Book Review: The World According to Cunk - An Illustrated History of All World Events Ever, Space Permitting by Philomena Cunk

There are some characters whose tone of voice is inimitable. You cannot fail to read this without Diane Morgan's languid cadence echoing in your big empty head.

The book has been written with a very specific pace - one chuckle per paragraph, a big laugh every page, and a set number of uncontrollable giggles per chapter. Somewhat formulaic, but highly effective.

I kept highlighting bits of it and showing them to my wife. After the 8th or 9th time she grabbed her own copy and started showing me the bits she found funny.

It's just endlessly quotable. "The emperor eventually died and was buried with a load of clay figures – like Nick Park will be." and "a sort of naughty typewriter called the Enigma machine" still keep me guffawing.

The long-running callbacks are perfect, as are the inclusion of a few fan favourite jokes.

Even the fucking index of this book is hilarious.