Dave Barry Slept Here: A Sort of History of the United States

by Dave Barry

"Bary turns his formidable wit to the subject of American history, with a result reminiscent of the Reduced Shakespeare Company: The better you know the original, the funnier it gets."
LOS ANGELES TIMES
This time Dave Barry's subject is history, the way it's never been told before. Every single momentous event and crucial moment is covered, including...The Birthing Contractions of a Nation; Kicking Some British Butt; The Fifties: Peace, Prosperity, Brain Death, right up through the scintillating Reagan-Bush years. If you love to laugh, and you love your country, this is the book you've been waiting for since 1776. Or at least since Super Bowl III.


From the Trade Paperback edition.

Genres: Humor, History, Nonfiction, Comedy, Essays, American History, Historical

175 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1989

About the author

Dave Barry is a humor writer. For 25 years he was a syndicated columnist whose work appeared in more than 500 newspapers in the United States and abroad. In 1988 he won the Pulitzer Prize for Commentary. Many people are still trying to figure out how this happened.
Dave has also written many books, virtually none of which contain useful information. Two of his books were used as the basis for the CBS TV sitcom "Dave's World," in which Harry Anderson played a much taller version of Dave.
Dave plays lead guitar in a literary rock band called the Rock Bottom Remainders, whose other members include Stephen King, Amy Tan, Ridley Pearson and Mitch Albom. They are not musically skilled, but they are extremely loud. Dave has also made many TV appearances, including one on the David Letterman show where he proved that it is possible to set fire to a pair of men's underpants with a Barbie doll.
In his spare time, Dave is a candidate for president of the United States. If elected, his highest priority will be to seek the death penalty for whoever is responsible for making Americans install low-flow toilets.
Dave lives in Miami, Florida, with his wife, Michelle, a sportswriter. He has a son, Rob, and a daughter, Sophie, neither of whom thinks he's funny.

Reviews

[Kristy · Rating 4 out of 5]

My partner read this to me, one chapter or so a night. Though sometimes he was hard to understand because he was laughing so hard, so he had to go back and read a paragraph. I also laughed really hard. It is about the entire history of the United States until around the 1980s. It was quite hilarious, though you will need to actually remember the 1980s or know a lot about them for it to be funny. Like when Reagan threw up on the Prime Minister of Japan. You don’t even really need a joke for that one. I definitely recall the footage being shown several times on television. In any case, we really enjoyed laughing together.

[Erin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think I may have read this, but not entirely sure....

Even after starting, I'm not sure if I've read....

OK, STILL not sure, but I always forget how funny Dave Barry is. Here's the thing - there's a big difference between stand-up comedy and funny writing, and that's why books by funny people often fall flat. Barry is a funny writer, so he works best on the page.

Should you read it?

Self test:

1. Do you find this funny?

"In the words of the famous folksinger Woody Guthrie:

This land is your land,
This land is my land,
Looks like one of us
Has a forged deed to this land.

If yes, find yourself a copy.

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sometimes you just need a palate cleanser. Something to make you smile, that requires a minimum of thought for a maximum of entertainment. This is a dangerous thing to look for; it's all too easy to find oneself wading through a sea of dross, looking for funny but just finding silly, childish nonsense of a mediocre caliber.

The nice thing about Dave Barry is that he is silly childish nonsense of the highest caliber.

My family has been Barry fans for a long time running. When I was a kid, the new Dave Barry book was an automatic Father's Day present, and would migrate around the house as one or another of us picked it up for a few laughs. Fortunately for us, the laughs were more than a few - I remember laughing so hard I had to put the book down for a few minutes because just thinking "Hawley-Smoot Tariff" sent me into uncontrollable giggles.

This book is Barry's tribute to not only American history, but to the whole concept of history books themselves. The fact that he's covering everything from the initial human migration into North America to the Bush-Quayle administration (the book was published in 1989) in only 175 pages with fairly large font is a sign of his being a true master of history.

For example, he does what most public school textbooks do - he skips the boring parts. Teapot Dome? Who cares! The Federal Banking Crisis of 1837? Yawn.... We all remember high school, right? Pretty much nothing happened between the ratification of the Constitution in 1789 and the Civil War seventy-six years later. Right? He also saves time and space by skipping over those parts of history which are, to use a technical term from historiography, "bummers." World War 2, for example - nothing fun to talk about there.

What Barry also does to make history easier is he standardizes the dates for us. No more do we have to remember what month and day something occurred (a feat that always kept me off the high score list in high school history class.) Now all the prospective student of history has to remember is October 8. When did the Mayflower arrive in New England? October 8. When was Kennedy assassinated? October 8. When was the very first Fourth of July? October 8.

See how easy it is? Why didn't they do this when I was in school?

The style of the book is like someone writing about something barely remembered, with only the most cursory amount of research done. And this was in the pre-Wikipedia days, kids, when you had to look stuff up in books. Fortunately, while Barry's history does indeed parallel our own, it is almost completely devoid of actual facts that you may be required to remember. All you really have to do is follow him along on the ride. Of course, if you actually do know something about American history, the book is even funnier. The fact that the book ends with the election of George Herbert Walker Norris Wainright Armoire Vestibule Pomegranate Bush IV and his vice-President Dan "Potatoe" Quayle does disappoint a bit, but, linear time being what it is, there's not a whole lot one can do about it. All history books, serious and silly, are obsolete the moment they hit bookstores. The good news is that Barry maintained a prolific career as a columnist until he retired back in 2004, so you can read his thoughts on the large amount of history that did not end in 1989.

I will always have a warm place for Dave Barry in my heart, but I do have to confess something. When I was younger and read Dave Barry, I would laugh. A lot. Those good, hearty, soul-clearing laughs, and part of the best memories I have of Dave Barry is simply remembering laughing. I didn't laugh very much reading this again. I don't know if it's because I knew where all the jokes were, if my head just wasn't in the right place, or if my sense of humor has changed over the last twenty years.

Twenty years. Good lord.

Anyway, whatever the reason, I had far fewer of those laugh-out-loud moments than I used to. It's still funny, don't get me wrong. I just didn't giggle, guffaw, cackle and try to read bits to my long-suffering co-workers. Whatever it is, I kind of miss it. I think I'll have to dip into some of his other books to see if I can find it again.

If you haven't read Barry, I definitely recommend checking him out. This book is a fine place to start....

[Imogen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dude! This book BLEW MY MIND in sixth grade. I remember trying to eat dinner but not being able to put it down because I was cracking up so hard. There were jokes like:

"Something something about buffalo, or bison*, among the planes...





*Or, buffalo."


Fuckin amazing. I only bring this up because, in an effort to make american history easier, he consolidated every date to October 8th. Which is today!



(And also because I just read the Wordy Shipmates, which is another kind of funny US history book.)

[Namera [The Literary Invertebrate] · Rating 3 out of 5]

I do love Barry's take on history! Not his best work but still pretty funny.

[Blog] - [Bookstagram]

[Daniel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Despite having read this only once years ago, I remembered a surprising number of the jokes in it during AP US History. They were very helpful.

[Julie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not as funny as expected.

[Megargee · Rating 2 out of 5]

In 1989, before anyone had heard of "fake news" or "alternative facts," humorist Dave Barry was writing fake history reporting alternative events. Covering his version of American history from the earliest settlers through 1988 in 21 blessedly brief chapters, Barry's account is for amusement and entertainment only, best appreciated by those who already have a good grasp of American history. (One shudders to think what might happen if it falls into the hands of newly elected Washington officials who might not realize that it is all meant in fun.)
This book is best read in small, i.e. five or ten page, doses. Longer exposure gets tedious and even somewhat annoying. If you own the paperback version, I recommend drilling a 1/4 inch hole in the upper right corner, putting a string through it, and hanging it the rest room. (Do not try this if, like me, you checked it out of the library.)

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

This Dave Barry book, titled "Dave Barry Slept Here" was quite funny. I very much enjoyed the booger joke on page 37. Numerous parts, including the...uhh...part about George Washington... were especially funny! I laughed aloud! Haha!

At the end of the book I was left with the sense that, although I'd just been entertained for an hour and a half, that I'd basically been doing the literary equivalent of shoving peeps up my nose. Peeps the candy, not the slang word for acquaintances.

Dave Barry is almost as funny here as he was in Dave Barry Turns 40, which means quite a riot! Haha!

You're right, I haven't read this one since I was about 15. How did you know?

[Robert · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dave Barry says in this book that it is intended as an alternative to "the boring method," i.e. the system used to teach history in schools today. He accomplishes this by only covering the interesting (and often fictional) parts of history, skipping over the long, boring facts that fill most history textbooks. His dates are all simplified to October 8 for easy memorization, in order to "not waste brain cells on trivial details such as when events actually occurred." This edition of the book was published in 1997, so it does not contain what would no doubt be a colorful commentary on recent events, but it more than makes up for it in the chapters it does contain.

This book is hilarious! I am a fan of Dave Barry's, and this book is one of his best works. It is obviously not a serious book, and, ironically, it requires a basic understanding of American history in order for the reader to get many of the jokes. And the jokes are quite funny; many of them had me laughing out loud.

I would recommend this book because it is humorous and entertaining, and will provide a few hours' worth of enjoyment.

[Emily Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Um, I don't think that I have ever laughed so hard in my life. I read a lot of fiction, so this was out of the ordinary for me. If you aren't familiar with Dave Barry, he is a humor columnist (or whatever you call them) for newspapers around the country and he has written a lot of hilarious books. This one and his Book of Bad Songs are my favorites. You don't have to be into history to enjoy this book...in fact, it's probably better if you aren't. :) He doen't make a big point of being accurate. Dave Barry's sense of humor probably isn't for everyone. Here are some chapter headings, to let you know what his style is like.
Barging Westward, The Civil War: A Nation Pokes Itself in the Eyeball, Sever Economic Bummerhood, The Sixties: A Nation Gets High and Has Amazing Insights - Many of Which Later On Turn Out to Seem Kind of Stupid, The Reagan-Bush Years: Napping Toward Glory.
Heehee.

[Steven · Rating 4 out of 5]

I bought this as a gift for my history-loving father, and could not put it down. So hilarious and ridiculous and laugh-out-loud entertaining. After my dad read it, I managed to permanently "borrow" it from him. The opening pages are so funny and wonderful, I used to read them to my 12th-grade students in a British Lit. course. What a blast.

From time to time, I still find myself telling people about this book--particularly the fact that every date in the book is October 13 (or whatever it is--because dates are so hard to remember). That leads to passages such as, "About eight or nine-hundred years ago, on October 13, Vikings invaded."

[Lucy Blue · Rating 2 out of 5]

I love Dave Barry's columns, and I think I would love this book if I read it in column-sized chunks. But the constant barrage of chapter after chapter became a little bit like riding a school bus with a kid who has just learned all the words to a camp song about poop.

[Rahul Jalan · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of those books that..... wait a minute.. perhaps their isn't any other book like this. Not a single page went by where I didn't laugh out loud. (No seriously. People beside me in the train might have thought of me as mentally deranged.)

Wish all history books were like this!

[Dee brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a hilarious read! Dave pokes fun at both parties equally. I recommend this book to anyone who likes a good laugh!

[Laura Lineberger · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s a little hard for me to rate this book… it was loaned to me by a friend bc he knew I’m an American History teacher and like jokes/puns. The whole premise of this book is that it’s a farcical telling of American History (up until 1992 when it was written…some of it didn’t age well, fyi) with tons of jokes and fake details meant to elicit laughs. The more actual history you know, the funnier it is (although I would also argue that knowing a lot of history can make you annoyed at some of the jokes or how some of the stories are told…and what was left out).

I did not particularly enjoy the first half of the book. A LOT was left out, and there were quite a few inaccuracies (not the intentional ones for the sake of humor, but the base story aspect). I did chuckle some though, and it was still interesting to read.

After the Civil War, it got better. I enjoyed the 1880s through the 1970s. However, leaving out so much of the 1960s was disappointing….the only things mentioned were Cold War stuff and Vietnam…there was nothing about the 60s Civil Rights movement or other movements…not even the constantly-repeated line that’s supposed to be funny throughout the book, “women and minorities were also doing stuff during this time” - this made me roll my eyes most times, as it felt less like a joke each time, esp when written by a white man…but he didn’t even use that to explain why he left out women and minorities from pretty much every event from the 1920s on (he did mention flappers and Brown v Board…that’s it).

Then, he got to the 1980s, and you could tell that was the current/recent era bc it got way too far into the Reagan administration events (other presidents throughout the book got a paragraph at best…Reagan got a whole chapter). As I mentioned, much of the last section doesn’t age well, but that’s not the author’s fault. I feel that a book like this works better when told from the distance of time. I think that, if he wrote about the 80s-early2000s now, it would be a much different story with better jokes.

Anyway, most of the book is fairly enjoyable. I read the whole thing in 2-3 sittings over two days. You have to get used to the style (it’s basically two jokes per sentence) and it might be better if paced out more than what I did. Also, I prefer humorous history books that are more like the style of Sarah Vowell, where there’s more actual history with jokes amidst it than just joke-joke-fakehistory-joke-joke like this. However, I feel that if you enjoy this style, the book is still pretty good, which is why I’m giving it the 4-star rating.

[Steven Rowley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very funny.

[Anna Ganz]

Dave Barry tortures(1) history(2)

1) the Latin definition translates to "explains history in the most hilarious way"
2) too bad I'm done taking history tests because this would help me pass none of them

[Angie Boyter · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can't remember the last time I laughed so hard at a book. This book is ridiculous and extremely clever. Even the footnotes are funny! It was just what I was looking for!

[BrokenTune · Rating 2 out of 5]

Dear Dave,

What happened here then?

Last time we met - in Hobbs, NM, if I remember right - you made me laugh so hard, I could hardly breathe. So what's with the half-hearted attempt at an alternative history?

I get that there are episodes that are left out of the US history books, but why did you need to write about the ones that were left out because they just aren't interesting. Could you not have chosen to present the ones that have an air of controversy about them?

What happened to Dave, the journalist who once braved a backlash of criticism when he supported the illegal importation of Canadian bathroom technology?

I am writing this burying my head in my hands and hoping that we have not grown apart since that fateful day you signed my copy of your Greatest Hits. Hoping that Greatest Hits would some day be followed up with a Greatest Hits, Vol. 2.

Yours,

BT


Review first posted on BookLikes: http://brokentune.booklikes.com/post/...

[Baltimoregal · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book STILL makes me laugh so hard I cry after all these years. I honestly get hysterical. It's just the right mix of almost-fact, partial fiction and outright silliness that just gets to me. Dave's take on American history is one I could have used in junior high- that's for sure!

With chapters like "The Civil War: A Nation Pokes Itself in the Eyeball" and "The Reagan-Bush Years: Napping Toward Glory", you can tell the tone of the book, I think. If not, here's a quote from Chapter 2, "Spain Gets Hot": "...it was difficult to recruit new sailors, even with the use of extensive advertising campaigns built around catchy themes such as "BE ALL THAT YOU CAN BE! Become a Hardy Mariner- 'Get Lost and Die.'"

[Mars · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's standard Barry - some of the jokes are actually quite spectacularly good, but most of them are eh.

Still a worthwhile read, and short enough to end before it starts getting really annoying.



For instance, here are some discussion questions from the end of Chapter 7 (and also some of the best one-liners in the book):

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

1) How come history books never have sex scenes? You know, like "James Madison, unable to restrain his passion any longer, thrust his ink-engorged pen into the second draft of the Federalist Papers."

2) Scientists tell us that the fastest animal on earth, with a top speed of 120 feet persecond, is a cow that has been dropped out of a helicopter. How long, travelling at top speed, will it take the cow to travel 360 feet?

[Coyle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Leslie Nielsen needs to still be alive to read this book into audio format.

This book is funny, but here's the thing. You know how the Airplane! movies are hilarious? As are the Naked Gun and Hot Shots films? Have you ever tried to sit down and watch all of them straight through? It's the equivalent of snorting powdered glass while staring into the sun with a pair of binoculars. This book is the same way. Read 2-3 pages (or, rarely, even a full chapter) at a time, it's darned hilarious. But, if, just for example, you're stuck on the metro for an hour with nothing but this book and the screaming kid next to you, it can be a bit grueling.

[Joe · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was pretty funny!
... for about ten or fifteen pages, then it got a little old. It took me about 60 pages to give up on it altogether. There's a reason that SNL skits don't last the whole hour Dave.

I understand Barry is a columnist of some sort so in small chunks his material is probably golden but in book format this just didn't work at all.

BTW - if anyone wants to buy my copy, by all means, let me know!

[Blair Peery · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was Dave-Barry-hilarious! Loved it. Mocking our Founding Fathers as only he can, in the most absurd fashion possible. Many nonsequiturs that will give you mental whiplash. Laughed out loud frequently.

However, I did stop reading when it got to political events of my lifetime. Then it started to sound like modern attack ads against candidates, and I've had WAY too much of that. But that's a small part of the book, and it may reflect more on me than on Barry.

[Simon Gibson · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you read this and it challenges your memory of history, then Dave has caused you to think carefully about the history you were taught at school and the history we are creating.
But really! This book is a humourous look at America's history and how it has shaped us!
It is best read in small doses so you can digest it properly!
Pro tip: Don't use this book as reference material when you are studying for your citizenship exam!

[Brett Van Gaasbeek · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dave Barry is a national treasure and this is one of his best. He takes on American history in a light-hearted and creative way. This title is worth a few laughs and makes one appreciate the American narrative with the way Barry presents our history. This book has aged pretty well and is still worth the read.

[Holden · Rating 5 out of 5]

Has to be his best book ever. Hilarious. Should be required reading in school history classes.

Re-read 8/4/2018- What a great read.

[Reese 😊 · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 - 4⭐️

‼️Disclaimer: This is my first book review, please be nice 🙂.


I am in general a large fan of comedy, however most of this book went over my head - It’s not you Dave Barry, it’s me 😢.

This book reads like an American version of Monty Python that shamelessly pokes fun at every historical figure, state, and event that Dave Barry has deemed important. “Dave Barry Slept Here” was written in an attempt to amuse the public, and amused I am 😄.

I think in order to properly enjoy this book you have to have a good understanding of American history (something I don’t have 😅). Seeing as I am in the latter half of Gen Z (probably not the target audience, ik I’m young 😭), I do not have the knowledge required to truly appreciate this book. However I did I find the parts of it I did understand hilarious 😆.

Another problem that I had with this book is that after the first chapter or so, the book gets tiresome and starts to feel stale 🥱. (There’s a reason most comedy shows are only 30 minutes)
If you do want to read this book I would suggest reading it in small increments so as to not get burnt out. By reading a little bit every time the jokes feel fresh and you will laugh a ton more - trust me 🙃.
Otherwise just read his columns, they are much funnier -probably cause they are short, but whatever 😋.

Overall “Dave Barry Slept Here” was a fun, light read. I would recommend it to any fan of political comedy, Monty Python and/or American history 😊.

Edited July 31, 2004 for more emojis 😝😁😨

[Tom Anstett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Want to have your satirical glands enhanced? How about experiencing a creative talent who explores our history with a flair unknown to any mortal man before our time? This book by this famous paleontologist**, Dave Barry, will fulfill those urges. Almost always funny, often brilliant, Mr. Barry is one writer who makes me insanely jealous that I am not as talented as he. Darn.
If you have never read anything Barry, do yourself a favor and start. Any article, column, or book would do nicely.

** use of the word paleontologist strictly due his ability to get readers to laugh right down to their bones.
.
P.S. This book about our U.S. history is particularly good due to its concise review of critical American chronology, most of which is unknown by a vast majority of citizens today. Plus it's short.
There. I am done.