Rating: 
Summary: Entertaining & Eduational The Prerfect Read!
Review: I spent an entire afternoon listening to a group of people talk about about their country's politics, take on religion, etc. When I got home I quickly grabbed my copy of An Incomplete Education and wouldn't you know it it backed up EVERYTHING that I had just heard! I was very impressed with the book. It's a fun reference book that fills in just the right amount of information I'm looking for. I highly recommend it!
Rating:
Summary: Entertaining and Educational. Outstanding reading.
Review: I'm buying this book to replace the 2 copies that were "borrowed" by "friends" who "forgot" to return them. I've learned my lesson -- I'm going to hide this copy. Simply put, I love this book. I don't understand the customer reviewers who didn't appreciate the fact that this isn't simply a dry compendium of facts. There are plenty of books out there (can you say encyclopedia?) that fit that bill. In fact, this book is specifically designed for people who don't like to read serious books full of dry information because, well, think about it; if you liked serious books full of dry information, you wouldn't be reading this book because you'd already know all the stuff that's in it. Does that make sense? No? O.K, try his: buy the book. You'll like it.
Rating: 
Summary: Not as good as I had hoped
Review: The idea behind Incomplete Education is brilliant. The execution is not. The authors try so hard to be cute and clever that they're annoying. After the first 30 pages i just couldn't stand it anymore.
Rating:
Summary: The only thing I learned in college
Review: The thing I most remember from ALL my college courses is this book. AN INCOMPLETE EDUCATION is truly a wonderful supplement to any person's knowledge.This book is basically an intellectual history overview with a lot of helpful charts and guides. It's written in a very humorous tone, and it hits the humor target more often than not. If you feel that you lack knowledge, this is the book for you. It's not in depth, but it does tell you what you SHOULD know in all areas, including history, philosophy, music, art, and even film. My personal favorite features are the Latin abbreviations and the "Words you pronounce wrong but if you pronounced them right, you'd be considered a pretentious snob" feature. For a good time (and to increase your IQ), read this book. It's tongue-in-cheek, but it's a wealth of information.
Rating: 
Summary: Great book but don't take it too seriously!
Review: This book was given to me as a gift upon completion of my MBA to "round out" my education. I read it cover to cover and enjoyed it very much (I am ordering a new copy because a friend "borrowed" it). I had great fun with the witty commentary. In fact, at times, I thought that absurd analogies actually helped explain esoteric and abstract concepts in a more simple and understandable manner (maybe my philosophy prof should consider these methods). I understand the criticism of many people who claim that the book is a shallow and "incomplete" coverage of the topics - it absolutely is. Reading the section on opera by no means makes one an expert or replaces the experience, nor does it intend to. Instead, I think it either gives a novice a fun introduction or presents the expert with a funny perspective on what they already know. So, having been to both Wagner and Mozart operas, I enjoyed reading how they could contrast the two in layman's terms (a great chapter, I might add). Simply put: If you are capable of not taking it too seriously, you'll love this book. If not, don't take yourself too seriously, and then buy it!
Rating: 
Summary: Terrible book !
Review: The authors are way too condescending. The Title is totally misleading. They basically just try to be witty and tell you what they think is good and bad without offering any substance. I've never given a book 1 star before, but if I could give it less, I would. You won't learn anything, except the authors opinions on things. They critcize almost every work of art, invention or idea ever created.
Rating:
Summary: Incomplete And Holding...
Review: The authors make a valiant attempt to encapsulate vast expanses of social, political, economic and religious history; complete with the appropriate personalities and technological advances. They barely survive the effort. While entertaining in most cases, they approach the material with a sarcasm (and at times a contempt)that detracts from their original intent.Case in point: "The Egyptians used the number zero (0), but did not know what they had". This statement effectively dismisses the intellectual achievment of the Egyptians in the area of mathematics and simultaneously implies a sort of ineptness. they then go on to praise Greek mathematical accomplishments. The authors ignore the fact that Pythagoras , the " Father" of Greek mathematics, studied in Egypt for 22 years. Pythagoras did not go to Egypt to teach anyone anything;he went to be taught by the best and brightest minds in the ancient world. More importantly, a cursory examination of the Rhind Mathematical Papyrus which is conservatively estimated to be 2-3 thousand years old, would have effectively put to rest the issue of mathematical primacy and origin. I assume here that the gratuitous put-down of Egyptian mathematical genius had the implied objective of establishing Greek contributions as first and greatest with respect to ranking and chronology on the world stage. Interesting...
I had other concerns about the book, but soon concluded that this was merely the authors take on the worlds institutions and personalities filtered through their Western education. The book is a selective distillation of what the authors consider the most important elements of their education which is, by no small leap of faith, assumed to be shared by the reader. Its well written, but incomplete and holding...
Rating:
Summary: Correcting the reader from Charlottesville
Review: The book is pretty great, and funny. Especially the observation about the French - "not team players" - puts so much in a nice neat nutshell. Anyway, one reader commented on an error - that the book claims that Alexander the Great was a Muslim. Actually, the book never said that, but it DOES say that Muslims consider Alexander the Great a prophet, which is accurate. And they consider him a Muslim as a result as they do Jesus and Moses.
Rating:
Summary: Great Book , but some factual errors keep it from 5 stars
Review: This is a useful book, although some sections are stronger than others. The entry on Islam in the 'religion' chapter mentions than Alexander the Great was a muslim. I'm wondering how this can be true almost 1000 years before Muhammad. Yes, the book lacks completeness, but, as has been pointed out many times, this was not the authors aim. This book is a well-written survey of topics that makes a fine reference
Rating: 
Summary: Smug tone outweighs usefulness
Review: The flippant style mentioned by the previous reviewer is what hurts this book. It could have been a great reference, but the authors try to get cute in almost every single entry. Don't bother.
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