[[Category:Humour|*]]
[[Category:New Reviews|Humour]]__NOTOC__ <!-- Remove -->{|class-"wikitable" cellpadding="15" <!-- INSERT NEW REVIEWS BELOW HERE--><!-- van LENTE -->|-| style="width: 10%; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;"|[[image:1683690346.jpg|link=Humourhttp://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1683690346/ref=nosim?tag=__NOTOC__thebookbag-21]]
{{newreview
|author=Charles Lamb
|title=Great Food: A Dissertation Upon Roast Pig and Other Essays
|rating=4
|genre=Cookery
|summary=''A Dissertation Upon Roast Pig'' is a collection of food-related essays from the early 19th century, with a humorous bent. They're but a few pages each - a light read to bring a smile to your face, then on to the next little foodie treat.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0241951003</amazonuk>
}}
{{newreview|authorstyle=ClientsFromHell.net"vertical-align: top; text-align: left;"|title=Clients From Hell|rating=4|genre=Humour|summary=Everyone who's worked as a freelancer has a story of a client from hell - that person who asked for something that was impossible, wanted it done yesterday for a fraction of the usual price, or is just plain angry about the work produced. [[The website [http://www.clientsfromhell.net ClientsFromHell.netCon Artist by Fred Van Lente]] has collated a number of such stories over the years, and has now published them as a book.|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0982473931</amazonuk>}}==
[[image:4star.jpg|link=Category:{{{newreview|author=Manu Joseph|title=Serious Men|rating=4|genre=General Fiction}}} Star Reviews]] [[:Category:Crime|summary=Ayyan Mani is a Dalit, an untouchable, stuck in a flat in Mumbai's slums but hoping, somehow, for a better future for his son. Working at the Insitute of Theory and Research he uses all his cunning and wiles to stay ahead of the game amongst the Brahmin scientists. Does he have the intelligence, and nerves, to convince everyone that his sonCrime]], against all odds, is a genius?[[:Category:Humour|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1848543085</amazonuk>}}Humour]]
{{newreview|author=John Saunders|title=The Vernham Chronicles|rating=4|genre=Humour|summary=Set amidst the rolling British countryside around Vernbury Vale is the little village Comic-Cons are a place of Vernham. Anyone who lives in a village will recognise it immediatelywonder and sanctuary for many people, and when Comic book artist Mike Mason arrives at San Diego Comic-Con, he's looking for both that and sanctuary with its cobbled streets other fans and Tudor buildings. There was some damage during creators, plus the war (which mightchance of maybe, or might not have been down to a lighthouse folly constructed by a local landowner on just maybe reuniting with his lake) but the gaps have been filled with some beautifulex. However, erwhen his rival is found dead, mock Tudor buildings. Almost unique and nearly beautiful as the village Mike is, it's not the star forced to navigate every dark corner of The Vernham Chronicles. The stars are the people who live con in order to clear his name – from cosplay flash mobs and intrusive fans to zombie obstacle courses – Mike must prove his innocence and, in Vernhamdoing so, may just unravel a dark secret behind a legendary industry creator.[[The Con Artist by Fred Van Lente|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1907499598</amazonuk>}}Full Review]]
{{newreview
|author=Martin Millar
|title=The Good Fairies of New York
|rating=4
|genre=Fantasy
|summary=In this fairytale of New York, the Cornish fairy King's children are living in exile, hiding in Central Park from a nasty industrial revolution back home. They have friends from Ireland with them, and all have the ability to startle the local squirrels. Elsewhere two innocent scallywag fairies fleeing Scotland have arrived, and adopted a human each. Heather has joined up with Dinnie, the city's worst busker, a fat, alcoholic and lonely fan of TV ads for phone sex, while Morag befriends Kerry, a dying kleptomaniac beauty, just as alone for different reasons.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0749954205</amazonuk>
}}
{{newreview<!-- Coulton -->|author=Gervase Phinn-|titlestyle=Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Stars"width: 10%; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;"|rating=4[[image:1473669588.jpg|genrelink=Humour|summary=I spent many of my teenage years reading James Herriot's books, and I found that this collection of anecdotes and poems by Gervase Phinn had a real flavour of Herriot about ithttp://www. Perhaps it was just the setting, for Phinn was a school inspector in the Dales for many years, but I think he also has that knack of capturing a situation, and a character, and bringing out the humour without making the person appear ridiculousamazon. Here he collates stories from his other books, some Christmassy and others not, and he relates them with several of his own poems interspersed betweenco.|amazonukuk/dp/1473669588/ref=nosim?tag=<amazonuk>0141036435</amazonuk>}}thebookbag-21]]
[[Category:History]]
{{newreview
|author=Simon Garfield
|title=Just My Type: A Book About Fonts
|rating=4.5
|genre=Humour
|summary=A quality typeface is a bit like a good referee at a football match in that you only really notice them if something has gone wrong. A referee is there to facilitate the players on the pitch, not to be the star of the show (though watching Match of the Day these past few weeks you'd often beg to differ). So it is with typefaces. A good type helps the reader, enhances the flow and makes the viewing experience easy and simple. Well sort of.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1846683017</amazonuk>
}}
{{newreview|authorstyle=Bob Servant and Neil Forsyth"vertical-align: top; text-align: left;"|title=Bob Servant: Hero of Dundee|rating=3.5|genre=Humour|summary=After [[Delete This at Your Peril: One Man's Fearless Exchanges with the Internet Spammers Falling Short by Bob Servant|bursting into public consciousnessLex Coulton]] as the scourge of email spammers, Broughty Ferry's resident polymath Bob Servant has returned. This time, he expands upon the colourful life only hinted at in his previous oeuvre, Delete this at Your Peril. And what a life it has been. He steers us from his humble beginnings, his broken family and traumatic schooldays, through the rise and fall of his window cleaning empire, and his role in Dundee's brutal cheeseburger wars. Along the way, we witness his struggles with, respectively, women ('skirt'), his simpleton sidekick Frank, and the demon drink.|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1841589209</amazonuk>}}==
[[image:4star.jpg|link=Category:{{{newreviewrating}}} Star Reviews]] [[:Category:General Fiction|author=P K MunroeGeneral Fiction]], [[:Category:Humour|title=You Can Stick It|rating=3.5|genre=Humour]], [[:Category:Women's Fiction|summary=Literary merit? Absolutely none!Women's Fiction]]
PlotLex Coulton's debut novel is a story about mistakes, failures, and relationships. The main protagonist, Frances Pilgrim, is a sixth form English teacher who has recently fallen out with her best friend Jackson, a work colleague, characterisation and all is grappling with the increasingly eccentric behaviour of her mother. This relationship is complicated by the fact that other stuff you usually talk about? Nope – thereFrances's none of that, eitherfather disappeared at sea when she was five years old.[[Falling Short by Lex Coulton|Full Review]]
Ah, so it's non<!-fiction? Well, calling it ''fact'' would be stretching things a little too far- van LENTE -->|-| style="width: 10%; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;"|[[image:1683690346.jpg|link=http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1683690346/ref=nosim?tag=thebookbag-21]]
So, come on then. What ''is'' it?
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0007362188</amazonuk>
}}
{{newreview|authorstyle=Axel Scheffler"vertical-align: top; text-align: left;"|title=How to Keep a Pet Squirrel|rating=4|genre=Humour|summary=So, how do you keep a pet squirrel? Well, the simple answer is that you don't. They're wild animals and not at all suitable for keeping in captivity, but accepted thinking didn't always run that way. It was whilst he was dipping into ''[[The Children's Encyclopaedia'' of 1910 that Axel Scheffler came across a small but indispensible guide to obtaining and caring for your pet squirrel. His inventive mind came up with these beautiful illustrations to accompany the text and if you're looking for an amusing gift for an animal-loving adult then this book could well be the answer.|amazonukCon Artist by Fred Van Lente]]===<amazonuk>0571255981</amazonuk>}}
[[image:4star.jpg|link=Category:{{{newreview|author=PJ Vanston|title=Crump|rating=3|genre=General Fiction}}} Star Reviews]] [[:Category:Crime|summary=It's Kevin Crump's first day as a lecturer at Thames Metropolitan University - an ex-polytechnic. It's the happiest day of his lifeCrime]], and he can't wait to see all that it holds, and make a difference to all his students. And then it hits him[[:Category: the relentless pettiness of authority figures, the students who can't string two sentences together, the lowering of standards in search of higher test scores, so more money from foreign students, and political correctness gone (as I believe the saying goes) mad.Humour|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1848762852</amazonuk>}}Humour]]
{{newreview|author=John Lennon|title=In His Own Write Comic-Cons are a place of wonder and sanctuary for many people, and when Comic book artist Mike Mason arrives at San Diego Comic-Con, he's looking for both that and sanctuary with other fans and A Spaniard in creators, plus the Works|rating=3|genre=Humour|summary=During the height chance of Beatlemaniamaybe, John Lennon used just maybe reuniting with his ex. However, when his rival is found dead, Mike is forced to doodle or write short poems or nonsense stories navigate every dark corner of the con in order to pass the time (clear his name – from cosplay flash mobs and there must have been a good deal of time to pass away on tour, if only waiting for screaming intrusive fans to leave them alone zombie obstacle courses – Mike must prove his innocence and go back home). Some of them were seen by Tom Maschler, literary editor at Jonathan Capein doing so, who encouraged him to produce moremay just unravel a dark secret behind a legendary industry creator. [[The results were published in two very successful short books in 1964 and 1965.Con Artist by Fred Van Lente|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0099530422</amazonuk>}}Full Review]]
{{newreview<!-- Curran -->|author=John Lindsay-|titlestyle=Emails From An Asshole"width: 10%; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;"|rating=4[[image:1683690133.jpg|genrelink=Humour|summary=Some classified ads are crying out for trollinghttp://www. John Lindsay replies to them, spins them a yarn, and strings them along for as long as possibleamazon. Sometimes the advert is fairly innocuous and he emails them anywayco. These are emails from an asshole, after all.|amazonukuk/dp/1683690133/ref=nosim?tag=<amazonuk>1402778279</amazonuk>}}thebookbag-21]]
{{newreview
|author=L C Tyler
|title=The Herring In The Library
|rating=4.5
|genre=Crime
|summary=Tall, elegant Ethelred is a gentleman, and a third-rate author. Elsie, his literary agent, is short and dumpy, and not afraid to speak her mind. It is Elsie, in fact, who constantly assures her client he only occasionally aspires to the giddy heights of being second-rate. This could be the business partnership from hell, but not only do these two seem to get along, they even manage to solve crimes together. In this, the third outing for L C Tyler's eccentric sleuths, we are provided with a locked room mystery, a cast of possible villains of the most stereotypical type, and a fresh, funny tale which will make you laugh so much you'll get a stitch.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0230714684</amazonuk>
}}
{{newreview|authorstyle=A J Jacobs"vertical-align: top; text-align: left;"|title=My Experimental Life|rating=3.5|genre=Humour|summary=A J Jacobs has a reputation for setting himself onerous tasks. His first book was about reading the entire Encyclopedia Britannica; his second detailed a year spent according to the Biblical precepts. In [[My Experimental Life, he recounts nine briefer episodes of living outside his comfort zone.|amazonukLady's Choosing by Kitty Curran and Larissa Zageris]]===<amazonuk>0099547422</amazonuk>}}
[[image:4star.jpg|link=Category:{{{newreview|author=Seth Grahame-Smith|title=Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter|rating=3.5}}} Star Reviews]] [[:Category:Humour|genre=Humour|summary='Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.' That quote, on the Statue of Liberty, was probably not designed with the inclusion of vampires in mind. But by some means or another North America is rife with the things – hiding in plain sight, as the older ones can bear sunlight, with the help of darkened glasses. It might just come down to one eager young man to rid his new country of such things]], on his way to something he’s a bit more known for.[[:Category:Historical Fiction|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1849014086</amazonuk>}}Historical Fiction]]
{{newreview|author=Jane AustenYou are a lass of twenty eight. Plucky, Seth Grahame-Smith penniless and Tony Lee|title=Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: The Graphic Novel|rating=3|genre=Graphic Novels|summary=It in Regency era London the race is on to find a truth universally acknowledged that suitable suitor - or else doom yourself to life as an eternal spinster. Along your journey you'll be accompanied by Lady Evangeline Youngblood - a zombie story of any renown will not remain simply fiesty noble eager to save you from a life alone, and fired by a zombie storyrogueish sense for adventure. Before When it comes to suitors though, you can say ''ll have to make the risen undead'' it will become a series of booksultimate decision between witty, pretty and wealthy Sir Benedict Granville, inspiring otherswholesome, rugged and/caring Captain Angus MacTaggart, or lead to the same story being published in many different guisesmad, bad and terrifyingly sexy Lord Garraway Craven. HereWith orphans, thenwerewolves, on its long lost lovers and ancient Egyptian artifcats along the way to Hollywood, is Jane Austen’s story of Lizzie Bennet, the feisty young woman trying to ignore Mr Darcy while fighting off the it's clear this isn'manky unmentionables'' – at least she is until the hidden truths open up t going to her, just as the soft soils of Hertfordshire do to yield their once-human remainsbe an easy decision.. And this time it’s in graphic novel form.[[My Lady's Choosing by Kitty Curran and Larissa Zageris|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1848566948</amazonuk>}}Full Review]]
{{newreview<!-- Jester -->|author=Carl McInerney-|titlestyle=The Funniest Football Joke Book Ever"width: 10%; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;"||rating=3[[image:Jester_Forever.5jpg|genre=Confident Readersleft|summarylink=Who scored the most goals in the Greek Mythology League? The centaur forwardhttps://www. Badoom boom tshhhhamazon. It's a football joke book, packed to the gills with all sorts of cheesiness and sillinessco. Funniest everuk/gp/product/1510704361? Perhaps not, but it's not too bad.|amazonukie=UTF8&tag=thebookbag-21&linkCode=as2&camp=1634&creative=6738&creativeASIN=<amazonuk>1849391114</amazonuk>}}1510704361]]
{{newreview
|author=Paul Magrs
|title=Hell's Belles
|rating=3.5
|genre=Humour
|summary=The idea behind this series of novels is quite enchanting and amusing. Frankenstein's daughter is living and sleuthing in Whitby, ably aided and abetted by her sidekick, the enigmatic Effie, and a growing menagerie of younger accomplices, namely Michael and Penny. Whilst the original idea showed huge promise, I felt that the author has rather overdone it in terms of output, in his desire to capitalise on his original success. Book two in the series was quite disappointing, relying on sensationalism rather than adequate plot and character development. Book three was an improvement-and I'm delighted to report that this, the fourth book in the series, shows him returning to form with the promise we saw in the first of the series.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0755346467</amazonuk>
}}
{{newreview|authorstyle=Valerie Thomas and Korky Paul"vertical-align: top; text-align: left;"|title=Winnie's Jokes|rating=2.5|genre=Confident Readers|summary=Who turns off the lights at Halloween? The lights witch. What does an Australian witch ride on? A broomerang. Yep, it's [[Forever After: a joke book.|amazonukdark comedy by David Jester]]===<amazonuk>0192729063</amazonuk>}}
[[image:4star.jpg|link=Category:{{{newreview|author=Nick Wadley|title=Man + Dog|rating=4.5}}} Star Reviews]] [[:Category:Paranormal|genre=HumourParanormal]], [[:Category:Horror|summary=Throughout my life I've lived with dogs or deeply regretted the fact that I lacked a canine companion. Watching a dog – or better still, the interaction between dogs – is infinitely better than anything on television and it's sheer joy to see how man and dog interacts and howHorror]], so often, they hold a mirror up to each other.[[:Category:Fantasy|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1564785521</amazonuk>}}Fasntasy]]
{{newreview|author=The Harvard Lampoon|title=Nightlight: A Parody of Twilight |rating=3.5|genre=Humour|summary=Most people will have heard of the worldwide phenomenon that Michael Holland is [[Twilight by Stephenie Meyer|Twilight]]. The books by Stephenie Meyer a cocky and brash young man who dies and gets made the film have made offer of his lifetime; immortality. We follow Michael, a legend of the romance between vampire Edward Mullen grim reaper and his friends Chip (Robert Pattinson plays the movie rolea stoner tooth fairy) and teenage schoolgirl Bella Swan Naff (Kristen Stewarta stoner in the records department)as they grapple with their long lives and finding a clean surface to sit on in their flat.[[Forever After: a dark comedy by David Jester|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1849013330</amazonuk>}}Full Review]]
{{newreview<!-- Stibbe -->|author=Steven Lowe and Alan McArthur -|titlestyle=Is it Just Me or Has the Shit Hit the Fan?"width: 10%; vertical-align: top; text-align: Your Hilarious New Guide to Unremitting Global Miserycenter;"|rating=3[[image:Stibbe_Xmas.jpg|genre=Humourleft|summarylink=''The banks fell over like fat Labradors running over a wet kitchen floorhttps://www.'' Surely that is the wackiest, most inappropriate simile for the credit crunch and all it has done for the worldamazon. You won't get any such namby-pamby animal likenesses from these authors, instead with quite a potty mouth on them they will lambast the modern world, the entire banking system, all those who failed to see it coming, and those millions just seemingly waiting for us all to revert to high-interest, high-risk, high-lending capitalism, so they can get back on the expenses train, and back up the rich listsco.|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1847443656<uk/gp/product/amazonuk>}} {{newreview|author0241309824?ie=Eoin Colfer|titleUTF8&tag=And Another Thing ... Douglas Adams' Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Part Six of Three (Hitchhikers Guide 6) |ratingthebookbag-21&linkCode=3.5|genreas2&camp=Science Fiction|summary1634&creative=Of all the big books announced for this year, this one must have raised more eyebrows than many. Why try and write a new Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy book, when way before the end, its creator Douglas Adams was proving quite hopeless at such a task? And why approach an Irishman, Eoin Colfer, when the originals - tempered with their humour which could only be described as Monty Python doing a sci-fi Terry Pratchett, and with their cups of tea and dressing gowns, could only be described as very English? Well the answer is most evident - Colfer is a world-beater when it comes to knocking up a story.|amazonuk6738&creativeASIN=<amazonuk>0718155149</amazonuk>}}0241309824]]
{{newreview
|author=The Vampire Miles Proctor
|title=The New Vampire's Handbook
|rating=3.5
|genre=Humour
|summary=I shall start with a prediction. I will not become a vampire, for this imminent Hallowe'en, any festive fancy dress parties, or indeed for life as the lifeless undead. I will not need tips on filing my fangs, or how to divert attention from the fact I cannot eat human food at dinner parties. Me and my reflection in mirrors will remain intact. But for those of you reading this at night, somewhere, flameproof cape at hand, with your distaste of garlic, publicity and presumably the anaemic, this is the sterling how-to lifestyle guide.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0224086464</amazonuk>
}}
{{newreview|authorstyle=David O'Doherty, Claudia O'Doherty and Mike Ahern"vertical-align: top; text-align: left;"||title=100 Facts About Pandas|rating=3.5|genre=Humour|summary[[An Almost Perfect Christmas by Nina Stibbe]]==Sometimes the title says it all - this is a book with 100 facts about pandas. Sometimes you need to note the author too - David O'Doherty won an Edinburgh Comedy Award, so this is a book of a 100 silly and untrue facts about pandas.|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0224086324</amazonuk>}}
[[image:4.5star.jpg|link=Category:{{{newreview|author=Richard Horne |title=A is for Armageddon|rating=2.5}}} Star Reviews]] [[:Category:Humour|genre=Humour|summary=The world is definitely going to hell in a handcart. We're only just preventing lethal global warming by having a credit crunch that has prevented a lot of big building, air travel, and consumerism. The population is getting so obese there is no room for any more of us - and add that to the exploding population statistics]], and it's never going to look better. And don't get me started on where all the bees have gone...[[:Category:Short Stories|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0224086197</amazonuk>}}Short Stories]]
{{newreview|author=James May|title=Car Fever: Dispatches From Behind The Wheel|rating=4|genre=Lifestyle|summary=Now, way back when I Christmas – the time of traditional trauma. You only have to think about the turkey for that – once upon a time it was youngerleaving it sat on the downstairs loo to defrost overnight, and watched TV a lot, I am sure I remember Top Gear as being a consumer programmeif that failed the hair-dryer shoved inside it treatment was your next best bet. How times change. These days I am Nowadays it's all having to make sure they destroy more cars than they reviewit's suitably free-range and organic – but not too organic that you can go and visit it, and the three main people from the show are approaching superstar statusget too friendly with it to want to eat it. Christmas, with their amenable personalitiesthough, awkward wardrobe choices and trenchant laddish charmsis of course also a time of great boons. TheyIt've sprung their media entities from out s cash in hand for a lot of the studio, into other TV programmes, plump people who can hire red suits and the world of journalismbeards, it was always a godsend for postmen with chatty columns in all the broadsheets allowing them free rein thank-you letters to witter to their heart's desire. And here, aunties you saw twice a decade that your parents made you write out in one grandiloquent volumelong-hand as a child, and in time as for Christmasthe makers of Meltis Newberry Fruits – well, are many did they even try and sell them any other time of James May's desires.the year? [[An Almost Perfect Christmas by Nina Stibbe|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0340994533</amazonuk>}}Full Review]]
{{newreview<!-- Doescher -->|author=Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith |titlestyle=Pride and Prejudice and Zombies"width: 10%; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;"||rating=4[[image:Doescher_Will.5jpg|genre=Humourleft|summarylink=Ah, the benefits to a good book of a classic first linehttps://www. 'Call me Ishmaelamazon.' 'It was a bright cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteenco.' Who can forget Iain Banks' 'It was the day my grandmother exploded'uk/gp/product/159474985X? Or those timeless words by Jane Austen, 'It is a truth universally acknowledged that a zombie in possession of brains must be in want of more brains.'|amazonukie=UTF8&tag=thebookbag-21&linkCode=as2&camp=1634&creative=6738&creativeASIN=<amazonuk>1594743347</amazonuk>}}159474985X]]
{{newreview
|author=Harry Hill
|title=Tim The Tiny Horse At Large
|rating=4
|genre=Humour
|summary=It's been a while since Tim and Fly's [[Tim the Tiny Horse by Harry Hill|last adventures]], and changes are afoot in Tim's tiny world: Fly is getting married to his girlfriend. Tim's a little worried because they've only known each other for a week. The marriage goes ahead, and Tim finds himself kicking his heels, so he gets a pet. And so the brief episodes in the life of a horse who lives in a matchbox continue.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0571244157</amazonuk>
}}
{{newreview|authorstyle=Spike Milligan"vertical-align: top; text-align: left;"|title=The Magical World of Milligan|rating=4.5|genre=Confident Readers|summary=Some people you just have to love. It[[William Shakespeare's the law. Spike Milligan was always fantastic, and he's much missed. He's got Force Doth Awaken: Star Wars Part the perfect mix of nonsense, heart, and surreal humour. He speaks to people of all ages, and he's just plain lovely. |amazonukSeventh by Ian Doescher]]===<amazonuk>1905264844</amazonuk>}}
[[image:4.5star.jpg|link=Category:{{{newreview|author=Sam Savage|title=The Cry of the Sloth|rating=3.5}}} Star Reviews]] [[:Category:Science Fiction|genre=General Science Fiction|summary=Meet Andrew Whittaker. In some untold time of recent American history, he is forced through a failed marriage and an artistic temperament at odds with so many other people, to let properties to tenants he does not like, for $120 a month. The lodgers might not like the state of the buildings - ceilings falling through and so on - but that's another matter. He would much prefer to be left alone in front of his little Olivetti typewriter and create art. He runs a literary journal]], of a kind, called "Soap", which no-one likes, no-one reads (and often, with dodgy, cheap printing, no-one could physically read it anyway), and which makes him poorer in time, money and spirit.[[:Category:Humour|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0297856499</amazonuk>}}Humour]]
{{newreview|author=Christopher Moore|title=You Suck|rating=4|genre=Humour|summary=You know that old adage about books A long time ago, in a galaxy far away, there was a man called William Shakespeare, who was able to create a series of dramatic histories full of machinations most foul, rulers most evil and rebellious heroes and covers? Well this is a case in pointheroines most sturdy. You may or may not have noticed the cinematic version of his original stage play for ''The title isnForce Doth Awaken''t great, but here at last we get the cover design for the paperback imprint isactual script, likecomplete with annoying-in-different-ways-to-before droids anew, duh!returning heroes from elsewhere in his oeuvre, and people keeping it in the pitsfamily til it hurts. It And if you need further encouragement, don't forget his audience only demanded three parts of Henry VI – here the series is so uncool…so unrep-resent-ative of popular we're on to part seven – surely making this over twice as good… [[William Shakespeare's the Force Doth Awaken: Star Wars Part the book. This is not a cocktail thing. Not even a "Bloody Mary" thing. Seventh by Ian Doescher|Full Review]]
Well, except for the tiny bit that is, but you'll discover that in due course<!-- Goss -->|-| style="width: 10%; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;"|[[image:Goss_600.jpg|left|amazonuklink=<amazonuk>1841498092<https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/amazonuk>}}1785942719?ie=UTF8&tag=thebookbag-21&linkCode=as2&camp=1634&creative=6738&creativeASIN=1785942719]]
{{newreview
|author=Hugh Murr and Sid Nigtures
|title=Cyber Sign Offs
|rating=2
|genre=Humour
|summary=I admit I had the wrong end of the stick when it came to this book, before I opened it at least. I had assumed it was a collection of real-life on-line signatures - we've all seen them, those straplines people have on all their forum posts. The obvious response would have been along the lines of 'fair enough, but why is this a book in this day and age, and not a website?'. But no. This is a collection of dialogues between two people - shall we call them Sue deNim and Allie Bye, who have a line or two to say to each other, and a made-up name (sorry, make that May Dupp-Name) with which to sign it off. Much jolly nonsense ensues.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1904312497</amazonuk>
}}
{{newreview|authorstyle=Tim Fitzhigham |title=All at Sea"vertical-align: One Man. One Bathtub. One Very Bad Ideatop; text-align: Conquering the Channel in a Piece of Plumbingleft;"||rating=4.5|genre=Travel|summary=Once more my life is made easy by saying this book does just what it claims on the cover - takes a narrator [[Doctor Who: Now We Are Six Hundred: A Collection of zesty, wacky humour, throws him into an unlikely situation Time Lord Verse (a bathDr Who) by James Goss and gets him to do something unusual (row it across the Channel - and then beyond). This despite the fact he was the world's worst sculler at University.|amazonukRussell T Davies]]===<amazonuk>1848090269</amazonuk>}}
[[image:4.5star.jpg|link=Category:{{newreview|author=Simon Brett{rating}}} Star Reviews]] [[:Category:Children's Rhymes and Verse|title=Blotto, Twinks and the Ex-KingChildren's Daughter|rating=4|genre=Humour|summary=There can be few people who have written eighty books without me even having picked up one of them. At least, Rhymes and at lastVerse]], I have redressed that fault in the case of Simon Brett[[:Category:Science Fiction|Science Fiction]], and have come to the conclusion there are 79 more that will be worth investigating. Here we meet for the first time Blotto (posh idiotic son of a dowager duchess) and Twinks (posh brilliant genius sister to Blotto), their family, their surroundings, and the corpse inconveniently disturbing a dinner party.[[:Category:Humour|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1845299353</amazonuk>}}Humour]]
{{newreview|author=Karl Pilkington|title=Karlology|rating=4|genre=Humour|summary=The Radio Five film critic Mark Kermode has a rule when reviewing comediesConsider the Doctor. If Just how many birthday and Christmas gifts must he laughs more than five times then have to hand out each year, were he to keep in touch with even half of his companions? He would certainly need a few novelty gifts for some of them, say, for example, whimsical books of verse that pithily encapsulate the film deserves its billing as life of a comedyTime Lord and that of some of his friends and enemies. If that rule was applied to Karl Pilkington's new book Karlology then As luck would have it would easily fit into , he has the category for there are laugh aplenty space in his TARDIS to stock up in this strangeadvance, amusing so my advice to him – sorry, her – would be to pop along to his local Earth-based book emporium and charming little bookget himself ready. And if you're working on a shorter timescale, with a shorter lifespan, and thinking perhaps just one gift season ahead, well my advice is pretty much the same.[[Doctor Who: Now We Are Six Hundred: A Collection of Time Lord Verse (Dr Who) by James Goss and Russell T Davies|amazonuk=<amazonuk>140533746X</amazonuk>}}Full Review]]
{{newreview<!-- Ingram -->|author=Joe Stretch-|titlestyle=Wildlife"width: 10%; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;"|rating=3[[image:Ingram_Kammie.jpg|genre=Humourleft|summarylink=The word ''Twitter'' doesn't occur in Joe Stretch's vocabulary, but that's what his book is abouthttps://www. Life in the blogosphere, massively exaggerated, where people don't leave their desks but nevertheless come together (but never literally) in satisfying their deepest, darkest desiresamazon. If I've made it sound even faintly exciting, believe me, Joe Stretch is a fantasist with realist tendenciesco. What he is after is laughter; what he produces is a virtual simulacrum. Sniggeryuk/gp/product/1785451995?ie=UTF8&tag=thebookbag-pokery, jiggery-jokery, he tinkers with the twilight zone of a future-scenario where, for reasons beyond all understanding, some robotic and literal Dickhead (i.e. a man with a dick fixed to his forehead – I kid you not) decides to target a few selected humans for a make-over in his own image. Given that virtual worlds exist to pull in punters who don't like themselves in the real one, and their main purpose is to make money, one's only question must be: why?|amazonuk21&linkCode=as2&camp=1634&creative=6738&creativeASIN=<amazonuk>0099532077</amazonuk>}}1785451995]]
{{newreview
|author=Michael Marr
|title=Three Jumpers
|rating=5
|genre=Literary Fiction
|summary=When Bardolph Middle placed an ad in the paper proclaiming he was a writer, he thought he might get the odd request to write a speech or two. Maybe, if he was very lucky, a company might ask him to conceive an entire marketing plan and advertising campaign. What he never expected was this job offer…
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1906558485</amazonuk>
}}
{{newreview|authorstyle=Rosy Barnes"vertical-align: top; text-align: left;"||title=Sadomasochism for Accountants|rating=3|genre=Women's Fiction|summary[[Conversations with Kammie by Annie Ingram]]==Humour's very personal, isn't it? If you dig films like ''Shaun of the Dead'' and ''Hot Fuzz'', I predict you'll love this chick lit parody. It's anarchic and very British comedy tradition. If you're into the conventions of good writing, you may find it a little painful. Nevertheless, I enjoyed plenty of moments in Rosy Barnes' first novel.|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0714531812</amazonuk>}}
{{newreview|author=Lady Annabel Goldsmith[[image:4star.jpg|titlelink=CopperCategory: A Dog's Life|{{{rating=4}}} Star Reviews]] [[:Category:Pets|genre=Pets]], [[:Category:Humour|summary=Copper was one of a litter of dogs born to a stray bitch and who was 'adopted' by Lady Annabel Goldsmith - or might it be the other way round?. Here he tells his story in his own words as transcribed for him by his owner. He's got his own priorities – and obedience is not one of them – along with a roving spirit. It's perhaps fortunate that he's a dog as this allows you to call him 'cheeky' and 'charming'. If he was a human being 'randy' and 'arrogant' would be two of the first words which came to mind.|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0751538205</amazonuk>}}Humour]]
{{newreview|author=Tim Moore|title=It was something of a relief when I Believe in Yesterday: My Adventures in Living History|rating=4|genre=Humour|summary=Common opinion encountered Annie Ingram and her cocker spaniel Kammie. You see, Annie knows something which has it that the television programme ''Time Team'' did been self-evident to me for a lot for the public image long time: dogs are perfectly capable of archaeologists – bringing them out communicating with humans and not just on a level of their holes in the groundfood!, and making them seem like excitingwalk! or play!. You do require extensive training to become fluent, interesting people with a good way of putting but most dogs will be perfectly willing to give their knowledge across. However it was clearly a much harder task when it came time to those background artistes they teach you and all you have sometimes, walking up to do is listen. Annie has studied hard: Kammie has trained her well and down in Roman centurion gear, or living the historical lifestyle as a re-enactmentpair have allowed us to share some of their conversations.[[Conversations with Kammie by Annie Ingram|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0224077813</amazonuk>}}Full Review]]
{{newreview<!-- Harris -->|author=L Vaughan Spencer-|titlestyle=Don't Be Needy Be Succeedy"width: 10%; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;"|rating=4[[image:Harris_Glass.jpg|genrelink=Humour|summaryhttp://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1908943823/ref=Are you underperforming in your business and personal livesnosim? Do you underestimate the importance of good hair and moisturised skin in achieving your life goals? Are you stumbling through life in a Fasttag=thebookbag-Moving Business Environment (FMBE) without a motivational mantra to guide you? Then you need this book. As ''The A to Zee of Motivitality'', this is a dictionary of achievement from a man who can teach you how to succeed like a toothless budgie.|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1846681634</amazonuk>}}21]]
{{newreview
|author=Mark Crick
|title=Sartre's Sink: The Great Writers' Complete Book of DIY
|rating=4
|genre=Humour
|summary=''Sartre's Sink'' comprises fourteen short story parodies of some of the world's best known writers – the twist being that the stories are all about undertaking some mundane DIY task such as tiling a bathroom (Dostoevsky) or reglazing a window (Milan Kundera). So far it sounds a bit like some pretentious Oxbridge student twaddle. You can just imagine how the idea came up over an over-ripe Brie and an underrated bottle of 1963 Taylor's port. It also rather smacks of that Radio 4 programme which I detest with an absolute passion - I can't even stand writing its name, ugh - ''Quote Unquote'', in which parodies do feature, read out by smug self-congratulatory writer darlings (you can tell I don't like it, can't you?). However, dear readers, this book is rather enjoyable and I speak as someone who is rather less versed in the writings of this famous lot than I care to admit.
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>1847080472</amazonuk>
}}
{{newreview|authorstyle=Eric Nakagawa"vertical-align: top; text-align: left;"|title=I Can Has Cheezburger |rating=4|genre=Pets|summary=''I Can Has Cheezburger'', is a clever and witty anthology of some of the best pictures and captions from the fantastic [http://icanhascheezburger.com/ lolcats website] of the same name. [The site has been growing in popularity in recent months, and so it was inevitable that a book would soon hit the shelves. Choosing which pics to include in the book could not have been an easy task, and some Breaking of the old favourites are there, alongside some less well known ones.|amazonukLiam Glass by Charles Harris]]===<amazonuk>0340977574</amazonuk>}}
[[image:3star.jpg|link=Category:{{newreview{rating}}} Star Reviews]] [[:Category:Crime|Crime]], [[:Category:Humour|Humour]] Teenager Liam Glass is mugged and stabbed yards from his Camden flat. As the boy lies comatose, desperate journalist Jason Worthington scrabbles for the inside scoop, tired police officer Andy Rockham searches for a missing tape, harried politician Jamila Hasan fights for re-election, distraught mother Katrina Glass waits by her son, and gym-owner Royland simply finds himself in the wrong place at the wrong time. We follow this host of ensemble characters in a bleak, kaleidoscopic satire of modern media. [[The Breaking of Liam Glass by Charles Harris|Full Review]] <!-- LENTE -->|author-| style=Ian Crofton"width: 10%; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;"|[[image:Lente_10.jpg|titlelink=History Without the Boring Bitshttp://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1683690222/ref=nosim?tag=thebookbag-21]] |ratingstyle=5"vertical-align: top; text-align: left;"||genre=History==[[Ten Dead Comedians: A Murder Mystery by Fred Van Lente]]=== [[image:4star.jpg|summarylink=I was never Category:{{{rating}}} Star Reviews]] [[:Category:Humour|Humour]] Nine comedians are invited to a remote Caribbean island under the guise of working with Dustin Walker, a comedic legend. Each fits neatly into one of the archetypal comic stereotypes: Steve, the washed-up has-been who has fallen far from his early days; Zoe, the rising female star with a new stand-up special coming soon; Dante, who went from being a kid on the streets to the hardest working road comic in the business; Oliver, the child-like prop comic who can't get any respect from his peers; Janet, the insult comic who is past her prime; TJ, the nightly variety show host with a reputation for historyharassing his female colleagues and guest acts; Ruby, the ultra-feminist YouTuber and Blogger with a chip on her shoulder; and in fact left William, whose redneck character ''Billy the dregs of Contractor'' is a far cry from his real personality as a history teacher in tatters posh millionaire. Of course, all nine agree because ''when I scraped through with God almighty walks down on a Dbeam of light and asks for your help, what the hell else are you going to say?'' [[Ten Dead Comedians: A Murder Mystery by Fred Van Lente|Full Review]] <!-- Scott -->|-| style="width: 10%; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;"|[[image:Scott_Eliz.jpg|link=http://www.amazon.co. Stilluk/dp/1788037006/ref=nosim?tag=thebookbag-21]] | style="vertical-align: top; text-align: left;"|===[[Elizabeth, history William... and Me by S Lynn Scott]]=== [[image:4.5star.jpg|link=Category:{{{rating}}} Star Reviews]] [[:Category:Humour|Humour]] Ally is an odd thing – written ordinary woman with teenage children, a husband and a job. Then comes the day when ordinariness flies out of the window. It's not a coincidence that it's the same day she finds Queen Elizabeth I in the pantry and the Bard of Avon in her bath. What's she going to do? Well, Elizabeth and Will have their own ideas about that! [[Elizabeth, William... and Me by S Lynn Scott|Full Review]] <!-- Rodford -->|-| style="width: 10%; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;"|[[image:Rodford_Surgeon.jpg|link=http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/178565005X/ref=nosim?tag=thebookbag-21]] | style="vertical-align: top; text-align: left;"|===[[The Surgeon's Case: George Kocharyan Mystery 2 by E G Rodford]]=== [[image:4star.jpg|link=Category:{{{rating}}} Star Reviews]] [[:Category:Crime|Crime]], [[:Category:Humour|Humour]] In the winners second instalment of coursethis series, Private Investigator George Kocharyan has been hired by a well-known local man to track down some missing valuables. Bill Galbraith, a world-famous surgeon at Cambridge's Addenbrooke's Hospital who hosts a popular medical television programme, and annoyingly biased has had his briefcase stolen by his live-in my mind towards domestic servant, Aurora. According to Galbraith, this briefcase contains confidential notes concerning an important patient of his at the plainhospital. George agrees to look into the theft, assuming it will be a relatively easy and straightforward case – little does he know, he's about to enter a world of deceit and dysfunction. [[The Surgeon's Case: George Kocharyan Mystery 2 by E G Rodford|Full Review]] <!-- Jordan -->|-| style="width: 10%; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;"|[[image:Jordan_Tiny.jpg|link=http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1760293814/ref=nosim?tag=thebookbag-21]] | style="vertical-align: top; text-align: left;"|===[[Our Tiny, Useless Hearts by Toni Jordan]]=== [[image:5star.jpg|link=Category:{{{rating}}} Star Reviews]] [[:Category:Women's Fiction|Women's Fiction]], [[:Category:Humour|Humour]] As predicted by Caroline and Janice's mother on Caroline and Henry's wedding day, their marriage is over, albeit 15 years and two daughters further along than predicted. Indeed, this is definitely not a good weekend for Janice to be babysitting at Caroline's house. There's no real reason to remember the order split and the awkwardness of Henry VIIIthe girls' schoolteacher being the other woman for a start. Then there's six wivesthat mistaken identity moment involving the neighbours. At least Janice is well adjusted and over her ex-husband Alec. She still dreams of him, yes, but we can only relish it's so over! Just as well really… guess who's at the door? [[Our Tiny, Useless Hearts by Toni Jordan|Full Review]] <!-- Taylor -->|-| style="width: 10%; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;"|[[image:Taylor_Scilly.jpg|link=http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/178475515X/ref=nosim?tag=thebookbag-21]] | style="vertical-align: top; text-align: left;"|===[[The Life of a Scilly Sergeant by Colin Taylor]]=== [[image:4.5star.jpg|link=Category:{{{rating}}} Star Reviews]] [[:Category:Travel|Travel]], [[:Category:Humour|Humour]] Meet the Isles of Scilly. (I know they should be called that – the author provides a handy guide to the etiquette of their name, their nature and location, etc.) For our more distant readers, they're several chunks of granite rock out in the one credited Atlantic, where Cornwall is pointing, with polydactylismjust 2, 200 permanent residents. They're big on tourism, and big on growing flowers in the tropical climate the Gulf Stream bequeaths them – although the weather is bad enough to turn any car to a third nipple rust bucket within years. They're so wee, and whatnot (the second so idyllic-seeming, especially at night, you can be mistaken for thinking there would be no need for a police presence. But there is – at least two working at any one time. And oneof them in recent years has been Colin Taylor, in fact who has done his official duty – whoever alongside maintaining a well-known online existence, which has brought to life all the whimsical comedy of his work. [[The Life of a Scilly Sergeant by Colin Taylor|Full Review]] <!-- Lloyd -->|-| style="width: 10%; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;"|[[image:Lloyd_Twas.jpg|link=http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1472125118/ref=nosim?tag=thebookbag-21]] | style="vertical-align: top; text-align: left;"|===[['Twas the Fight Before Christmas: A Parody by Josie Lloyd and Emlyn Rees]]=== [[image:3.5star.jpg|link=Category:{{{rating}}} Star Reviews]] [[:Category:Humour|Humour]] It's Christmas Eve and Mum has arranged everything. All she now has to do is await the arrival of the relatives and the food shopping delivery. Little does Mum know that was)those two elements alone have the potential to ruin everything. [['Twas the Fight Before Christmas: A Parody by Josie Lloyd and Emlyn Rees|Full Review]] <!-- Phinn -->|-| style="width: 10%; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;"|[[image:Phinn_Virgin.jpg|left|link=http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1444779400/ref=nosim?tag=thebookbag-21]] | style="vertical-align: top; text-align: left;"|===[[The Virgin Mary's Got Nits by Gervase Phinn]]=== [[image:4.5star.jpg|amazonuklink=Category:{{{rating}}} Star Reviews]] [[:Category:Humour|Humour]], [[:Category:Anthologies|Anthologies]] Christmas in our house is the time we tend to get on a plane and head to either sun or snow, anywhere that is far, far away from the madness at home, last minute dashes to the shops on Christmas Eve, and food cupboard stockpiles that would imply supermarkets are shutting for a month, nor a mere 36 hours. But I do remember the feeling of Christmas when I was younger, back when it was magical, and back when you knew exactly what the season would bring with carol concerts and school nativities and Christmas parties. This book is an anthology of those moments, and it took me right back to the wonder of Christmas as a child. [[The Virgin Mary's Got Nits by Gervase Phinn|Full Review]] <amazonuk!-- North -->1847243746|-| style="width: 10%; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;"|[[image:North_Romeo.jpg|link=http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/0356508536/ref=nosim?tag=thebookbag-21]] | style="vertical-align: top; text-align: left;"|===[[Romeo and/or Juliet by Ryan North]]=== [[image:3.5star.jpg|link=Category:{{{rating}}} Star Reviews]] [[:Category:Humour|Humour]] For all those who think tragedy plots are too restricted and prescribed, read on. In these pages you too will see that Romeo had lots of options en route to hitting the bottle. Likewise, she could have turned away from her predestined path at no end of junctures. And to what result? Well, happy marriage and a kid called Ben, because the leads have just banged people's heads together and stopped the quarrelling, or Death by Tybalt (him) or a long life running an establishment curing murderous women, such as a Lady M (her). [[Romeo and/or Juliet by Ryan North|Full Review]] </amazonuk!-- DO NOT REMOVE ANYTHING BELOW THIS LINE -->}|}
