Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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33 of 36 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Its not Grumpy Old Men..., 23 Mar 2007
Please forgive the "Grumpy Old Men" reference but when I was given this book for Christmas I was expecting the usual tirade against the trivial problems of life; traffic wardens, modern music, political correctness etc. All very entertaining but all a bit early '00s. What a pleasant surprise to discover that IIJMOIES goes a little deeper. Wearing their leftiness on their sleeves the book has a real go at such things as The Daily Mail, politicians (New Labour and Tory) and ineffective trade union leaders. You might think that this all sound a bit worthy and, well, unfunny but you would be wrong.
The book, whilst making some serious points, still manages to be very funny. And it's very rude in places which won't be to everyone's taste but I found the swearing both big and clever. It also cleverly turns on its head traditional targets for ridicule; for example motorists who consider themselves an oppressed minority. The book's targets are not all serious by any means. Other subjects to be attacked include TV ads, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Chue Guevera merchandise. In fact one of the joys of this book is discovering that you are not, after all, the only person in the world to get worked up about, say, the phrase "hard-working families". Which is quite a comfort.
I didn't agree with all the views expressed in the book - for instance I am a big fan of Keane and am not afraid to admit it! - but the authors write with such humour and conviction it's hard to be offended.
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48 of 53 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Hillarious in parts, but patchy., 24 Nov 2006
The title of this book chimed quite well with my outlook, so I was delighted to receive it as a gift.
After reading it for a while I commented to a colleague that it read like extracts from a "lad's mag" and he told me that there was the origin of the idea and background of the authors.
I will say that a few times I was laughing out loud alone when I read some of the entries, some are truly hillarious, but, sadly, too many rely on a string of expletives (well used they can be humourous, but just repeating one 10 times just shows you were hung over the day you wrote that entry) to poke fun, rather than actually being insightful satire.
I notice there's now a Vol 2 - I won't be rushing out to buy it.
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35 of 44 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Absolutely Hysterical!, 26 Sep 2006
If ever there was a book that could rip to shreds, everything and everyone in modern society, this is the book. The huge amount of comical satire and mocking that appears in this alphabetical wonder is hysterical. When ever something annoys you, that you want to read about, in a contemptuous and mocking way, you will be sure to find it in this book. From the cheapness of FCUK, the daily mail and Live8 even the Commercialisation of "washed and ready to eat vegetables" - everything and anything that is annoying and pointless in this world we live in, is covered, in a humorous and diligent way, a perfect buy for every pessimist out there. This book is perfect for everyone. The title sums it up - it is a rhetorical question. The authors answer is obviously YES! Buy the book! You will not be disappointed!
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