Laughter, the Best Medicine

by Reader's Digest Association

Laughter the Best Medicin e is a collection of Reader's Digest magazine's funniest jokes, quotes, stories, cartoons, anecdotes, and laugh-out-loud captions. A little chuckle every day will keep the doctor away.

This hilarious collection offers up some of the funniest moments that get us through our day, in the form of jokes, gags and cartoons that will have readers laughing out loud.

Editors have mined the Reader’s Digest archives to bring readers Laughter the Best Medicine, All-Time Faves , a collection of the most hilarious jokes and anecdotes we’ve come across over the years. As you turn the pages of our newest collection, you’ll realize once again that laughter is always the best medicine.

--A woman accompanied her husband when he went for his annual checkup. While the patient was getting dressed, the doctor came in and said to the wife, "I don't like the way he looks." "Neither do I," she said, "but he's handy around the house."--Merritt K. Freeman in Y.B. News

-- Anthropologists have discovered a 50-million-year-old human skull with three perfectly preserved teeth intact. They're not sure, but they think it may be the remains of the very first hockey player.--Jay Leno

--"What's your handicap these days?" one golfer asked another. "I'm a scratch golfer...I write down all my good scores and scratch out all my bad ones."--Charles Shulz, United Features Syndicate

Genres: Humor, Nonfiction, Comedy

216 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 1981

About the author

The Reader's Digest Association, Inc. is a global media and direct marketing company based in Chappaqua, New York, best known for its flagship publication founded in 1922, Reader's Digest. The company's headquarters are in New York City, where it moved from Pleasantville, New York.

The company was founded by DeWitt and Lila Wallace in 1922 with the first publication of Reader's Digest magazine, but has grown to include a diverse range of magazines, books, music, DVDs and online content.

Reviews

[W]

I read Reader's Digest,for many years and Laughter the Best Medicine used to be a regular feature.
This collection will not exactly have the reader rolling on the floor,but will take quite a bit of patience to dig out the funny jokes.

[Eden · Rating 5 out of 5]

2020 bk 81 The first of the Laughter, books. The red edition has the oldest stories and it is amusing to see what is still laughter inducing, which is, 'wow, we really laughed at that', or which one is 'oh that is just so sad." It's great for reading during the times between different eyedrops or while waiting on someone to call, or when you just need a pick me up.

[Glen · Rating 3 out of 5]

A bunch of jokes from Reader's Digest. Mostly what we now call Dad jokes. Some are pretty funny though.

[Sooraya Evans · Rating 3 out of 5]

I got this for 50p at a carboot sale. Great bargain.
A good book to pass time while waiting at home for something (too heavy to carry around outside).
A lot of good jokes that made me laugh. Some at least made me smile :)

[Jerry (Rebel With a Massive Media Library) · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book definitely had some humorous moments, but there were too many jokes that were crude, or I'd encountered before online, or that didn't make sense to me. Discerning readers--well, reader in general--can do much better.

[Greg · Rating 4 out of 5]

I remember laying on my belly on our living room floor with a copy of the Reader's Digest and looking first for my favorites..."Humor in Uniform," "Campus Comedy," "Life in these United States," and of course, my favorite, "Laughter, the Best Medicine." There were times when, in fact, it was the best medicine. Those old magazines transported me away from troubled times, at least for a few minutes. Even now, when I see a Reader's Digest in the dentist's office, a barbershop, or even in the library, it is often the first thing I reach for. Finding a book collection of the best of "Laughter, The Best Medicine" was like finding an old friend, and even better that it was a free download for my Kindle.

[Robert Federline · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good clean jokes that beg to be shared. Unfortunately, because it comes from copyright 1997, some of them are already dated and won't be understood by young people today. Some of them are simply outstripped by technology.

Still, it is a good read and worth sharing.

[Hamza · Rating 2 out of 5]

Some good some bad

[Carole Skees · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good chuckle.

[GEORGE · Rating 5 out of 5]

totally hilarious! comedy & humor to make you think....

[David Howell · Rating 3 out of 5]

Along with other reviewers, it was a challenge finding humor in here that would cause much of a chuckle, let alone a hearty guffaw. Some of it would make me smile, but the rest was rather humorless. I think the problem is that it was taken out of Reader Digest editions from the 1940's, 50's, and through the 70's. So, what we're all discovering is that comedy has an expiration date.

[Judy Tarver · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some of these are funny and some aren’t to my liking, it all depends on a person’s sense of humor: I will say that I love Reader’s digest magazine and every book they have come out with that I have read I have always enjoyed and think of it as quality reading material.

[Rajhesh Panchanadhan]

Laughter is an instant antidote to stress and anxiety and with this hilarious book you will soon be feeling on top of the world. Crammed with jokes, cartoons, witticisms and script extracts which enable you to appreciate the genius behind comedy classics such as Hancock's 'The Blood Donor'.

[Connie Curtis · Rating 2 out of 5]

So not funny. Very few even made me smile.

[Susan Molloy · Rating 5 out of 5]

💥 Recommended.
🟣

[Krystie Herndon · Rating 4 out of 5]

My husband and I decided we needed a little more laughter in our lives, so we have three of these Reader's Digest collections now. This book did indeed lighten up my week!

[Katy Lovejoy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not very funny.

[Helen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read the version of this book from 1962, with 94 pages. It was fun, and worth reading, for a chuckle!

[Patricia Atkinson · Rating 3 out of 5]

had a few good jokes

[Reet Mahajan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reader's Digest's funny jokes and anecdotes make it a relatable and exciting novel for all.

[Patricia Atkinson · Rating 3 out of 5]

had some good jokes in it

[Tammy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is full of really funny jokes and cartoons.

[Patricia R. · Rating 5 out of 5]

:)

[Shelly · Rating 1 out of 5]

I got 11% through this and there were some funny jokes, but most of the time I just didn’t find the jokes funny. It’s time to unhaul this book.

[Marcella Purnama · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked up this book at random while looking at my sister's shelf. Some of the jokes are really funny, some are okay, some are not that funny and some don't make any sense. I'd recommend the book only if you run out of books to borrow in the library, or to mindlessly read while waiting for your doctor's appointment.

In hindsight, it's really weird that I read this book from cover to cover. Probably I'm really not in the mood to read books that require real brain power.

[Kristin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reader's Digest has been a must-read every month (well, now every other month sometimes since they cut back on the number of issues per year) since I was old enough to understand the content. Their humor sections are my favorites, as they had me laughing long before the internet and its saturation of humor sites. Therefore, when I found this book at a book sale, I knew it was for me.
While the book is older than I am, that was more a good thing than a bad thing, because it meant all the jokes and anecdotes were new to me. Had it been written 20 or so years later, there would likely have been content that I read when it appeared in the magazine issues of the time. Some of the jokes and terminology were dated, which did damper the humor in them a little, as I didn't always 'get' what was meant, but that's OK.
What I didn't care for as much were the long essays that alternated with blocks of single-paragraph humor like I'm used to with 'Humor in Uniform', 'All In A Day's Work', 'Life in the USA', etc. Some of them were good, but most I sped through to get back to the short clips that I like. I'd have rather the book been completely made of short clips and left the essays out.
An easy book to read a little at a time and be able to put down if needed.

[Hilary · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was really expecting some laugh-out-loud humor here, but unfortunately most of the jokes were just tacky and awkward. Some of them didn't even make any sense. It sadly did not fulfill my desire for ridiculous comedy, so I suppose that I will just have to find something else. I was planning on reading the sequel, Laughter Really Is the Best Medicine, but after reading the first one I don't think that that's going to happen.

[gramakri · Rating 4 out of 5]

Seeing the lighter side of things and laughing away your troubles is the one of the crucial ingredients to a happy life. Picking up this book when you are in dumps and randomly reading any page (of course you can read it cover-to-cover too) from it will drive your blues away. This is one of the best anthology of humorous pieces I have read in recent times.
More details about this book
@ http://bookwormsrecos.blogspot.in/201...

[Preeti · Rating 4 out of 5]

Laughter, The Best Medicine by Reader’s Digest Association features a timeless compilation of jokes, anecdotes and humorous stories drawn from the magazine’s extensive archives. The book is perfect for light reading. Although some content may feel slightly dated to long-time readers, it remains a classic resource for humor. The book's straightforward format and wide-ranging appeal can make it a favorite for anyone looking for a dose of gentle, everyday humor!

[Barbara Brien · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had to read this, of course, once I saw it. So my mom loaned it to me, and I pushed through in a couple days. It was enjoyable, as easily the best part of any of the Reader's Digest magazines is the humor pages. Nothing actually made me laugh out loud, but I'm guessing I saw most of them in the past.