Alien Hand Syndrome and Other Too-Weird-Not-To-Be-True Stories


Alan Bellows - 2009
    This collection of too-weird-not-to-be-true stories gives the freakish details behind odd curiosities, from unusual drug side effects to the Alien Hand Syndrome--a disorder wherein a person's hand develops a will of its own.

Further Cuttings From Cruiskeen Lawn


Flann O'Brien - 1976
    edition. British publication by Hart-Davis, McGibbon Ltd ('76).-- A companion to The Best of Myles, Further Cuttings culls more scathing selections from "Cruiskeen Lawn", Flann O'Brien's column in the Irish Times written under the pseudonym Myles na Gopaleen.-- This volume covers the years 1947-1957 and finds O'Brien's alter ego clashing with the law on numerous charges, including larceny, using bad language, and marrying without the consent of his parents. It also includes several bizarre obituaries, witty criticisms of George Bernard Shaw, Sean O' Faolain, and other literary figures, the return of the preposterous "Brother", and the first article ever ascribed to Myles (published in 1940).

Sniglets (Snig'lit): Any Word That Doesn't Appear in the Dictionary, But Should


Rich Hall - 1984
    Comedy illustrated.

Bukowski in a Sundress: Confessions from a Writing Life


Kim Addonizio - 2016
    . . at once biting and vulnerable, nostalgic without ever veering off into sentimentality." --Refinery29 "Always vital, clever, and seductive, Addonizio is a secular Anne Lamott, a spiritual aunt to Lena Dunham." --BooklistA dazzling, edgy, laugh-out-loud memoir from the award-winning poet and novelist that reflects on writing, drinking, dating, and more Kim Addonizio is used to being exposed. As a writer of provocative poems and stories, she has encountered success along with snark: one critic dismissed her as "Charles Bukowski in a sundress." ("Why not Walt Whitman in a sparkly tutu?" she muses.) Now, in this utterly original memoir in essays, she opens up to chronicle the joys and indignities in the life of a writer wandering through middle age.Addonizio vividly captures moments of inspiration at the writing desk (or bed) and adventures on the road--from a champagne-and-vodka-fueled one-night stand at a writing conference to sparsely attended readings at remote Midwestern colleges. Her crackling, unfiltered wit brings colorful life to pieces like "What Writers Do All Day," "How to Fall for a Younger Man," and "Necrophilia" (that is, sexual attraction to men who are dead inside). And she turns a tender yet still comic eye to her family: her father, who sparked her love of poetry; her mother, a former tennis champion who struggled through Parkinson's at the end of her life; and her daughter, who at a young age chanced upon some erotica she had written for Penthouse.At once intimate and outrageous, Addonizio's memoir radiates all the wit and heartbreak and ever-sexy grittiness that her fans have come to love--and that new readers will not soon forget.

Gems from the Equinox


Aleister Crowley - 1974
    Israel Regarclie's brilliant and beautiful compilation of many of Crowtey's best magical writings from the rare and expensive eleven number Equinox. Regardie's original Introduction has been posthumously edited and updated for this new edition.

All the Hits So Far But Don't Expect Too Much: Poetry, Prose & Other Sundry Items [With 14-Track CD]


Bradley Hathaway - 2005
    The commentary will contain background on the poems or more deeply delve into themes or topics discussed in the poems themselves. The spiritual seeker as well as the mature in faith will both benefit from the poems.

99 Problems: Superstars Have Bad Days, Too


Ali Graham - 2015
    All the money and fame in the world won’t prevent him from having a bad hair day. Or stepping in gum. Or not being able to fit into skinny jeans, or watching helplessly as a scoop of ice cream falls from its cone. Or so an unnamed Superstar’s life is ingeniously imagined in this very funny book. Inspired by but not based on Jay Z’s monster hit “99 Problems,” illustrator Ali Graham riffs on what might be the real problems afflicting a world-famous music mogul who also happens to be married to the foremost diva of our time. Begun as a Tumblr, which went viral almost instantly, 99 Problems is a highly conceptual gift book showcasing 99 full-color illustrations of a cartoon character who looks just like a certain legendary rapper, and the often ordinary and sometimes fantastical things that happen to him. And that’s where the book finds its hilarious, compulsive hook—in an age that worships celebrity and assumes, somewhat enviously, that fame and fortune can protect one from life’s travails, what if that just weren’t true? There’s a surprising, underlying warmth here. Even when the author dips into flights of pop culture fantasy—Superstar on the bow of the Titanic; Superstar whipping up a bad batch alongside Walter White from Breaking Bad—the recognition of shared kinship is strong. It’s a cartoon version of celebrity, but like the best cartoons, it’s edgy and knowing, yet sweet, too.

Laugh Tactics: Master Conversational Humor and Be Funny On Command - Think Quickly On Your Feet


Patrick King - 2016
     Laugh Tactics is full of strategies that dissect, break down, and analyze all of the types of humor that you’ll encounter in daily conversation – stuff you can really use with people you talk to. We’re not all trying to become standup comedians, and this isn’t a book about ha-ha jokes with setups and punch lines. Learn to simply make a better impression on people, put them at ease, charm them, and make them smile with you. Learn witticisms, quips, retorts, comebacks, and wisecracks without being cheesy or corny. Don’t worry if you feel like you’ve never understood humor or how to be funny. I’ve done the work for you and analyzed everyone from comedy writers to standup comedians and given you step-by-step, complete guidance to use common joke structures in everyday situations. Adaptable to any premise, topic, or setting! Strategies to instantly be clever and witty and sound like a world-class comedian. Patrick King is an internationally bestselling author and sought-after Social Skills and Conversation Coach. He teaches building rapport, and a major part of that is using humor to connect with others – shared moments of laughter are incredible bonding moments, and you'll be able to create them without being "that guy/girl". What techniques will you learn to make people laugh spontaneously? • What makes an impactful comedic delivery and storytelling. • How to use irony and sarcasm conversationally. • How to create and build a banter chain with others. • Injecting role play into any situation. You will also learn the following: • How to play on people’s expectations and sense of contrast. • The art of misconstruing. • Why relatability is so darn funny. • The famous “comic triple.” Humor is the highway to the relationships you want in life. It’s not just hilarious jokes and mastering laugh tactics. When you can make someone laugh, you create a shared moment and experience that leads immediately to rapport and friendship. Humor is the ability to lighten people’s moods, ease tension, provide comfort, and give perspective in tough times to make everything okay. 100% proven and replicable techniques to be interesting and funny, broken down for your consumption and use. Click the BUY NOW button at the top right of this page!

I'll Tell You One Damn Thing and That's All I Know


Jann Arden - 2004
    It's this juxtaposition, the poet's gift for poignant love songs paired with a comedian's timing and self-deprecating wit, that has earned Jann a legion of loyal fans on the stage as well as the page. Two years after the success of her first publication if i knew, don(c)^t you think i'd tell you? (Insomniac Press), acclaimed singer / songwriter and now bestselling author Jann Arden is at it again with her second book, i'll tell you one damn thing, and that's all i know. Little escapes the observant and immensely creative Jann whose musings and entertaining ramblings travel beyond goose poop (if you don't remember, buy the first book) to ponder the state of the world, the state of the States, and the state of her hair (she really is a blonde).

I'm Awesome: One Man's Triumphant Quest to Become the Sweetest Dude Ever


Jason Ellis - 2012
    Fans of The Jason Ellis Show and the MMA-meets-music festival "Ellismania" know Ellis as a fearless daredevil—and as the new voice of action sports in America. Now, fans can learn how he got to be the man he is: the struggles, the setbacks, and the fight he put up to make it through to something better. Fans of Griffin Forrest’s Got Fight and Tony Hawk’s Hawk won’t want to miss this unbelievable tell-all from a larger-than-life icon, and a fighter through and through.

In Stitches


Anthony Youn - 2011
    Tony Youn grew up one of two Asian-American kids in a small town where diversity was uncommon. Too tall and too thin, he wore thick Coke-bottle glasses, braces, Hannibal Lecter headgear, and had a protruding jaw that one day began to grow, expanding to an unthinkable, monstrous size. After high school graduation, while other seniors partied at the beach or explored Europe, Youn lay strapped in an oral surgeon’s chair where he underwent a life-changing jaw reconstruction. Ironically, it was this brutal makeover that led him to his life’s calling, and he continued on to endure the four horrific, hilarious, sex-starved, and tension-filled years that eventually earned him an M.D. Offering a window into a side of medicine that most people never see, Youn shares his bumpy journey from a shy, skinny, awkward nerd into a renowned and successful plastic surgeon.Now, Youn is the media’s go-to plastic surgeon. He appears regularly on The Rachael Ray Show, and his blog, Celebrity Cosmetic Surgery, is widely read and the most popular blog by a plastic surgeon in the country. But it was a long road to success, and In Stitches recounts Dr. Youn’s misfit adolescence and his four tumultuous years in medical school with striking wit, heart, and humility.For anyone who has ever experienced the awkward teenage years, who has struggled to find his or her way in college, who has been worried that their “calling” would never come, who wants to believe that their doctor really cares, or is just ready for a read that will make you laugh and cry at the same time, this book is for you.

Diary of a Witchcraft Shop


Trevor Jones - 2011
    Trevor ran a witchcraft shop. Liz’s life would never be the same again…“When you find yourself on a London platform shouting into your mobile, ‘We haven’t got enough demons! Do you want me to order some more?’ as folk quietly edge away from you – you know you’re running a witchcraft shop.”Full of amusing anecdotes and witty observations, Diary of a Witchcraft Shop is a delight, and Trevor Jones and Liz Williams the most congenial of hosts. If Bill Bryson ever decided to settle down embrace paganism and open a witchcraft shop, this is surely the sort of book that would result.On taking tea:“A young woman has just bounced (and I mean BOUNCED, like Tigger) into the shop and announced that she is part of a Christian youth camp and could she bless me by buying me a tea? Why certainly! They have apparently been sent out to do good in the community, and if this means buying teas for knackered hard-working witches, then well and good. I offered her a bag of rose petals in return blessing but she was unsure and declined.”Yet Diary of a Witchcraft Shop is far more than just an amusing romp. The book offers a glimpse into the pagan world, one that isn’t sensationalist or melodramatic but is instead considered and intelligent, while providing insight into the unique community that is Glastonbury. The narrative is bursting with surprise, delight and humour, but also has its darker moments, as we share twelve months in the company of Liz and Trevor, complete with visits to the Houses of Parliament, Ireland, and Brittany, not to mention Shetland ponies interrupting druidic ritual and a TARDIS manifesting in the most unlikely of places… No, this isn’t fiction, honestly.

Hurry Up and Wait


Maira Kalman - 2015
    You hardly have to stop. You can smell the roses and still have time to run all those errands before the sun goes down and it’s dinner time.Hurry Up and Wait is the second volume in a new series of collaborations between renowned artist and bestselling author Maira Kalman, New York Times bestselling writer Daniel Handler (a.k.a. Lemony Snicket), and The Museum of Modern Art, New York. This time a whimsical collection of images captures people in motion—or not. In snapshots by some of the world’s most celebrated photographers, some people stride forth, dash across streets, race on bicycles, and jump over puddles, while others form snaking lines, daydream on park benches, and linger on sidewalks with friends. So what’s the rush? With 11 vibrant new illustrations by Kalman inspired by the photographs, and thought-provoking prose by Handler that ponders the merits of action, Hurry Up and Wait will charm readers of all ages.

My, My, My, My, My


Tara Hardy - 2016
    Oddly, she finds it s a place populated with not just hope, but a newfound appreciation for the splendors of the physical world. Her fight to stay alive, while terrifying, is deeply vibrant."

That Book of Perfectly Useless Information


Mitchell Symons - 2003
    Organized in thematic sections, That Book covers a world of learning by an author whos developed game shows (he was the creator of the first "fastest-finger" game-show quiz) and was one of the original contributors to the international editions of Trivial Pursuit. Want to know which U.S. president is a descendant of King Edward III? Or which famous people lived to read their own obituaries? That Book covers these inessential facts and more ...Not since Schotts Original Miscellany has there been such a delectable feast of useless information. That Book is an encyclopedia of honest-to-god facts from the bizarre to the mundane that will have you alternately shaking your head in wonder and holding your sides in laughter. Bathroom -- or bedside -- reading just doesnt get any better than this -- or That.