The Areas of My Expertise by John Hodgman
Book 9 in Cannonball Read 2
John Hodgman, contributor to NPR, The Daily Show, the PC in those Mac commercials, and generally adorable person, has written two books of random, often fictional, trivia. The Areas of My Expertise : an Almanac of Complete World Knowledge Compiled with Instructive Annotation and Arranged in Useful Order was the first to appear, and it covers such subject matters as hoboes, the 51 states in America (yes, there’s a 51st state), and “movies in which I, John Hodgman, have appeared”.
The Areas of My Expertise is a good bus book; you can pick it up when you have a few minutes to spare, and not worry that you will lose the plot. There is no plot, it’s just random stuff Hodgman makes up and talks about in a funny, ironic, adorable way.
I enjoyed reading it, although it would be a better book to skip around and read what interests you (i.e. Hodgman’s essay on the mythical lost city of Chicago) rather than read it straight through, including reading every name on Hodgman’s list of 500 hobo names. It is enjoyable light reading.