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evermck's review against another edition
5.0
This is SUCH a funny book! There is a gem on every page!
iophil's review
3.0
Un libretto molto curioso e abbastanza interessante. Sono sempre stato attratto dalle "stranezze", specie in ambito cartaceo, e qui dentro se ne trovano a bizzeffe.
La traduzione, in diversi casi, fa perdere molto dell'originale umorismo, ma alcuni titoli sono impagabili.
In generale, se amate i libri, anche come oggetti e non solo per quanto si trova al loro interno, penso sia meritevole di una sfogliata: un sorriso, da qualche parte, ve lo strapperà certamente.
La traduzione, in diversi casi, fa perdere molto dell'originale umorismo, ma alcuni titoli sono impagabili.
In generale, se amate i libri, anche come oggetti e non solo per quanto si trova al loro interno, penso sia meritevole di una sfogliata: un sorriso, da qualche parte, ve lo strapperà certamente.
outcolder's review against another edition
3.0
Inexplicably, the Austrian National Library has two copies of this book, one of which I read in one sitting in the large reading room there this morning. The seriousness of the setting, surrounded by students, scholars and more than one anti-social lunatic, made the work seem even more ridiculous by comparison. After too many pages of Beavis and Butthead reactions to mainly Victorian titles, the authors finally get down to business with a section about books with an extremely narrow focus. For example, there is a book analyzing car accidents involving moose. While others in that reading room, deep within a Hapsburg Palace, typed notes about scholarly topics into their laptops, yours truly was scribbling, “The Strange Story of False Teeth” by John Woodforde and other titles of questionable erudition. “Wall Paintings by Snake Charmers in Tanganyika” also made my list.
Necessarily subjective, the compilers mentioned more than one title that I legitimately find interesting, and at least one I had only recently seen cited in a book I’ve just read. So if my life plan is to join the lunatics who hang around National Libraries, I seem to be winning.
I have to qualify my Beavis and Butthead crack, though, since I often giggle at funny names and unintended double-entendres, as much as anyone with monkey ancestors. One of the authors mentioned in a list of awkward names, Ludwig von Baldass, has been honored with a street name here in Vienna, and consequently an U-Bahn station, a photo of which has been my Facebook banner picture for a few weeks... so glass houses, etc. There were a few times while reading when I had to suppress laughter so as not to disturb the ambitious readers around me. Kudos to those responsible for this edition at a time when library catalogs and used bookstore inventories were not searchable from home. A milestone in bibliomania, long may Bizarre Books be preserved in temperature controlled, low humidity compact shelving.
Necessarily subjective, the compilers mentioned more than one title that I legitimately find interesting, and at least one I had only recently seen cited in a book I’ve just read. So if my life plan is to join the lunatics who hang around National Libraries, I seem to be winning.
I have to qualify my Beavis and Butthead crack, though, since I often giggle at funny names and unintended double-entendres, as much as anyone with monkey ancestors. One of the authors mentioned in a list of awkward names, Ludwig von Baldass, has been honored with a street name here in Vienna, and consequently an U-Bahn station, a photo of which has been my Facebook banner picture for a few weeks... so glass houses, etc. There were a few times while reading when I had to suppress laughter so as not to disturb the ambitious readers around me. Kudos to those responsible for this edition at a time when library catalogs and used bookstore inventories were not searchable from home. A milestone in bibliomania, long may Bizarre Books be preserved in temperature controlled, low humidity compact shelving.
ih8janeausten's review against another edition
1.0
don't even bother reading this book. Big waste of time.
papalbina's review against another edition
4.0
i cried laughing at some of the titles... my favourite chapter: AUTHORS - RIGHT OR WRONG. it was hilarious xDD
jacqui_des's review against another edition
2.0
The only thing that comes to mind when describing this book is 'meh'. [b:Fish Who Answer the Telephone and Other Bizarre Books|2439147|Fish Who Answer the Telephone and Other Bizarre Books|Russell Ash|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1337174795s/2439147.jpg|2446341] by [a:Russell Ash|23126|Russell Ash|http://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1311576421p2/23126.jpg] is simply a catalogue of 'bizarre' books either due to their titles, authors or subject matter.
Memorable Book Titles / Authors
Memorable Book Titles / Authors
"Drummer Dick's Discharge"
"Cock Tugs: A Short History of the Liverpool Screw Towing Company"
"Big Dick: The King of Negroes"
"Queer Doings in the Navy"
"Planet of the Knob Heads"
"The Abuse of Elderly People: A Handbook for Professionals"
"Natural Breast Enlargement with Total Mind Power: How to Use the Other 90 Per Cent of Your Mind to Increase the Size of Your Breasts"
"How to be Happy Though Married"
"Wrestling for Gay Guys"
"Eating the Baby Jesus"
"Sex After Death"
stephaniereads9b0f8's review against another edition
3.0
Wow, there were some weird ones in here. An odd read.
hyacinth_girl's review against another edition
3.0
I feel a little lame counting this as a "read" book, since it is literally only the titles of books, and no descriptions. However, I decided to put this on my list because of the sheer hilarity of it. There are some total busts, which is to be expected when a book is comprised solely of book titles. But, there are also some that are so hilarious that I was cry-laughing for almost five minutes (ok, let's be real, 2 minutes, maybe). Anyway, it would take only about 10 minutes to read through this book, and I totally recommend that everyone does it if they are in need of a laugh.
embossedsilver's review against another edition
3.0
I thought a book that is basically a list of strange, esoteric books would be perfect for me--considering my love for literature, my interest in strange subjects, and my mild-OCD obsession with lists (hence my being on this site). But I had a hard time staying focused while reading this book. It is as though it is designed to be glanced though; reading a list for pages at a time, especially when I do much of my reading before bed, caused all the content to become a blur. I also wished for more actual content--some of the enteries also has bits of text, and that gave it more weight. It is certainly not a bad book, just not meant to be read in one sitting. The best part was the pictures of all these fantastic old book covers.