- Unknown Binding: 352 pages
- Publisher: Plume Books; Reprint edition (May 2002)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0452283442
- ISBN-13: 978-0452283442
- Product Dimensions: 16.5 x 15.3 x 2 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 1,484,666 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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More About the Author
Product Description
Product Description
The Darwin Awards is the legendary web site which commemorates the remains of people who have improved our gene pool by killing themselves in really stupid ways! Practically everyone who is on the net has received a Darwin story in their e-mail at one time or another. It is one of those legendary web sites which has become part of the fabric of being on-line. Started in 1993 by biologist Wendy Northcutt she set out to collect together and authenticate stories of individuals around the world who, through their stupidity, have removed themselves from the gene pool. These are the people for whom warnings such as "coffee is hot" and "this superman cape does not enable the wearer to fly" were made ...
--This text refers to the
Paperback
edition.
About the Author
Wendy Northcutt is the bestselling author of The Darwin Awards. She majored in Molecular Biology at UC Berkeley, and worked in biological research. She manages the Darwin Awards website in her spare time and now works as an internet consultant.
--This text refers to the
Paperback
edition.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
180 stories, nearly all of which are hysterical, if not a little macabre. The book contains stories which don't ALL contain deaths, but there are some remarkably silly things that happen in this world - perfectly shown by the short stories within the book's covers.
Some truly magnificent moments have occured in the past 10 years, including urban legends (as they're called in the book) like the man who attached a JATO unit (HIGHLY explosive) to his car in the effort of getting somewhere in great haste.
Some of the stories are seemingly gruesome, and I'm not going to go into these - they're bad enough without having to tell them over again!
All in all, this book is brilliant. Each of the stories is written in a casual manner, normally with a suitable witty sentence to end each "disaster" (although the reader's meant to look on it differently).
This is essential to any reader collecting funny short stories, aswell as someone who needs a break from large, 1000+ page novels. The book itself isn't enough to keep you rivetted for days on end of solid reading - it's more for the casual reader in search of a good laugh, and I enjoyed every minute of it.
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This book's subject is the many weird, wonderful and downright stupid ways in which, as the author puts it "human beings have met their maker". Enjoyably sardonic (but never condescending) in tone, the author relates tales such as the one about the unfortunate show-off in "Guitars & Guns" with a real verve for storytelling and an acute eye for the more absurd things in life.
13 of 14 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I just looked at the American Amazon site for this book, where the average review gives it 2 stars. Er.... enough said.
OK, the whole premise is a bit macabre - celebrating those who improved the human gene pool by killing themselves. But please, give the book a chance and read it. I can assure you, the people it describes are NOT the ones who should reproduce. And it is DAMN funny!
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
The Award Winning Performance Goes To.......(You).......??????
THE DARWIN AWARDS By WENDY NORTHCUTT Takes A Vivid Look Into The Ingelligence Of The Human Animal. The Book Reveals That Many Of Us Don't Fall Short From The Glory Of Winning The... Read more
Published 18 days ago by Worthwich
funny!
very funny...wrong to laugh at the afflicted, but very very funny, think id happily read another one of these books!
Published 1 month ago by too young for a book club?
It is OK
Not as surprising and funny as I expected. It is probably better to read a few stories once in a while instead of trying the whole book at once.
Published 17 months ago by sadlobster
Tasteless Drivel
Aside from the poor writing and unfunny stories this book shows a clear lack basic empathy, aside from laughing at peoples unfortunate deaths the meta-message is one of eugenics,... Read more
Published 18 months ago by Mrs. C. A. Woods
Brilliant!
This book was hilarious. I am now seriously wondering how the human race has managed to survive for as long as it has. Read more
Published on 1 July 2009 by Blatant Biblioholic
Great Fun
This was a present for my son but we all had a laugh reading it!
Published on 15 Feb 2009 by Wes
Hilarious
This book is so funny, and great if you just want to read a few pages every now and again. I thoroughly enjoyed it - having stolen it off my dad (30 years my senior) who had been... Read more
Published on 27 Dec 2006 by Liz Coulter
Documented Gallows Humor
Before describing this book, let me just say that if you do not find death and mutilation humorous, avoid this book. Read more
Published on 25 Aug 2004 by Donald Mitchell
Hilarious, but also a warning to the creative/adventurous
If ever you needed proof that evolution is true and real, this is it. The survival of the fittest likewise means the death of the least fit, or in this case, the most stupid. Read more
Published on 23 Sep 2002 by L. Vanhelsuwe
Very amusing book.
You might start thinking yourself a bad person for laughing at some fo the ways the people in here have died, but some of them are just SO stupid they deserve to be laughed at. Read more
Published on 13 Mar 2002 by B. Taylor
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