Preview
  • The Smartest Book in the World

  • A Lexicon of Literacy, a Rancorous Reportage, a Concise Curriculum of Cool
  • By: Greg Proops
  • Narrated by: Greg Proops
  • Length: 7 hrs and 32 mins
  • 4.0 out of 5 stars (398 ratings)

Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

The Smartest Book in the World

By: Greg Proops
Narrated by: Greg Proops
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $15.47

Buy for $15.47

Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.

Publisher's summary

Greg Proops is an internationally renowned comedian, best known for starring on the hit improv comedy show Whose Line Is It Anyway? and for his popular, award-winning podcast, The Smartest Man in the World, which Rolling Stone magazine called "some of the boldest comedy on the podcasting frontier right now". But Proops is also a fountain of historical knowledge, a wealth of pop-culture trivia, and a generally charming know-it-all.

The Smartest Book in the World is based on Proops' sensational, iTunes Top 10 podcast. The audiobook is a rollicking reference guide to the most essential areas of knowledge in Proops' universe, from the noteworthy names of the ancient world and baseball to the movies you must see and the albums you must hear. Complete with history's juiciest tales and curious backstories, Proops expounds on the merits of poetry and proper punctuation, delivering this wealth of information with his signature style and Proopsian panache. An offbeat and exuberant guide to everything, The Smartest Book in the World gives you everything you need to know to always be the smartest person in the room.

©2015 Gregory Proops (P)2015 Tantor
  • Unabridged Audiobook
  • Categories: History
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

Critic reviews

"It's a terrifically random appreciation of cultural touchstones that's sure to inspire readers to look further." ( Publishers Weekly)

What listeners say about The Smartest Book in the World

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    203
  • 4 Stars
    90
  • 3 Stars
    49
  • 2 Stars
    21
  • 1 Stars
    35
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    239
  • 4 Stars
    50
  • 3 Stars
    32
  • 2 Stars
    19
  • 1 Stars
    25
Story
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    170
  • 4 Stars
    78
  • 3 Stars
    57
  • 2 Stars
    26
  • 1 Stars
    31

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

He's very funny...

And so is this book. Not the most literary or insightful, but funny. Sometimes very funny.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Interesting Book

Enjoyed the book. Was a little random, which kept it interesting. A lot of info regarding history of old movies and stars and Baseball. I'm not a baseball fan but really enjoyed a lot of the history of players and leagues. Good for a fun book. Would consider buying the actual book just to have a reference to look up all the movies, actors, actresses, and baseball players.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Smartest review in the world

Listen up kittens! Make daddy a vodka flavored vodka drink and tuck into a heaping helping of auditory awesomeness.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

It's like a never ending podcast

Until it ends. But it's very comforting and starting to relisten to it as I type this. Yep he's that great.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Unique

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

Yes, time well spent learning about lots of things.

What does Greg Proops bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

His comedic abilities.

Did The Smartest Book in the World inspire you to do anything?

Watch some of the movies he talked about and read some of the books he critiqued.

Any additional comments?

I loved the way he made up his baseball teams. Very clever...very different.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Best thing I have ever listened to!

Fascinating to get an insight into what makes this man tick (which seems to be baseball, movies, music and vodka, ha). Plus I learnt a lot about baseball greats, which was more interesting than I thought it would be.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Smartest book about Baseball !

I thought this would be a funny literate book of words and current mores. It's really all about baseball's great and all the mind numbing stats. I didn't enjoy this book and felt misled by the summary. Only purchase if you want to hear a pretensionist ass spout stats.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Awesome book well worth the listen

Proops does it again. Awesome book full of wonder. Also love the baseball bits inside didn't know the history of our national pastime

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

love love love

so wonderfully read and written! beyond fantastic. something tells me I will be listening to this book about one time a year so I might retain even a portion of the amount of awesome this book contains!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

knowledge is his game.

A legendary comic and baseball fanatic. loved it from the start till the end. Thanks Greg Proops

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!