I only had 15 minutes when I nipped into B&N during Jazz’s piano lesson and I wanted to pick up a copy of V for Vendetta for Dylan. Since he had dressed as him for Halloween, I thought it only fair that he read the book too.

I was distracted though by a display of mini hardback books by the door – ooh those clever marketing people! I am most cured of impulse book buying these days. I rarely buy books any more and the times when I would just walk past a bookshop and end up with three books on photography are long gone. But there was something about these books…they were calling my name like a tiny voice from the past.

The little books were on various subjects – physics, geometry, chemistry, about a dozen others – and I didn’t have much time so I just grabbed the philosophy one and the geometry one and rushed off to find V. On the way to the checkout I realised that I couldn’t go home with books for me and Dylan but nothing for Jazz so I picked up a quite beautiful Inuyasha book making this my biggest book purchase since 1999.

Oh my word, this book is fantastic. If you only ever read one book on philosophy, read this one. Every important point is illustrated with a joke and the jokes are hilarious. As I finish each chapter (all very short), I go do a stand up routine for my family to great applause. I am trying to pace my reading to make it last but it’s mostly unputdownable.

Here’s a sample joke, (adapted for my own nefarious purposes):

Atheist: Look! All the sheep on that hillside have been sheared!

Agnostic: Yes. On this side.

Read the introduction online. Then buy it. You’ll thank me for it even if you think posts on philosophy are too cerebral for a blog.