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A review by jonh
The McSweeney's Joke Book of Book Jokes by McSweeney's Publishing, John Hodgman, Jared Young
4.0
What's not to love about McSweeney's? Goofy wit. Absurd premises. And above all, I love their commitment to telling a good story.
We've all seen, read or heard comedy that starts with, "Hey, I wonder what it'd be like if . . . " and does very little to elaborate on that initial premise. That's what turned me off to MadTV for a while. Unlike the magazine, sketches felt very one-joke, catch-phrase heavy.
McSweeney's, by contrast, nine times out of ten takes a premise and runs with it, mining every potential for comedy out of it. Gear all those premises to the foibles of classic and contemporary literature, and you've got yourself a very funny book, my friend. And best of all, you don't need to know the source material in order to appreciate: a good story, after all, is a good story.
My favorite bits were those that mimicked an author's voice in service of an absurd premise. I've never read John Updike, but I would gladly watch any show he wrote for prime-time TV. And bedtime stories by Thom Yorke? I would fall sound asleep every night, listening to those.
Give it a skim, even if you just like "literature" in general. I can't guarantee your favorite author is lovingly mocked herein, but with the plethora of contributors and subjects, there's bound to be something you'll enjoy.
We've all seen, read or heard comedy that starts with, "Hey, I wonder what it'd be like if . . . " and does very little to elaborate on that initial premise. That's what turned me off to MadTV for a while. Unlike the magazine, sketches felt very one-joke, catch-phrase heavy.
McSweeney's, by contrast, nine times out of ten takes a premise and runs with it, mining every potential for comedy out of it. Gear all those premises to the foibles of classic and contemporary literature, and you've got yourself a very funny book, my friend. And best of all, you don't need to know the source material in order to appreciate: a good story, after all, is a good story.
My favorite bits were those that mimicked an author's voice in service of an absurd premise. I've never read John Updike, but I would gladly watch any show he wrote for prime-time TV. And bedtime stories by Thom Yorke? I would fall sound asleep every night, listening to those.
Give it a skim, even if you just like "literature" in general. I can't guarantee your favorite author is lovingly mocked herein, but with the plethora of contributors and subjects, there's bound to be something you'll enjoy.