(I'm going to assume that you already know and love the podcast, because, well, that's a pretty safe assumption. If you don't, go listen to a few episodes right now. Thank me later).

So: why bother with the book? It's (mostly) just the same material, isn't it? Not quite.

I enjoyed the book because I loved revisiting some of those episodes, none of which I remembered well enough to recite start-to-finish. Because I learned from them, even the ones I did remember well. Because there is new and lovely material. Because I can skip back and reread; or pause to reflect on a sentiment; or skim. Because, after all, I love books; because I only listen to podcasts while driving, and I seldom drive. Because there are footnotes and end notes. Mostly, though, because I really love this series and love Green's gentle compassionate irony, his sense of wonder and delight despite the absurdities of the human experience.