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Chris Monks, John Warner 1st edit/1 print The Best of McSweeney's Internet Tendency 2013 [Hardcover] Chris Monks and John Warner [Hardcover] Chris Monks and John Warner
This rare and vintage book is a perfect addition to any bibliophile's collection
Hardcover
First published March 11, 2014
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 40 reviews
July 26, 2017
"It's Decorative Gourd Season, Mother****ers." What more do I need to say???
My other favorites were "Toto's 'Africa' by Ernest Hemingway," "SparkNotes: Goodnight Moon," and "It's Not You, It's Quantitative Cost-Benefit Analysis."
Check out my shellacked decorative vegetables, assholes.
My other favorites were "Toto's 'Africa' by Ernest Hemingway," "SparkNotes: Goodnight Moon," and "It's Not You, It's Quantitative Cost-Benefit Analysis."
Check out my shellacked decorative vegetables, assholes.
November 21, 2021
A fun read! Not always quite my type of humor and the writing styles blend together a little. Still, I do love the brilliance that comes from looking at dead ordinary things in life and going, "Hey. I can make fun of that."
February 4, 2014
Some of the classics in here are solid 5 starers: "It's Decorative Gourd Season, Motherfuckers," "I'm Comic Sans, Asshole," "In Which I Fix My Girlfriend's Grandparents' Wi-Fi and Am Hailed as a Conquering Hero." If you've not read these before, a) you should be embarrassed, and b) go and read them online right now and then go buy this book, because these essays deserve to live with you in your house in hard copy.
A very thoughtful friend gave me this book as a gift, and while I at first expected that it would just be a nice thing to own, to leaf through occasionally, I ended up reading it cover to cover. Great to revisit the old favs, which never fail to deliver, and to come across some new beauts I'd somehow managed to never read before.
I read most of these essays first thing in the morning, before getting out of bed. I just grabbed the white book off the top of the pile on my nightstand and read a piece or two. I have the extreme luxury of doing this because I don't have children. Highly recommended way to use this book. You'll start the day off right.
A very thoughtful friend gave me this book as a gift, and while I at first expected that it would just be a nice thing to own, to leaf through occasionally, I ended up reading it cover to cover. Great to revisit the old favs, which never fail to deliver, and to come across some new beauts I'd somehow managed to never read before.
I read most of these essays first thing in the morning, before getting out of bed. I just grabbed the white book off the top of the pile on my nightstand and read a piece or two. I have the extreme luxury of doing this because I don't have children. Highly recommended way to use this book. You'll start the day off right.
November 3, 2016
Token humor.
Why this loses its crowning star should be fairly obvious to everyone reading this sentence:
Firstly, all of the pieces found in this book can also be found online. That’s right, if you have half a brain, you would go to father Google and politely ask him to look up whichever scribbling you wish to read. Instead of buying this book. From Amazon. Thus making Amazon more money. And if you weren’t already aware, Goodreads is owned by Amazon. It has gamified me into writing yet more reviews, which further ties me (read: tsundoku/addict) into the ecosystem. Diabolical.
Secondly, because my abode does not include a television (which you of course knew) but does come with a coffee table, I decided to populate said table with light reading. To my dismay, nobody who has come over has ever bothered to pick up a single one of the tomes sitting on that sad block of wood. So this just sat there all alone for months, more of an accessory than anything else, until yesterday when I at last dignified it with a thorough pore-through.
Thirdly, this book follows the trend of online blogs which upon gaining popularity decide to publish existing content in the form of a book (under the guise of curation) in order to extract yet more capital from nitwits such as yours truly. Yours truly is now decidedly in the same league as those who slurp up pumpkin spice lattes and car insurance advertisements, which is to say, humanity, which is to say, rudimentary, which is to say, worthless.
Lastly, it demonstrated a remarkable failure to include my favorite piece.
As you can see, I’ve listed four demerits, which if I were a reasonable person would peg this at a solid one star by means of subtraction. Clearly I’m not. You see, such a rating would reflect poorly on myself and my own ability to curate, and needless to say the damage my ego would suffer is simply not worth moving my mouse a few centimeters to the left.
The best of the best
WHAT I WOULD BE THINKING ABOUT IF I WERE BILLY JOEL DRIVING TOWARD A HOLIDAY PARTY WHERE I KNEW THERE WAS GOING TO BE A PIANO
HELLO STRANGER ON THE STREET COULD YOU PLEASE TELL ME HOW TO TAKE CARE OF MY BABY
I’M COMIC SANS, ASSHOLE
A DAY IN THE LIFE OF A TARGET-MARKET FEMALE
PASSIVE AGGRESSIVE VEGAN GROCERY CASHIER
OUR DAUGHTER ISN’T A SELFISH BRAT; YOUR SON JUST HASN’T READ ATLAS SHRUGGED
AMERICA: A REVIEW
and “TWEET”
Why this loses its crowning star should be fairly obvious to everyone reading this sentence:
Firstly, all of the pieces found in this book can also be found online. That’s right, if you have half a brain, you would go to father Google and politely ask him to look up whichever scribbling you wish to read. Instead of buying this book. From Amazon. Thus making Amazon more money. And if you weren’t already aware, Goodreads is owned by Amazon. It has gamified me into writing yet more reviews, which further ties me (read: tsundoku/addict) into the ecosystem. Diabolical.
Secondly, because my abode does not include a television (which you of course knew) but does come with a coffee table, I decided to populate said table with light reading. To my dismay, nobody who has come over has ever bothered to pick up a single one of the tomes sitting on that sad block of wood. So this just sat there all alone for months, more of an accessory than anything else, until yesterday when I at last dignified it with a thorough pore-through.
Thirdly, this book follows the trend of online blogs which upon gaining popularity decide to publish existing content in the form of a book (under the guise of curation) in order to extract yet more capital from nitwits such as yours truly. Yours truly is now decidedly in the same league as those who slurp up pumpkin spice lattes and car insurance advertisements, which is to say, humanity, which is to say, rudimentary, which is to say, worthless.
Lastly, it demonstrated a remarkable failure to include my favorite piece.
As you can see, I’ve listed four demerits, which if I were a reasonable person would peg this at a solid one star by means of subtraction. Clearly I’m not. You see, such a rating would reflect poorly on myself and my own ability to curate, and needless to say the damage my ego would suffer is simply not worth moving my mouse a few centimeters to the left.
The best of the best
WHAT I WOULD BE THINKING ABOUT IF I WERE BILLY JOEL DRIVING TOWARD A HOLIDAY PARTY WHERE I KNEW THERE WAS GOING TO BE A PIANO
HELLO STRANGER ON THE STREET COULD YOU PLEASE TELL ME HOW TO TAKE CARE OF MY BABY
I’M COMIC SANS, ASSHOLE
A DAY IN THE LIFE OF A TARGET-MARKET FEMALE
PASSIVE AGGRESSIVE VEGAN GROCERY CASHIER
OUR DAUGHTER ISN’T A SELFISH BRAT; YOUR SON JUST HASN’T READ ATLAS SHRUGGED
AMERICA: A REVIEW
and “TWEET”
February 11, 2019
Since this is a "best of" compilation from the McSweeney's website, I had already encountered a few of these pieces before. Still, I am SO happy to own a print copy of Colin Nissan's epic seasonal favorite, "It's Decorative Gourd Season, Motherfuckers," at long last. That alone is probably worth several of the stars I'm giving the whole collection. I also had a good chuckle at "I Regret to Inform You That My Wedding to Captain von Trapp Has Been Canceled" (Melinda Taub), "On the Implausibility of the Death Star's Trash Compactor" (J.M. Tyree), "An Imagined Conversation Between the Construction Workers Upstairs From Me" (Ben Jurney), "FAQ: The 'Snake Fight' Portion of Your Thesis Defense" (Luke Burns), and "America: A Review" (Megan Amram).
(Read Harder challenge #4: A humor book)
(Read Harder challenge #4: A humor book)
August 5, 2022
As with a previous compilation I read of McSweeney’s humor, this compilation of FIFTEEN YEARS of humor off their website is wildly uneven, and to be honest, not all that humorous. The fifty pieces included are by such writers and comic minds as Michael Ian Black, Dan Kennedy, Mike Sacks, Jesse Eisenberg and Ellie Kemper. I think about eight of them work. By the time the book ended I was thoroughly tired of the theories concerning the trash compactor on the Death Star.
Two stars.
Two stars.
December 11, 2024
I Regret to Inform You That My Wedding to Captain Von Trapp Has Been Canceled is the single greatest internet humor essay ever written (do NOT settle for Riki Lindhome's pale imitation in song). The rest of the essays in this collection are somewhat hit or miss, but since they're all short, I don't see a problem with running them up a flagpole to see if anyone salutes.
May 25, 2017
Absolutely great for a series of short, hilarious reads - excellent choice for a little levity.
October 10, 2017
Like every anthology, some of these were hysterically funny, others left me a little cold. Still, an excellent collection and there are some that I will read over and over again.
May 3, 2019
Absolutely fine. I don't think I lol'ed at anything in the book, but it is intellectually funny.
Read
January 17, 2022sometimes Too Much, as McSweeney's often is, but when they get it, they are so funny.
April 27, 2022
A really fun read, super easy. Just funny satirical writing
February 1, 2015
Anthology of short humor to skim through. There were a few I really enjoyed. A sampling:
In Which I Fix my Girlfriend's Grandparents Wi-Fi and Am Hailed as a Conquering Hero
Back from Yet Another Globetrotting Adventure, Indiana Jones Checks His Mail and Discovers that HIs Bid for Tenure Has Been Denied
I like it best, as in these examples when someone puts some modern situation into an old literary-style -- or applies a fictional situation (Indiana Jones) to a nonfictional one.
A lot of the rest of the collection is profane. I suppose it's done for comic effect, but profanity for comic effect always seems wimpy, as if the author can't think of what else to say, so goes for shock value.
In Which I Fix my Girlfriend's Grandparents Wi-Fi and Am Hailed as a Conquering Hero
Back from Yet Another Globetrotting Adventure, Indiana Jones Checks His Mail and Discovers that HIs Bid for Tenure Has Been Denied
I like it best, as in these examples when someone puts some modern situation into an old literary-style -- or applies a fictional situation (Indiana Jones) to a nonfictional one.
A lot of the rest of the collection is profane. I suppose it's done for comic effect, but profanity for comic effect always seems wimpy, as if the author can't think of what else to say, so goes for shock value.
July 10, 2014
Glad I picked this out while browsing the library's new books. Had never heard of this collection and it was fun to read.
From Goodreads:
Back in 1998, the internet was young and wild and free. Along with listservs, pornography, and listservs dedicated to pornography, there was a website that ran all its articles in the same font and within abnormally narrow margins. This site was called McSweeney’s Internet Tendency, and many dozens of people read it. Now, fifteen years later, most of those readers have died, but the Tendency still exists, publishing, every day, quasi-humor writing in the same font within the same abnormally narrow margins. The site has no ads, and no revenue prospects, and thus, every year or so, we collect some of the site’s better material and attempt to trick readers into paying for a curated, glued-together version of what is available online for free. This collection is the best and most brazen of such attempts. Please enjoy it, after you have paid for it.
From Goodreads:
Back in 1998, the internet was young and wild and free. Along with listservs, pornography, and listservs dedicated to pornography, there was a website that ran all its articles in the same font and within abnormally narrow margins. This site was called McSweeney’s Internet Tendency, and many dozens of people read it. Now, fifteen years later, most of those readers have died, but the Tendency still exists, publishing, every day, quasi-humor writing in the same font within the same abnormally narrow margins. The site has no ads, and no revenue prospects, and thus, every year or so, we collect some of the site’s better material and attempt to trick readers into paying for a curated, glued-together version of what is available online for free. This collection is the best and most brazen of such attempts. Please enjoy it, after you have paid for it.
September 9, 2014
Summary: Back in 1998, the internet was young and wild and free. Along with listservs, pornography, and listservs dedicated to pornography, there was a website that ran all its articles in the same font and within abnormally narrow margins. This site was called McSweeney’s Internet Tendency, and many dozens of people read it. Now, fifteen years later, most of those readers have died, but the Tendency still exists, publishing, every day, quasi-humor writing in the same font within the same abnormally narrow margins. The site has no ads, and no revenue prospects, and thus, every year or so, we collect some of the site’s better material and attempt to trick readers into paying for a curated, glued-together version of what is available online for free. This collection is the best and most brazen of such attempts. Please enjoy it, after you have paid for it.
January 11, 2014
This book is comprised of 3-4 page satirical essays that generally take about 5 minutes to read. Do you have some kind of morning ritual that takes about that long? Something you do pretty much ever day, if you're regular about it? A time that I suppose you could use for quiet contemplation, but not really a time during which you want to do or read anything that's too serious? A time not meant for dwelling on your issues, but rather to flush them away?
I'm talking about the time during which you wait for your tea to steep. What were you thinking? That's a good time to read the humorous vignettes in this book.
I'm talking about the time during which you wait for your tea to steep. What were you thinking? That's a good time to read the humorous vignettes in this book.
December 31, 2013
McSweeney's has long been a favorite stop for short-form humor for me, a kind of absurdist grab bag of short fiction and essays that is the digital, modern equivalent of early Woody Allen writings.
This is a collection of the 'best of' the site, which is worth the price of admission for ""I'm Comic Sans, Asshole." It's the kind of writing that mashes odd combinations together to come up with something delicious, like a claim rejection letter from a Geico insurance agent to Optimus Prime. Or Bono giving a traffic report on the morning news.
Loved it.
This is a collection of the 'best of' the site, which is worth the price of admission for ""I'm Comic Sans, Asshole." It's the kind of writing that mashes odd combinations together to come up with something delicious, like a claim rejection letter from a Geico insurance agent to Optimus Prime. Or Bono giving a traffic report on the morning news.
Loved it.
November 27, 2015
This collection includes some of my favorite essays, including "It's Decorative Gourd Season..." and the Comic Sans rant. I won't say I loved every essay, and some of them were a bit too profane for me, but overall it's a really funny collection. I liked how they tied it together with an extensive series of essays on the viability of the functions of the Death Star trash compactor as depicted in "Star Wars".
All of the essays can be read for free on the McSweeney's site, but I enjoyed them more in book form.
All of the essays can be read for free on the McSweeney's site, but I enjoyed them more in book form.
January 26, 2014
The McSweeney's Internet Tendency has been the reliable source of low-brow, high-brow humor for 15 years. This is a collection of some of the best pieces. I wish there were more than the 50 items collected in this volume, but it's also hard to choose my favorites from the collection without simply listing the table of contents. I guess that means the editors made the right selections.
November 11, 2015
It's a collection of humor writing so it has its highs and lows, but the entire read is worth it because of how weird and original the writing is. Some of my favorites included "In Which I Fix my Girlfriend's Grandparents Wi-Fi and am Hailed as a Conquering Hero," "Back from Yet Another Globetrotting Adventure, Indiana Jones Checks His Mail and Discovers That His Bid for Tenure Has Been Denied," and "A Letter to Optimus Prime from his Geico Auto Insurance Agent."
July 21, 2014
This was a strange bunch of short humorous pieces that, for the most part, varied from lukewarm to just plain uninteresting. I skimmed through half of it, TBH. However, I greatly enjoyed the piece titled "Wherein I Fix My Girlfriend's Grandparent's Wifi and am Hailed as a Conquering Hero." So, not a total loss.
July 24, 2014
Very uneven (as collections tend to be), but absolutely worth reading for its high points. The running joke about the Death Star Trash Compactor is great, as are pieces like the cover letter applying for the job as pope and the celebration of decorative gourds. Unfortunately, the politics and gags start to feel samey after a while, so it's not best read cover to cover.
March 31, 2014
A great collection of the short essays and stories that have appeared on McSweeneys. All the classics are here, and even a few pieces you might have missed, including a laugh out loud telling of an adventure about the fixing of the Wi-Fi.
March 19, 2014
I rudely read this book prior to giving it to someone as a gift (sorry mike!), and no regrets! These are well-selected highlights from the McSweeney's corpus - ideal for your coffee table or guest bedroom (if you're an adult) or your toilet magazine rack if you aren't.
June 8, 2014
Some of it's just a bit too silly and a bit formula and relies on American cultural tropes and comes off like poor man's New Yorker whimsy but a lot of it is really fucking funny and well written. It's an easy read too. The best stuff shines.
March 6, 2016
Definitely some great stuff. A wide range of humorous and imaginative reactions and contemplation of debris floating around the mass consciousness. Some of these were absolutely my favorite thing ever, for at least a couple minutes each. Great stuff, absolutely delightful to read.
March 23, 2014
An Open Letter to Molyneux, Mah, and Hahn,
I was laughing onto the floor.
Sincerely,
a reader
I was laughing onto the floor.
Sincerely,
a reader
March 13, 2014
Hilarious.
Not all of the individual pieces are five-star worthy, but they are as a collection.
Not all of the individual pieces are five-star worthy, but they are as a collection.
April 7, 2014
Missing my two faves, "This is just to say I'm tired of sharing an apartment with William Carlos Williams," and "A retort to Carly Simon..." but still a solid collection.
March 17, 2014
My new Bible; the sole book I will consult regularly when I need inspiration for my own writing.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 40 reviews