By: Dave Barry Publisher: Ballantine Books Average Rating: Binding: Mass Market Paperback Label: Ballantine Books Number of Items: 1 Number of Pages: 304 Publication Date: April 28, 1997 Release Date: April 28, 1997
Product Description: WHEN DAVE BARRY IS ON THE LOOSE, NO ONE IS SAFE!
What Dave Barry did for the men's movement in his Complete Guide to Guys and for foreign relations when he did Japan he now does for . . . everything in America. The rapacious observer of Tupperware ladies and leisure concept salesmen sounds off on:
Football--Football is more than just a game. It is a potential opportunity to see a live person lying on the ground with a bone sticking out of his leg, while the fans, to show their appreciation, perform "the wave."
Sailing--There's nothing quite like getting out on the open sea, where you can forget about the hassles and worries of life on land, and concentrate on the hassles and worries of life on the sea, such as death by squid.
Gambling--Off-Track Betting parlors are the kinds of places where you never see signs that say, "Thank You for Not Smoking." The best you can hope for is, "Thank You for Not Spitting Pieces of Your Cigar on My Neck."
"The good news: he's funny as ever. The bad news: the book is only 304 pages." --Los Angeles Daily News
Amazon.com: A Greatest Hits package to die for, in which the inimitable, Pulitzer-packing humorist applies himself to taxes, toilets, airbags, baseball, beer commercials, and numerous other American artifacts. A typical bit, from a piece on legalized gambling: "Off-Track Betting parlors are the kinds of places where you never see signs that say, 'Thank You for Not Smoking.' The best you could hope for is, 'Thank You for Not Spitting Pieces of Your Cigar on My Neck.'" Happy? There's plenty more where that came from.
Dave Barry is way funny. I really enjoyed this book. I'm a big fan of Dave Barry, although I think he is much funnier in person.
Check Your Brain at the Front Cover Dave Barry isn't always funny, and I find he's better in small doses than in ... er... large buckets, but when he's good, he's good. Dave Barry's Greatest Hits is something to take to the beach and have a look at after one or two rum cocktails. It's light, jokey entertainment; the intellectual equivalent of watching, say, David Letterman. If you like Barry's Miami Herald column and are looking to read more, where better to begin than with the Greatest Hits?
Troy Parfitt, author
Funny Dave As an Irish person, living in a small town in rainy Ireland, it is unusual to find a book by Dave Barry..(hooray for Amazon). I don't know anyone who has any idea who he is, and why should they.. he is or was(?) a journalist for the Miami Herald, and is a well known funny man in the States, and no singular Irishman or woman has any reason to know of him.. and isn't it a shame. I love funny books. I have some great ones...but Dave is one of the funniest guys I've never met. This book is full of anecdotal ravings and mad perceptions but, you know he is really so funny, you don't care if he talks of giant carnivorous fleas somewhere in the mid-west, or helping his son with a science project waiting for the ants to bite. (ME thinks him an entomologist at heart).. but he has such a funny way of putting things, that no matter what the subject matter, you will read it and enjoy it. Let's face it, in this violent, crime filled world, isn't it still nice that you can have a smile put on your face!
not 100% funny but he doesn't need to be A typical Barry column in this collection is like some Mel Brooks movies I've seen- he throws so much humor (or at least intended humor) at you that even if only 10% of it is funny, you are still laughing at least once or twice per essay. The ideal way to spend time when you are trapped at, say, a haircut appointment or a Greyhound bus (which is where I was when I read this fun little book!)
Fun to read a bit at a time I enjoyed this book partly because it is about 80 separate columns in one book. It's easy to skim the titles and choose one that sounds right for your mood. I read it before going to sleep over the course of a couple of months, one or two chapters most evenings. I didn't really read them in any set order and occasionally had to guess if I'd already read the chapter before looking at the first paragraph or two. Some of the stories are "laugh out loud" funny while others are just okay.
It's certainly reasonably priced even if some of the material is a bit dated.
I would recommend this book to any Dave Barry fan.
Anything Goes Trivia
Megaton Man
Tony's Online Tips
Trevor
