Schadenfreude: The Little Book of Black Delights [Kindle Edition]

I saw this book at a friend's house, thought it looked fun, meant to buy it, looked it up on Amazon, discovered that there was a Kindle version, and being a cheapskate, bought that. Well, I made a mistake. My mistake was not in buying the book, but in buying the eBook version. This is, as a friend might say `a bathroom book'. It's not really for sitting down and reading cover to cover. Like Schott's Miscellany, it's a small volume best administered in small doses. Dip into it for a few pages, then again on your next visit. Don't forget that a queue might be forming outside the door, desperate to use the facilities. You are supposed to be attending to serious business, so try not to giggle or guffaw - it will give you away.

The author is clearly a clever chap and might even have passed his `O'level Latin at school. Not sure if there is an `A' level in Dog Latin, but he'd have cruised that one with a distinction.

Through his erudite, tongue-in-cheek wit I have discovered that I am a callidinfanophiliac, an extrunophiliac, suffer from inauctophilia and am definitely guilty of fracurrophilia. Don't tell my family, but they probably already have suspicions. I have also clearly identified friends, family and acquaintances who are chaophiliacs, nimbuphiliacs as well as indulging in nothesophilia and potestaphilia. It's quite serious! One of my friends has such a bad case of niovemophilia, he has a book coming out about it.

This small book is not without controversy. Tim Lihoreau has clearly put his neck on the line by `outing' Mrs Windsor aka QE2 as a vigintiunphiliac. I suppose that's his MBE for services to dog Latin and humour out of the window?

All good fun, but don't be a cheapskate like me. Buy the hard copy version. It's better and handier if there's a paper emergency. Five stars!