Weird but True! 300 Outrageous Facts by National Geographic

What is bellybutton lint made out of? How many people holding hands would it take to encircle the equator? How much can a cloud weigh? In varied fonts and with a combination of digitally created illustrations and photographs, Weird but True delivers the answers to 300 questions you probably never actually asked but will find fascinating anyway. A few may leave you scratching your head like I was when I read “Some sand dunes bark” on page 171 or nodding your head in acknowledegement again, as I was, when I read “If you eat too many carrots your skin can turn orange” (pg 180)-- a harmless experiment you can try with a 6 month old baby. But most will leave the reader with a furrowed brow wondering away: “Human ears evolved from ancient fish gills” (pg 188). A handy index makes your favorite facts findable when you want to prove you’re not making something up, like “99% of people can’t lick their elbows” (pg 199) or “The year 2020 is the next time you’ll see a full moon on Halloween.” (pg 193).

National Geographic. Weird by True! 300 Outrageous Facts. New York: National Geographic Society, 2010.