The Brand New Monty Python Papperbok

by Graham Chapman, Michael Palin, John Cleese

One of the most original and groundbreaking humor classics of all time, the Papperbok was compiled for Methuen in the early 1970s by the young Monty Python team at the height of their surreal powers and was published on the heels of the improbable success of the Monty Python's Flying Circus television series.

A surreal delight, the Papperbok was a testing ground for ideas equally as fresh and funny as the Flying Circus material. It is full of colorful and rude illustrations by Terry Gilliam, oddball instruction sheets, cod schoolboy stories about adventure and mischief, misleading horoscopes, informative and thrilling features-such as "Hamster: A Warning," "The Python Book of Etiquette," and "The London Casebook of Detective Ren Descartes"-zany competitions, fake editorials, spurious film reviews, and some of the oddest miscellany ever pressed between the pages of a book.

The extraordinary comic genius of Monty Python is on full display in this humor classic, too-long unavailable and now back by popular demand.

Genres: Humor, Comedy, Fiction, Tv, Film

Paperback

First published January 1, 1973

About the author

Graham Chapman was an English comedian, actor, writer, physician and one of the six members of the Monty Python comedy troupe. He was also the lead actor in their two narrative films, playing King Arthur in Monty Python and the Holy Grail and the title character in Monty Python's Life of Brian.

Reviews

[Graham · Rating 5 out of 5]

Triffic! A real mantelpiece!

[Bas · Rating 4 out of 5]

This brand new (rather old now, actually) Papperbok contains a wide selection of very silly things in the vein of good old Monty Python humour, which anyone who reads this bo(o)k should be quite familiar with from the Flying Circus (If you haven't seen the Flying Circus, shame on you! Go and do that first before considering the papperboks!).

Aforementioned silly things include poems about gardening, a story about detective René Descartes, a lot of jokes about Hitler, information on deodorants and masturbation (not simultaneously unfortunately), rat recipes (gonna make me a scrumptious rat soufflé this evening), a fantastic and very colourful story (about and in colour), a lot of advertising, the amazing Page 71, a wonderful fairy tale and much more.
Except for one item about holidays (travel agency sketch) everything in this book is original, with a few shout-outs to some of the better known sketches.

While it's a lot longer than the first one (Monty Python's Big Red Book, which had a lot more tie-ins to the television series) the average quality seems a little lower this time around. Everything is still very pythonesque and there are still a few real screamers, but some articles or stories are just too lengthy and stop being funny long before they're done. Additionally some of them aren't just long, but also seem forced, making them a chore to get through.

Regardless, fans of the British troupe should get their fill of laughs from this Papperbok and I can certainly recommend it to Monty Python lovers (although I recommend the Red Book just a little more).

[Emma Ludlow · Rating 4 out of 5]

As I read the original publication, I wonder how many of the pages were actually used in the 2000 publication! So wonderfully un-pc!

[Jason Hale · Rating 2 out of 5]

I rate it 2 1/2 since I don't like it, but I don't hate it.

[Patti Perkette]

A mantelpiece

[Millicent Swinson · Rating 4 out of 5]

If I recall correctly, this is the volume that contains the rules for a play-at-home Cheese Shop game. It's as simple as you think, and twice as fun.

[Roy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Second Python book I purchased back in the seventies , more of the same as the previous book .

[Jacob Shelton · Rating 5 out of 5]

someone took an eraser and removed all of the letters e,c, and i. quite a challenging read.

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Pythons (under the editorial stewardship of Eric Idle) produced a few books tied in to their TV shows and films, pioneering this category of publication. Of all their releases ‘Brand New Papperbok’ is probably the most successful as it replicates much of the stylistic sabotage that the Pythons applied to other media. Just as they deconstructed the rules of sketch comedy TV, or as per ‘Monty Python and the Holy Grail’ film’s conventions, with ‘...Papperbok’ the accepted form of a book is disrupted

From the faux fingerprints on the cover (which I am sure tricked thousands of bookshop staff and potential buyers) through to the fake Penguin insert, and even a totally misplaced frontispiece, Idle and the other writers have done their best to produce a book that isn’t just a rehash of old sketches, but takes the piss out of publications full stop.

There is a considerable amount of new or adapted material with much of the content echoing Idle’s skill at word play. It must also be mentioned that this is the most provocative of their books in terms of its sexual references. Python were never shy of using sex for humour, however they were relatively sparing in its application. Here it is far more apparent.

Some of the spoofs are a little tired or cliched, due to the book’s age. Yet it still can raise a laugh, and as suggested beforehand this is no slapdash quick cash-in on the Python’s success. ‘Brand New Papperbok’ is a unique accomplishment from the legendary comedy team, and it deserves serious consideration as such.

If one can find a copy and you love Monty Python then you should grab it with both hands (or any other available appendage).

[Darcy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is another blast from my past, a book I had picked up when it first came out in 1971 and began the process of eroding my mind. (Monty Python has a way of doing that) My memory of the book included the authors' celebrated attempt to make it into the record books with the most words ever published on a single page. Pretty exciting stuff and I won't say how it turned out. It was riveting enough however to induce my re-purchase so that should say something!

Unlike the Big Red Book most of the material here is original and not a rehash of the programs. Some of it is a bit unfunny, but that is made up for with gems like African Notebook. That section is worth the price of the used book all on it's own! (Yes there are some naughty bits and the word bum gets mentioned quite a bit). While the material is not lewd, there is some really good masturbation advice for those of you in need or just out of practice.

Again, if you are a Python fan you will enjoy this book. If you are not there is nothing here that will change that and why are you reading this anyway? Go away.

[David Stewart · Rating 5 out of 5]

I gave the Big Red Book five stars which means I should probably give this one Five and a Half. The Papperbok is the better of the two books thanks mainly to the increased amount of original material. The Big Red Book has more verbatim TV material while The Papperbok is full of original text the Pythons produced especially for their second literary outing. The highlights are too many to mention and every page has something worth enjoying (with less of the Big Red Book's "nude lady" padding).

Like it's predecessor, the Papperbok might look like a coffee table browser but it's actually a book to be read and reread over and over again. It's not a throwaway TV-tie in, it's the greatest comedy group in the world proving that they could lend their talents to the printed page as well as to TV, movies, the stage and the album format.

[Mariah · Rating 4 out of 5]

There is such a beauty in Monty Python’s blatant, straight-faced, depiction of social issues—especially ones that are still relevant today unfortunately. A whimsical bok that really paints a picture of the times. Quite a bit of the celebrity humour I just did not understand, but it’s still worth a read.

[Norman Weatherly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Translating physical absurdist intelligent comedy into a book should be a daunting task. Not so for Monty Python, they pull it off with this delightful book that should entertain fans of Monty Python.

[RoPiNa · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is very good. I highly recommend.

[Susan Degnan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Funny stuff.

[Keith · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love the show, the movies are classics, the concerts are fantastic, and the records are hysterical. In book form, though, the circus may have extended themselves to bit too far. The Bok is a bit flabby, repetitive and tedious, lacking the sharpness and variety of their records and TV skits.

The Bok, however, does puts the Dick back in Dickens. So if you are a Python fan, this is certainly a must read (though very dated). For the rest, this will probably not be appealing. (Of course, if you don’t like Python, even the greatest book probably would not amuse you.)

[Ian Wood · Rating 3 out of 5]

The second Monty Python book was again a graphic representation of one of the greatest TV shows of all time. Buoyed by the success of its predecessor ‘Monty Python’s Big Red Book’ the budget for this book has been greatly increased giving us more pages and cut outs all adding to the beauty of the thing.

Although a fantastic looking book or bok it is a classic case of style over content. ‘Biggles and the Naughty Things’ raises a smile but for anyone looking for a worthwhile tie in to ‘Monty Python’s Flying Circus’ then I would recommend they get hold of the scripts.

[Meirav Rath · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very silly.