Pears' Cyclopaedia 2017-2018

As ever this edition of Pears Cyclopaedia covers a broad range of facts, figures and information in an easy to access format. This indeed, kids, was the internet before your smartphones came along and robbed you of the skills to look things up, memorise them and grow your brain!I've been reading and collecting these wonderful books for a long time and it is with sadness that this will be the final edition. Thank you to Pears and also to Chris Cook, editor of this work for 40 years.Farewell Pears.

I have always had access to an edition of Pears cyclopaedia from a battered 1950s edition from which I learned to play chess back in the sixties to a selection of used later editions that I picked up from car boot sales. However it is unlikely one of these final editions would ever appear on a car boot sale, so I had to buy a copy now. I always have a Pears handy when I take on the giant crossword on Saturday afternoon as I try and solve any problem clues the old fashioned way rather than resorting to the internet.

I bought this edition of Pears' Cyclopaedia for several reasons; one being I think it was the last? edition to have been published, another as it contains so much information, whilst the third was that knowing other members of the family, it's an excellent tome to turn to when certain words, places, topics, etc are needed for Crossword Puzzles, etc!This particular edition was part of a present to a 90yr old lady who generally has good eyesight, and is marvellous in most respects for her age, but unfortunately and regrettably, for her (but not so much for the next recipient) the print was far too small for her to read.Whilst not something compulsory for the Seller to include within the description of the otherwise excellent Cyclopaedia on their listing, perhaps for anyone else contemplating purchasing a copy of the book for an elderly relative, particular consideration should be paid to the recipient's ability to read very small print! - something I must admit I'd not envisaged, and the only reason I gave only 4 stars to the book itself, as the Seller deserves 5 stars for having shipped the item so quickly!

Very sad to hear this will be the last edition of this fabled tome. The 1978 edition was one of the first things I very bought with my pocket money and I have been a keen follower since. Seeing as Dr Chris Cook was the editor back then I can imagine he is now entitled to a well-deserved retirement!For those who don’t know this book is basically Google without a mains plug on it! just about anything you want to know is stored in the pages but the print is very small indeed. It just reminds me how old I am getting as I used to be able to read the ‘78 edition without a magnifying glass.So, if you are facts mad and want to spend a bit of reading time away from the computer screen then this is the book for you. Snap up a copy now before they are all gone!

I love this book. So sad it is the last one but that is understandable as the Web has information whenever and wherever you need it. As a child 50 to 60 years ago, this was the one and only book that I had easy access to for general knowledge, maps etc. I would spend hours pouring over it. I have enjoyed dipping into this new and last edition and get just as much enjoyment.

The final edition of Pears' Cyclopedia is a must have for any household that values knowledge and information. Alas, my copy arrived in a poor condition: dirty finger marks on the cover and along the page edge. Supplied direct from Amazon, so I guess they need to issue pickers with hand wipes!

Awesome general reference. What a shame the editor has retired and it’s no longer in print. Recommend you get one of the last final editions available.Understandably, given the enormous volume of great content, the font size is quite small…so maybe recommend a decent pair of magnifying reading glasses for periods of prolonged reference.

Like others, I was sorry to hear last year that Pears was finishing as an active publication. I have purchased many editions over the years, including this final one, which as the definitive end of the series will at least benefit from a greater sense of permanence on the bookshelf. A new Pears' Cyclopaedia group on Facebook may help keep the institutional memory of Pears alive. Pears serves a different purpose to online reference sources (browsability, readability, a cornucopia to dip into, charmingly old fashioned, yet still up-to-date, a one volume distillation of essential "general knowledge") that, while still valid for its loyal hard core following, had clearly become difficult to justify as a commercial endeavor. It did well to last this long, a jolly good innings!