Ian Daniel Stewart

I’m at a point in my life where I no longer want to read anything with a title that begins with “An Introduction To…”. You know like, “An Introduction To Alligator Wrestling” or “An Introduction To Bankruptcy” or—you get the picture.

Much better of course, is a comprehensive overview. Any comprehensive, or exhaustive, overview is going to to introduce the subject anyway and in as few words as possible. That gets the introduction out of the way as soon as possible so the good stuff can be gotten to. Even better, you’ll be reading an introduction from an expert.

Avoid the advice of people who want you to read “An Introduction To…”. They think you’re dumb.

That said, an introduction written by a phenomenally knowledgeable expert doesn’t count. A perfect example: Tokens of Trust: An Introduction To Christian Belief by Rowan Williams. You know the Archbishop of Canterbury is going to have something interesting to say in the matter of an introduction. I’d read “An Introduction To…” written by his eyebrows.