Parodies Books

This the perfect gift for anyone who is having a forty-something birthday. Believe me, because I am the author and know this to be true. Also, the cartoons are by Lennie Peterson the Big Picture guy who just got signed to a huge syndication deal and will soon be rich. The text is dead solid perfect for anyone who now has more hair growing in his ears than on his head. Believe me, I know about these things.

If you've ever wanted to be able to identify anything from a rabbit to a fox to a bear or a koala by its dung, well, this is the book for you. A two-page spread on each animal includes loving descriptions of each animal's fecal habits, as well as photos or drawings of turds both large and small. The book is just small enough to fit into a large pocket or a small bag, making it easy to take along as subway reading (in case you relish those weird looks from strangers) or to help you identify those piles of crap you find while hiking.

You'll learn a huge amount about how various animals' feces are used to enable scientists to better track and analyze their movements, habits, and health. The book includes a wide array of factoids regarding how dung is used: as fertilizer, tourist souvenirs, a water purifier(!), a necessary part of complex ecosystems, a source of food or shelter for some critters, and more.

The book has a humorous, irreverent tone, invoking every possible name for poo that you could possibly think of and then some.

I loved this book equally for its tone and for the fascinating bits of information scattered throughout--some hilarious, some poignant, some quite gross. You'll learn how the CIA used tiger poop during the Vietnam War, why ants farm and protect aphids for their honeydew-dung, and how ancient civilizations used various types of scat in medicinal remedies. Not to mention the wealth of information scientists have gathered about animals thanks to their dung, either directly or indirectly.

I saw this book on the shelf and was immediately attracted to it thinking, wow has someone done a parody of the Where's Wally series replacing Wally (Waldo, North America) with the hide and seek champion coward Osama Bin Laden. That's exactly what this book is, in fact you not only have to find Osama, but a number of his henchmen as well, who are hiding in all the major cities around the world, New York, Paris, Sydney, Cairo to name but a few. It is also not just the bad guys the reader has to find. The concept of the humour of this book is playing on the fact that America can't find Osama, so you also have to find the American secret service agent as well, who obviously since he can't find the highest profile person on the planet may need help finding himself. You'll also need to find hidden weapons of mass destruction and other objects

Obviously extremist patriotic Americans with no sense of humour will not get the joke that is the concept of Where's Bin Laden but everyone else including most other Americans will have at least a smile on their faces when they first see this book. It is pretty much the same thing visually as the Where's Wally books if you just want it for the find an image amongst a lot large more complicated visual image, so if you were going to get one of those books but want a laugh as well I'd get this instead.

Each of the cities portrayed has a small blurb on why they are now terrorist targets such as Sydney because Australia supported the USA in invading Iraq so obviously the author has certain views that you may or may not agree with, but you can just ignore those text boxes and enjoy the book purely for its visual humour anyway.

The book achieves what it sets out to. I have no idea if Daniel Lalic is the Weird Al Yankovic of the picture book world. I can't compare it to other books of his as this is the only one I've ever come across. I can say though that without a doubt, if you take a copy of this to your workplace or wherever else, everyone will want to have a look at it. Many people will ask where did you get this? So if you have read it and shown it to everyone you know, you'll have no problem selling it onto someone else who wants to show it to their friends and getting your money back. Get a copy and check it out, it's a good laugh!

David Feldman returns! . . . for fans of his series of
IMPONDERABLES books (and I'm one), that's good news because
by reading his latest effort, you'll learn the answer to the question
raised in the title: WHY DO PIRATES LOVE PARROTS? . . . along
with answers to such other questions as: Why are most psychics
women? How does the vending machine know when it's Sunday?
And why do peanut butter cookies have crisscross marks
on them?

I like the fact that Feldman thoroughly researches each and
every question, then proceeds to answer it in a manner that
not only informs but also puts a smile on your face . . . for
example, in case you've always been wondering what do they stuff
in medicine balls to make them so heavy, he found this out from
the MediBall company:

The balls are filled with an aqueous gel composed of potassium
polyacrylate and water. It is non-toxic and non-hazardous,
the same material is used an absorbent in baby diapers. Should
not hurt you unless you eat too many of them.

I also liked his discussion of the most frequently asked irritating
questions . . . among them: Do blind people dream? (Yes, but
they rarely see anything in their dreams.) . . . also: How many
licks does it take to get to the center of a Tootsie Pop? (The
average seems to be 600 to 800 licks, though my finding
is more along the lines of Mr. Turtle, who when in commercials
was asked how many licks it took him to get to the center,
replied, "I never made it without biting."

The accompanying drawings by longtime Imponderables illustrator
Kassie Schwan added to my enjoyment of this wonderful book that
will make a great holiday gift for folks of all ages.

The authors have a keen grasp of the married state, and have tweeked some of the funniest comments about that state that I have ever read. I truly enjoyed reading this one -- and giving it to my husband!

John Gray has made millions on his "Mars and Venus" series of relationship books...But true romantics and lonely hearts will find Mike Nichols' book both howlingly funny and refreshingly real...No baloney here, just good, clean fun at the expense of both sexes...In the end, it's not how you play the game of love, but if you manage to keep your sides from splitting...This book is a humor classic!!

Okay so I am biased. I was lucky enough to be one of the mini authors in this delightful anthology containing an assortment of poems, short stories and quirkly little pieces that never go over the 99 word mark. Written partly as a dedication to the classic novel "The Wizard of Oz" this collection of easy to read shortlets (a great way to describe each piece)is wonderfully reminisent of an age long since past. Occasionally sentimental but never syrupy, this little book is pleasure to read, and it will have you giggling and crying in the same breath.
Yellow Bricks and Ruby Slippers might not be the best seller of the century but it is a wonderful little page turner that allows you momentarily to be nostalgic and enter a timeless world full of Munchkins, witches, dogs and little girls whose friends are scarecrows, cowardly lions and tin men who want a heart... If you are a "Wizard of Oz" fan this book will pique your funny bone and remind you that you too can click your heels and know that there is no place like home.

Yo, Aesop! Get a Load of These Fables, is a collection of updated, silly, funny, irreverent stories. No fox and grapes, no lion and mouse, Paul Rosenthal has taken these fables and given them a very modern twist with wonderful, hip text, large colorful cartoon-like illustrations and a note from Aesop himself, at the end of each tale. Your kids will be laughing out loud, at the antics of the characters in these stories. A delightful book for your whole family to share and a great addition to any home library.

For a book with they "silly" premise of a zombie uprising threatening all of humanity, the stories contained within are poignant, touching, and most important believable.

The book was so engrossing, I purchased it and had it completely read in a single weekend.

It's hard to describe the emotions this book stirred up. Anger, remorse, pride, all of these things. And joy at discovering someone making a daring escape. Sorrow when learning that the person being interviewed has lost a bit of his or her mind because of what they've been through.

I didn't know what to expect when I purchased this book. Not really. I have had the Zombie Survival Guide for a while. When I bought it, it was in the "humor" section. "World War Z" took the tongue-in-cheek approach from that book and turned it on its head, taking itself completely seriously and *pulling it off!*

Only a few bits of data truly date the story (such as Fidel Castro being around at the end of the war).

The audio-book will be my next purchase. I've heard the few clips from the website and I feel that will give the story even more impact.

This book makes you see how the war against the living dead was seen on several fronts. Highly recommended, a must have.

WWZ is the first piece of zombie anything that actually scared me! It's not just the horrifying way the Zeds are described, but the collapse of society that sends a realistically chilling shudder through you. A must have for any fan of horror!

THIS IS A GREAT BOOK. IT STARTS OFF A LITTLE SLOW BUT PICKS UP QUICKLY. ITS IS COMPRISED OF SHORT STORIES THAT TIE TOGETHER. THE AUTHOR IS A TRUE ZOMBIE FAN SO THE BOOK IS VERY WELL THOUGHT OUT. MAX BROOKS HAS SET THE BAR VERY HIGH WITH TRADITIONAL ZOMBIES.

It's finally happened. The zombie apocalypse has come and devastated civilisation...but in the end, civilisation rallied and won. Using tactics pioneered in South Africa and bankrolled by Cuba, the largest nation to remain infection-free, the world's armies successfully defeated the undead menace, but only at a staggering cost in lives and resources. Ten years after victory was declared, a journalist travels the world, listening to the stories of the survivors, from those who were there when the outbreak began to those who listened in the corridors of power as key decisions were taken to the stories of everyday men and women thrust into circumstances beyond their control. From Hawaii to China, even to the isolated crew of the International Space Station, this is the story of that war.

World War Z is that most beloved of Hollywood ideas, 'high concept'. One of those ideas that makes other writers go away smacking themselves in the head thinking, "Why didn't I think of that?" Zombies are very much 'in' these days, but after several years of zombie movies and computer games the appeal was waning, until Brooks' interesting take on the concept revitalised interest. Most zombie fiction is somewhat nihilistic, ending with the world overrun by the undead hordes or humanity reduced to tiny enclaves battling the mindless hordes, so the fact that World War Z features a victory is interesting enough. The stories of what sacrifices were necessary to achieve that victory makes up the book, which is essentially a 'mosaic' novel rather than a standard work of fiction. The book shifts between the different interviewees, some of whom appear only once but most of them reappear periodically throughout the book, as we find out how they survived the decade of the war and what happened to them along the way.

It's an excellent device and Brooks employs it skillfully. Some of the stories border on the silly - the blind Japanese gardener taking on the zombie hordes with a sword in a park full of traps stretches credulity - but elsewhere Brooks nails the feeling of total horror, with the computer nerd trying to flee his infested Japanese apartment block or the soldiers fighting to clear the catacombs under Paris. Elsewhere Brooks takes the capabilities of the zombie menace to their logical conclusion, with heavily-armoured divers fighting off zombie forces underwater, or the US army making full use of dogs (who are driven wild by the presence of zombies) in fighting the hordes and the fates of both the animals and their handlers during and after the war.

This is a widescreen story, with a truly global perspective, told economically and well. There are some good laughs (the new US zombie-dispatching firearm is nicknamed a 'Meg', as it resembles a Megatron toy from Transformers; during one battle a nun and REM lead singer Michael Stipe help fight off the zombie hordes), but Brooks takes his subject mostly seriously and sounds some cautionary notes along the way. To some extent the story isn't really about the zombies, but about people and what they are capable of when their backs are against the wall.

World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War (*****) is a gripping, page-turning, memorable read which throws some fresh impetus on an old idea, and makes it work brilliantly. The book is available in the UK from Duckworth and in the USA from Three Rivers Press. A movie version is in development, with a script being written by Babylon 5 creator J. Michael Straczynski.

As someone who loves zombie movies I thought this book was really entertaining.

However, I do wish I had borrowed it from the library instead of buying it. It's not the type of book that I think anyone but the hardcore zombie fan would really enjoy reading more than once. Your millage may vary.

The Zombie Survival Guide by Max Brooks is amazing. It has humor, but is totally serious the entire length of the book. I feel that if a Zombie Outbreak happens anytime soon I will be better prepared having read mentioned book. A must for Zombie, Horror, and Survival fanatics!!!

If you are looking for humor you will not find any jokes in this book, it reads EXACTLY like a survival guide for zombie attacks. The concept alone is where you draw humor.

Just be careful if you take this on a flight, it has pictures of guns and such and I was getting weird looks.

A great book;written in a instructional manual style. Everyone I know who has seen or read the book loves it. The recored attacks throughout history at the end of the book is also entertaining. I also have WW Z and I am waiting for his new book to come out.World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie WarThe Zombie Survival Guide: Recorded Attacks

Ok. even though you might not be able to practically put the skills learned in this book on a resume (unless you are applying at capcom) it is a very well written book. From a tactical stand point, many of the described survival and evasion techniques make sense and are very well thought out. Even if the zombies do not attack, learning the skills listed in the manual will acctually be good for you. Though the more 'practical' skills are not described all the way through, it is still a great read for any zombie fan out there.