyd, John; Mitchinson, John (5 October 2006). QI: The Book of General Ignorance. Faber and Faber. pp.xv. ISBN 0-571-23368-6. Anna’s and James’s book is as joyful and fact-filled as you’d expect from the QI Elves, but the storytelling is utterly involving and entertaining too. You’ll be rooting for a Taiwanese tug-of-war team, be outraged by croquet skullduggery, admire the audacity of sporting history’s greatest cheats and discover the pure delight that is Puppy Bowl. It will whet even the sports refusenik’s curiosity because all human life is here: the rise of civilisation, psychology, war, money, substance abuse, success, loss, redemption and even Bhutanese archery. It’ll be an absolutely winning Christmas read.’ On 1 November 2007 another QI spin-off title was produced: The QI annual, intended as a continuing work focusing on the Series' alphabetic themes. [26] The annual featured contributions from most of "QI"s guest panellists and the comedian Rowan Atkinson. In 2010 the second book of General Ignorance was released.

While most episodes are structured around a theme topic beginning with the Series' initial letter (each Series is alphabetically structured, with Series 5 being "E", etc.), "General Ignorance" contains questions on a range of diverse subjects, linked only by common misunderstanding. Occasionally the round differs, in particular during the Christmas specials. During the course of the "B" Series special, Fry and Davies swapped places for "General Ignorance", with Fry attempting to answer questions ostensibly written by Davies to stump him. [15] During "D"s Christmas Special, all the "GI" questions revolved around saints. [16] Structure [ edit ]Every Wednesday the Elves appear on The Zoe Ball Breakfast Show where they answer the ponderings and wonderings of BBC Radio 2's most inquisitive listeners. Kay, Jennifer (30 July 2007). "Everything You Think You Know Is Wrong". San Francisco Chronicle. Archived from the original on 11 January 2008 . Retrieved 1 August 2007. Doug Brown reviewed the book for Powell's Books, noting that it has a "UK-heavy emphasis", and that "Overall The Book of General Ignorance is a lot of fun, and you're guaranteed to learn something you didn't know (but thought you did)." [20] This book is just fun to read, alone or with your spouse or friends. And it broadens your horizon. Even if you don't plan on attending a trivia-gameshow anytime soon, your newly acquired knowledge will be beneficial when the need for smalltalk arises. [21] Response to the book has been mostly positive, both critically and commercially. Critic Jennifer Kay said, " The Book of General Ignorance won't make you feel dumb. It's really a call to be more curious." [18] Liesl Schillinger in The New York Times praised the book for gathering "so much repeatable wisdom […] in one place," asking the rhetorical question of interested parties—"In the Information Age, can you afford to remain ignorant of these precious factoids?" [19]

The QI Elves are the brains behind the enduringly popular BBC TV panel show QI. Every Wednesday the Elves appear on The Zoe Ball Breakfast Show where they answer the ponderings and wonderings of BBC Radio 2's most inquisitive listeners. Schillinger, Liesl (2 September 2007). "The Book of General Ignorance: Everything You Think You Know Is Wrong". The New York Times . Retrieved 23 April 2008. A book of the show has become all but necessary, if only to allow us to ingest this information at normal brain speed, and because such fine and creative research genuinely deserves to be captured in print. So it's slightly disappointing that the book arrives in the question-and-answer format made so familiar by last year's big hit Does Anything Eat Wasps? There are actually about 20 such books out this year, all asking these quirky questions (Do Sheep Shrink in the Rain? Do Fish Drink Water?), all piled up in Waterstones, making book-buyers feel a bit depressed. [24]This book is for people who know they don't know a lot." reviewed by Aileen Marshall. Accessed 10 February 2008

a b Garrett, Kirsten (12 March 2007). "The Book of General Ignorance (review)". ABC Radio National . Retrieved 10 February 2008. Grimes, William (30 November 2007). "Reading Fun Before Frosty Melts Away, and After". The New York Times . Retrieved 4 February 2008. At the end of the day, it’s a book of two halves, and we’re over the moon to have had the chance to write both of them. We always gave 110%, and we couldn’t have done it without the team at Faber, who really brought their A-game. But clichés aside, we’ve been excited for a long time to give the QI treatment to the world of sport. Sure enough, our research uncovered some incredible characters and unbelievable stories. We hope sports fans and non-sports fans alike will love learning about them as much as we did, because you don’t need any prior sports knowledge to enjoy what is really a book about human behaviour in all its weirdness. As another old sporting cliché goes, “you just couldn’t write it” . . . except we did.’