Given a year's sabbatical at full pay, one could happily seek Nirvana in this edition listed on page 212 or Utopia, Thomas More's, listed on page 80, by merely skimming the titles recommended in the 19th and completely revised edition of this work which, since 1932, has been serving as a do‐it‐yourself course in worthy reading. The short introductions to the topically assorted bibliographies serve as useful thumbnail descriptions that let the reader know whether to dig in here or to keep moving on. The book covers thousands of editions and is in fact a most handy reference to what is available for how much, in hard cover or paperback. The main headings are regional and historical cultures, literary groupings and the humanities, social sciences and sciences. If one merely could name‐drop most of the titles listed he could be a social success: if one really read them all, he might be unbearable.