cover image More Marilyn: Some Like It Bright!

More Marilyn: Some Like It Bright!

Marilyn vos Savant. St. Martin's Press, $19.95 (269pp) ISBN 978-0-312-11384-1

Vos Savant (Ask Marilyn) purportedly the world's smartest woman, with an IQ of 228, showcases her wit and wisdom in this collection of letters culled from Parade's ``Ask Marilyn'' column. Hardly the pedantic intellectual one might expect, vos Savant is both earthy and glamorous, and more reminiscent of a Marilyn named Monroe than Einstein or Hawking. And, yes, vos Savant does know a lot, from the minor to the profound. Both are present here in abundance. Math and science buffs will love her brain teasers and logic puzzles, while others will skip these to read her salty wisdom on politics and love. There's even a chapter, ``Questions That Need No Answer!,'' containing letters raising ridiculous or impossible questions (e.g., ``What happens to gum after it is disposed of?''). This book, as stimulating as it is fun, is guaranteed to be a crowd pleaser. (Oct.)