Who had birds called Death, Wigs and Spinach? How do you spell the noise of a door slamming? Whose working title was The Chronic Argonauts? Henry Eliot - author, editor and insatiable bookworm - has ransacked the libraries and archives of world literature, compiling hundreds of bookish lists. This eclectic gallimaufry showcases his favourites: the tragic ends of the Ancient Greek tragedians, the name of George Orwell's pet cockerel, the contents of Joan Didion's travelling bag; we consider the history of literary fart jokes, orbit the Shakespearean moons of Uranus and meet several pigs with wings. From the sublime to the ridiculous - and everything in between ­- Eliot's lists, recommendations and nuggets of trivia will delight, inspire and surprise anyone who loves reading.