Volume 41, Number 11 · June 9, 1994
The Book of Books
By John Gross
The Columbia Encyclopaedia: Fifth Edition
edited by Barbara A. Chernow, edited by George A. Vallasi
Columbia University Press/distributed by Houghton Mifflin,, 3,048 pp., $125.00
We live in a contentious world, but one thing we can all agree on is the general excellence of the Columbia Encyclopaedia. Since the first edition appeared in 1935, the Encyclopaedia has established itself as the leading work of its kind, certainly the leading work in the English language, and as someone who uses it regularly I am happy to join the chorus and testify to its virtues. It is accessible, sensibly organized, and handsomely produced; its articles are succinct and clearly written; within the compass of a single manageable volume it succeeds in purveying an extraordinary amount of information about an extraordinary range of topics.
Review, 4506 words
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