Thirty Days Has September by Christopher Stevens

Some of these were interesting refreshers of the rules though, or why a rule is the way it is, because for most of these I just apply them without knowing why. Then again, I don’t think I was the target audience of the book (seeing as I work as an editor and a writer). In fact, I had trouble remembering the mnemonics themselves. However, I’m convinced mnemonics aren’t for me because even as a child, I tried using them and most of them never helped me remember the fact they’re based on. I enjoyed this general knowledge book and I think I would have benefited more from it had I read it as a child. Not a work for someone trying to actually improve their memory. I think it would work best alongside some other kind of memory teaching if you're hoping to absorb the information. Still, good for kids with some fun rhymes. Nonetheless, some of this stuff could definitely be improved upon. I remember 'Never Eat Shredded Wheat' for North East South West and 'Richard of York Gave Battle In Vain' for the colours of the rainbow (with the added advantage of including trivia about the last of the reigning Plantagenets) and these mnemonics have no relationship with their subjects. That's not to say it can't be remembered but why not try to overhaul it? `Noble posh leaders, yet they're still half-wits' would do the job (if inaccurate and defamatory) or 'No peasant loves your throne, so hear wisdom'. 'No Point Letting Your Trousers Slip Half Way' is intended to help us remember the English Royal Houses (Norman, Plantagenet, Lancaster, York, Tudor, Stuart, Hanover and Windsor) but has no bearing on the topic. Chris Stevens has done a fine job in compiling all of this information but I'd have appreciated some effort in updating it too.

Too many of the mnemonics in this book are random phrases, which aren't necessarily the easiest things to remember in themselves. It's linked to the topic and funny (but not in this book) and therefore more memorable. 'Dashing in a rush, running hard or else accident' is a great way to remember how to spell diarrhoea. Mnemonics can be fascinating and handy but they work best when related to the topic. I ought to have read this when I was younger and I'd certainly recommend it to young readers interested in remembering trivia, dates and scientific factoids.Īt my age there's just too much stuff in here for me that wasn't new but what struck me was how dated some of the style was.

Thirty Days Has September by Christopher Stevens