- Paperback: 64 pages
- Publisher: Oval Books; 2Rev Ed edition (1 Mar 1999)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 1902825160
- ISBN-13: 978-1902825168
- Product Dimensions: 11.1 x 7.8 x 0.6 cm
- Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 769,675 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
The Xenophobe's Guide to the Americans
and over one million other books are available for Amazon Kindle .
Learn more
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Did you know you can trade in your old books for an Amazon.co.uk Gift Card to spend on the things you want? Plus, get an extra £5 Gift Certificate when you trade in books worth £10 or more before June 30, 2012. Visit the Books Trade-In Store for more details. |
|
There is a newer edition of this item:
|
Product details |
Product Description
Synopsis
The character, values and foibles of the Americans.
Suggested Tags from Similar Products(What's this?)Be the first one to add a relevant tag (keyword that's strongly related to this product)
|
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
23 of 24 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
An excellent level one primer on the American psyche. I got this book hoping for a laugh on us and to get an objective opinion on my fellow countrymen for an article I'm writing. It was too true to be funny. ;-) Not insulting, just plain true. I only found one or two mistakes and they were minor, dealing with slang that could be different in different regions of the States. There were a couple of parts that made me wonder, "You mean it's not like that all over the world?" (For example, the part about how every event in American life is structured so that someone wins and someone loses.)
For such a small book, it does just what it sets out to do, cover the surface. Worth the £.
For a more in-depth and very funny primer on Americans and the American psyche, I highly recommend Bill Bryson's "Notes from a Big Country" (US title: "I'm Just a Stranger Here Myself").
Format:Paperback
This is a short introduction to stereotypes about US people as seen by themselves. The Xenophobe books tend to be written by authors of the nationality they portray, though people who have been abroad, so that they have some perspective on their national foibles yet cannot be accused of ignorant stereotyping. I can't help but think that the intended market still is the own country. I laughed a lot reading the Xenophobe's guide to the Swedes, but found fewer chuckles in this bok on Americans, possibly because of missing shared assumptions about what is ridiculous.
This book is a couple of decades old now. One wonders if the US psyche has changed since it was written and the Culture of Fear would feature more prominently today.
This book is a couple of decades old now. One wonders if the US psyche has changed since it was written and the Culture of Fear would feature more prominently today.
11 of 16 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Americans don't seem to have a sense of humour about themselves. This book is not funny, it totally misses its point. In comparison to Xenophobes Guide to the British or the Germans, which both tell a hilarious truth, this book just wants to stay clear of any possible insult. And sorry, that is not what this series is about. This series describes various nations in a stereotypical way and nevertheless bears some truth. It ridicules specific ways of life, but in a "we like you anyway"-fashion. Don't buy this one!
Would you like to see more reviews about this item?
Were these reviews helpful?
Let us know
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
