Philosophy and humor \ufffddo spring from a common enterprise: taking a common wisdom and flipping it on its head,\ufffd Klein argues. The brief, highly accessible book romps through metaphysics, logic, epistemology, and ethics, and includes chapters on philosophy of religion and language, all studded with references to films, songs, current events, and anecdotes. It informs us that even though Sherlock Holmes is celebrated for his \ufffddeductions,\ufffd he generally used not deductive but inductive logic\ufffdcarefully observing the situation, then generalizing from his prior experience using analogy and probability. Take the time, for example, when:

Holmes and Watson are on a camping trip. In the middle of the night Holmes wakes up and gives Dr. Watson a nudge. \ufffdWatson,\ufffd he says, \ufffdlook up at the sky and tell me what you see.\ufffd

\ufffdI see millions of stars, Holmes,\ufffd says Watson.

\ufffdAnd what do you conclude from that, Watson?\ufffd

Watson thinks for a moment. \ufffdWell,\ufffd he says, \ufffdastronomically, it tells me that there are millions of galaxies and potentially billions of planets. Astrologically, I observe that Saturn is in Leo. Horologically, I deduce that the time is approximately a quarter past three. Meteorologically, I expect that we will have a beautiful day tomorrow. Theologically, I see that God is all-powerful, and that we are small and insignificant. Uh, what does it tell you, Holmes?\ufffd

\ufffdWatson, you idiot! Someone has stolen our tent!\ufffd