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Comments (21)

Thing Explainer

Complicated Stuff in Simple Words
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1 to 21 of 21 items
Dec 07, 2023
No kindle
Sep 04, 2023Spillie rated this title 3.5 out of 5 stars
I was surprised to discover that complicated topics can be described using simple words. Occasionally I found the simple words hard to follow while easy to understand. This is a great book for kids that want to know “how” and for adults…
Jul 11, 2023Hammy_over_9000 rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
It is like explaining modern-day technology to a Victorian era child. everything is dumbed down, but if you look deeper than the surface, it's very detailed. it's not a read, per se, but it's more of a comic book. everything is VERY well…
Jan 25, 2023ushi rated this title 3 out of 5 stars
Amusing premise but wore a bit thin when all the names are "simplified" and it just makes you replace them mentally with the actual given names. The drawings are really good.
Apr 01, 2021aishubaobao rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
I understand some people thinking the book is not explaining but making things more complicated. But based on what I read, the book is made as a comedy, literally breaking down information into simple words.
Mar 24, 2021LynJoan rated this title 0.5 out of 5 stars
Ridiculously basic- insulting to the reader.
Oct 21, 2020Sophia Wu rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
So literal that sometimes, you do not know what the heck the thing is. Humorous, but not for children
Sep 14, 2020flutehero4292 rated this title 3.5 out of 5 stars
I feel as though many readers didn't get the point of the book. Much like the comic which inspired it, this book is meant to be humorous, by taking "simple explanations" to their absurd extreme. I get a real kick out of the Up-Goer Five…
Apr 22, 2020writermala rated this title 1 out of 5 stars
To say the least, I was really disappointed. The book attempts to explain complicated stuff in simple terms but I believe in doing so the author ended up making the subject more difficult. I wouldn't recommend it.
Oct 23, 2018
Hilarious!!!! Great illustrations and very simple. Easy to understand in a short, simple way.
Aug 26, 2018Nutty rated this title 1 out of 5 stars
Agree with the commenter below: "The illustrations were excellent, one reason I looked at the book. However, the terminology used was obtuse, inane and ridiculous to say the least." I flipped through the illustrations for a little…
May 17, 2017csrestall rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
This book was fantastic! The illustrations were really fun and in the stick man style of this author. He explained everyday things in simple language like a microwave, or washing machine. He also explained more complicated things like the…
Apr 04, 2017dk7691 rated this title 0.5 out of 5 stars
The illustrations were excellent, one reason I looked at the book. However, the terminology used was obtuse, inane and ridiculous to say the least. Rather than say this Saturn rocket and it's capsule plus the lunar module... It was like…
Jun 14, 2016JCLHopeH rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
I love Randall Munroe's XKCD comic, even when it often goes over my head. In Thing Explainer, even the most complex topics get a little easier to understand. Munroe creatively breaks down a variety of intricate systems using his original…
Mar 20, 2016JLMason rated this title 3.5 out of 5 stars
Full points for taking complex systems and explaining them simply, but constraining the explanation to 1000 common words only is an annoying affectation. "Sky Boat" instead of "Airplane"? "Hanging Road" instead of "Bridge"? Some will…
Feb 22, 2016
While I highly recommend "What if? Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions" (which was so good that I gifted it to my brother), I don't think this one quite works. The pictures are fantastic, as his always are, but the…
Feb 22, 2016dkrmwiz rated this title 2 out of 5 stars
he could have used a few more words to make sense of this book! nice pics, but the text is TOO simple, way too simple!
Feb 22, 2016comicgeek rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
Hilarious but also really informative!
Jan 20, 2016sallysings rated this title 2.5 out of 5 stars
The premise of the book is that it explains stuff to you. The truth of the matter is that unless there's a companion guide to this - an online guide even, that has the diagrams with proper names of "stuff" to refer to as one comes upon…
Dec 10, 2015multcolib_karene rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
I wish Randall Munroe would explain everything in life to me.
Aug 19, 2015
The author is Randall Munroe, not Houghton Mifflin (the publishing company)