Funny Thing Is...
- Book Review,
by Ellen DeGeneres
From Publishers Weekly
Degeneres continues her year-long domination of all media (following a cross-country stand-up tour, an HBO special, a show-stealing turn in Finding Nemo and the successful launch of her daily talk show in September) with this new humor collection, winningly preserved on audio. The laid-back, observational comedienne's stream-of-conscience musings gain additional zest from her wry and adroit delivery. Some of her funniest material is in throwaway lines, dropped with an easygoing deadpan delivery. ("My favorite exercise is walking a block and a half to the corner store to buy fudge. Then I call a cab to get back home. There's never a need to overdo anything.") Her smart and funny routines point out absurdities in everyday life. ("Batteries are packaged as though the manufacturers never want you to get to them. On the other hand, take a good look at a package of light bulbs. Thin, thin, thin cardboard that's open on both ends.") Whether offering tips to cover social embarrassments or grousing about parallel parking ("What better way to do something you're already a little leery about doing than by doing it backwards?"), Degeneres is a delight.Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
From AudioFile
Fans of Ellen Degeneres will enjoy this audiobook. Much of the material benefits from her decades of work before live audiences and is delivered in her quiet, hesitant style. Her customary approach suits her well when she's reading selections derived from her live act, but at other times, she stretches a bit in attempting a comic essay or an extended surreal drama in the tradition of the best of radio comedy. At those times, the timing is off, and it seems like she doesn't know when to stop. Thankfully, those moments are rare, and, for the most part, Degeneres's gentle discussions of the inanities of daily life are perfect for quiet, familiar comedy. G.T.B. 2004 Audie Award Finalist © AudioFile 2004, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine
Review
Entertainment Weekly DeGeneres is in top form with her second collection of kooky observations....Her strongest assets -- a-hard won dignity and softly skewed worldview -- are on chuckle-inducing display throughout.
Review
Entertainment Weekly DeGeneres is in top form with her second collection of kooky observations....Her strongest assets -- a-hard won dignity and softly skewed worldview -- are on chuckle-inducing display throughout.
Book Description
Ellen DeGeneres published her first book of comic essays, the #1 bestselling My Point...And I Do Have One, way back in 1996. Not one to rest on her laurels, the witty star of stage and screen has since dedicated her life to writing a hilarious new book. That book is this book. After years of painstaking, round-the-clock research, surviving on a mere twenty minutes of sleep a night, and collaborating with lexicographers, plumbers, and mathematicians, DeGeneres has crafted a work that is both easy to use and very funny. Along with her trademark ramblings, The Funny Thing Is... contains hundreds of succinct insights into her psyche and offers innovative features including: More than 50,000 simple, short words arranged in sentences that form paragraphs. Thousands of observations on everyday life -- from terrible fashion trends to how to handle seating arrangements for a Sunday brunch with Paula Abdul, Diane Sawyer, and Eminem. All twenty-six letters of the alphabet. Sure to make you laugh, The Funny Thing Is... is an indispensable reference for anyone who knows how to read or wants to fool people into thinking they do.
Download Description
"Ellen DeGeneres published her first book of comic essays, the #1 bestselling My Point...and I Do Have One, way back in 1996. Not one to rest on her laurels, the witty star of stage and screen has since dedicated her life to writing a hilarious new book. That book is this book. After years of painstaking, round-the-clock research, surviving on a mere twenty minutes of sleep a night, and collaborating with lexicographers, plumbers, and mathematicians, DeGeneres has crafted a book that is both easy to use and very funny. Along with her trademark ramblings, The Funny Thing Is...contains hundreds of succinct insights into her psyche, supplemented by easy-to-understand charts, graphs, and diagrams so that you'll never miss a joke. Overseeing all aspects of production, DeGeneres labored over details both significant and insignificant, including typefaces, page number placement, and which of the thousands of world languages to use. Ultimately she selected English, as it's her mother tongue, but translations into Hindi and Pig Latin are already in the works. DeGeneres takes an innovative approach to the organization of her book by utilizing a section in the beginning that includes the name of each chapter, along with a corresponding page number. She calls it the ""Table of Contents,"" and she is confident that it will become the standard to which all books in the future will aspire. Some of the other innovative features you'll find in this edition: . More than 50,000 simple, short words arranged in sentences that form paragraphs. . Thousands of observations on everyday life -- from terrible fashion trends to how to handle seating arrangements for a Sunday brunch with Paula Abdul, Diane Sawyer, and Eminem. . All twenty-six letters of the alphabet. Sure to make you laugh, The Funny Thing Is...is an indispensable reference for anyone who knows how to read or wants to fool people into thinking they do."
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