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Find out moreTitles to make you laugh out loud. Or just smile. Or both.
Here are just some of the light-hearted news items that have made it into the Times Diary Column over the past 50 years. Patrick Kidd has picked the best of the Column with items that will amaze and astonish, hard to imagine anyone reading this collection without laughing out loud every page or two. An absolutely essential Christmas stocking treasure for every Times reader. ~ Sue BakerLike for Like ReadingHas the World Gone Completely Mad? Unpublished Letters to the Daily Telegraph, Iain Hollingshead (Editor)I Think I Can See Where You’re Going Wrong: And Other Wise and Witty Comments from The Guardian, Marc Burrows (Editor)
Documents include the Trotters' family tree, paperwork from Rodney's school days, snapshots from family holidays, and even the first chapter draft of Rodney's novel. The book will be illustrated with never-before-seen memorabilia and ephemera, from Raquel's original dating agency form, from before she met Del, to a set of promt cards Del created for Trigger: 'DON'T let Roy Slater fit you up for stealing 3,000 Green Shield stamps ever again, even if you did get an electric blanket and a toaster when you came out of jail. DO try to remember that Dave is actually called Rodney.'
Pistache (pis-tash): a friendly spoof or parody of another's work. [Deriv uncertain. Possibly a cross between pastiche and p**stake.].
Packed with amazing photographs and jaw-dropping facts, and with an out-of-this-world 3D-effect cover, Ripley's Believe It or Not! 2017 offers a feast of information and entertainment. Prepare yourself for this year's collection of eye-popping oddities!
Insightful, tender and very, very funny, the images from the author's blog, The Daily Think, have become hugely popular, and the very best of them are collected together in this exquisite and hilarious gift book. The illustrations chronicle all manner of parenting fails and mishaps, plus a fair few sweet and poignant moments, and it will raise a giggle of recognition from beleaguered mums and dads everywhere. It's the perfect gift for a world-weary parent who's seen it all before, or a new one to let them know what they're in for!
As I Was Saying...is the seventh book in Jeremy Clarkson's best-selling The World According to Clarkson series. Crikey, the world according to Clarkson's been a funny old place of late...For a while, Jeremy could be found in his normal position as the tallest man on British television but, more recently, he appears to have been usurped by a pretend elephant. But on paper the real Jeremy remains at the helm. That's as it should be. For nearly thirty years he has been fearlessly leading the charge as one the best comic writers in the country. And in 2015, he shows no sign of slowing down. So, whether it's pondering If Jesus might have been better off being born in New Zealand, Why reflexive pronoun abuse is the worst thing in the world, How Pam Ayres' head trumps Gordon Gecko's underpants, Or what a television presenter with time on his hands gets up to, Jeremy is still trying to make sense of all the big stuff.
Featuring original Ladybird artwork alongside brilliantly funny, brand new text. Also available: How it Works: The Husband How it Works: The Wife How it Works: The Mum The Ladybird Book of the Mid-Life Crisis The Ladybird Book of the Hangover The Ladybird Book of Mindfulness The Ladybird Book of the Shed The Ladybird Book of Dating The Ladybird Book of the Hipster.
The correspondence collected here may have come from Dale Shaw’s imagination but there is a rightness to some of the inclusions (Dr Heimlich’s Other Manoeuvre or A letter from the table next to the Algonquin Round Table) that makes you question if, perhaps some of these letters and notes just should have been found crumpled up in some historic waste-paper basket. ~ Sue Baker Like for Like Reading. The Lost Diaries, Craig Brown. The Novel Cure: An A-Z of Literary Remedies, Susan Elderkin & Ella Berthoud
It seems there’s no end to QI facts or the public fascination for them. Here are another 1339 QI facts, a great gift for the person who has everything or perhaps you need a book for the smallest room or entertainment for friends and relations or even for your own personal enjoyment – warning, it’s addictive reading. ~ Sue BakerLike for Like ReadingQI: The Book of General Ignorance, John Lloyd and John MitchinsonAfterliff. John Lloyd and Jon Canter
I was once lucky enough to see the late – and great actor Michael Bryant play Iago,his command of the text such that the whole play came alight - a reminder of how, without such brilliance, Shakespeare can be frustrating and boring for modern day audiences. 2016 marks the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare death and in place of such magical acting Geoff Spiteri enlightens us on Shakespearian language and euphemism, the construct of the plays,the plots and the characters. This short volume emphasises Shakespeare's humour and rudery, reminding us of his influence on our language with his words, magic and poetry. Geoff Spiteri's opening words are Does Shakespeare matter? Any doubts will be scattered by A Smidgeon of Shakespeare. Like for Like Reading. A Little Bit of Shakespeare Wit by Edward Green. The Shakespeare Book
Beautifully illustrated by renowned cartoonist Dorrance, this book is a welcome slice of light relief from all the fretting mums are expected to do these days. Francesca Hornak has taken a light-hearted, humorous look at the concerns and worries of the modern mother. You know, those kind of thoughts that just pop in to your head (usually at 3 in the morning whilst trying to grab a few precious moments sleep) and make you feel ever so slightly crazy. Well fear not as there is an anecdote for everyone within the pages of this book. Relax in the knowledge that your craziness is most definitely shared and enjoy a giggle as you consider everything from the ludicrously long list of hospital bag labour ‘essentials’ to late night stakeouts awaiting the return of teens. Not only will this make you smile (and possibly occasionally grimace) but it will also help bring a little perspective to those moments when you feel like the worst parent ever. A wonderful gift for all mothers old or new, expectant or even for the just plain exhausted.
Hello dear book browser and welcome to Peggy and Me. The story of my life since getting a beautiful Shih-Tzu Bichon Frise cross puppy (I call the breed a Shitty Frise - fun) in the form of Peggy. Some of you may be thinking: a book about a dog, how totally brilliant, I need hear no more, I'm sold. In which case we should be best friends and go out to tea together, every day. Others of you may be thinking: a book about a dog, how totally mad, she must have officially lost it. In which case I completely understand. For I once viewed dog owners with much suspicion. The way they obsessively talk about their dogs often using voices for them to reply; the way they have a light covering of dog hair all over their clothes and sofas; and worse, an alarming comfort and ease around excrement. But I now get why people become so mad about their hounds. It wasn't instant love I have to admit. Getting a puppy when I was at a low ebb in my life wasn't easy - there was a lot of challenging, what I call, dog administration (dog-min), and the humiliating first trip to the vet still haunts me. It's been a bumpy old road, but Peggy has been lovingly by my side through some life changing moments and I wouldn't have coped without her. Most surprisingly she has taught me a huge amount - not how to get an old pie packet out of a bin and lick it (I could already do that), but real lessons about life and love and trust and friendship. Put aside any doggy reservations and come walkies with Peggy and me...
Edward Estlin Cummings knew a thing or two (take a look at our Poetry Section if you don’t believe us!) and we have to agree with him. Humour is at the heart of human life and you’ll find it in fine form in this section. From favourite TV shows to quirky memoirs; hilarious novels to witty verse; books to dip into, books to devour. We know that humour is subjective and so we’ve spread the net pretty wide as we trawled the comedy oceans for the funniest fish. Un’shellfish’ly, we’ve compiled monthly lists of eclectic recommendations so that you can easily find whatever tickles your fins. There are books here to give as gifts, to savour on your own, or to enjoy with others. Books of laugh out-loud jokes and anecdotes to make you smile on the train, plane, bus or any other public place. After all, laughter is infectious. Spread it around.