rsk@stat-l (Rich Kulawiec) (01/16/85)
Will Cuppy's "How to Attract the Wombat" & "How to Become Extinct", published by Chicago University Press, are about 40-50 years old; but both provide whimsical looks at a number of the members of the animal kingdom, including wombats. I found both volumes delightful bedtime reading; many thanks to Gene Spafford for introducing me to this author. Both books are about $6 (softcover) in our local bookstore. Cecil Adams' "The Straight Dope", published by the Chicago Review, is a compendium of his columns of the same name; these have been published in the Chicago Reader and the L.A. Reader (alternative newspapers) as well as in other places; the cover advertises that this is the last book you'll ever need to buy--and the books certainly covers a lot of ground. Questions such as "What are the *real* lyrics to 'Louie, Louie'?", "Is it true about Catherine the Great and the horse?", "What's the best way to kill cockroaches?", and "If all the Chinese climbed up on chairs and jumped off at the same time, would the earth be thrown out of its orbit?" are all answered with the same deftness and smart-assed wit that has become a Cecil Adams trademark. There are few books that make me laugh out loud--this is one of them. The book is about $10 (softcover). -- Rich Kulawiec @ Purdue C.C. Unix Systems Group rsk@purdue-asc.arpa (decvax,ihnp4,uiucdcs)!pur-ee!rsk.uucp (decwrl,hplabs,ucbvax)!purdue!rsk.uucp Wombats are partially protected under the Wildlife Act of 1975.
ted@usceast.UUCP (Ted Nolan) (01/28/85)
I also saw a new edition of Cuppy's _The Decline and Fall of Just About
Everyone_ the other day. I highly recommend it to anyone who wants light
funny reading. I read somewhere a description of Cuppy's method of preparation
for the pieces in this book which went something like "He read everything
that had ever been written on the subject and threw out everything that
wasn't obviously rediculous". This is the history (true history at that)
that never got into your high school history book.
(As an example, If Cuppy were writing about say President Carter some centuries
in the future, I would expect to find a mention of Carter's attack rabbit)
Ted Nolan ..usceast!ted
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Ted Nolan ...decvax!mcnc!ncsu!ncrcae!usceast!ted (UUCP)
6536 Brookside Circle ...akgua!usceast!ted
Columbia, SC 29206 allegra!akgua!usceast!ted@UCB-VAX.ARPA (ARPA, maybe)
("Deep space is my dwelling place, the stars my destination")
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