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The Funny Thing Is...
Ellen DeGeneres published her first book of comic essays, the #1 bestselling My Point...and I Do Have One, way back in 1996. Not one to rest on her laurels, the witty star of stage and screen has since dedicated her life to writing a hilarious new book. That book is this book.
After years of painstaking, round-the-clock research, surviving on a mere twenty minutes of sleep a night, and collaborating with lexicographers, plumbers, and mathematicians, DeGeneres has crafted a book that is both easy to use and very funny. Along with her trademark ramblings, The Funny Thing Is...contains hundreds of succinct insights into her psyche, supplemented by easy-to-understand charts, graphs, and diagrams so that you'll never miss a joke.
Overseeing all aspects of production, DeGeneres labored over details both significant and insignificant, including typefaces, page number placement, and which of the thousands of world languages to use. Ultimately she selected English, as it's her mother tongue, but translations into Hindi and Pig Latin are already in the works.
DeGeneres takes an innovative approach to the organization of her book by utilizing a section in the beginning that includes the name of each chapter, along with a corresponding page number. She calls it the "Table of Contents," and she is confident that it will become the standard to which all books in the future will aspire.
Some of the other innovative features you'll find in this edition:
• More than 50,000 simple, short words arranged in sentences that form paragraphs.
• Thousands of observations on everyday life -- from terrible fashion trends to how to handle seating arrangements for a Sunday brunch with Paula Abdul, Diane Sawyer, and Eminem.
• All twenty-six letters of the alphabet.
Sure to make you laugh, The Funny Thing Is...is an indispensable reference for anyone who knows how to read or wants to fool people into thinking they do.
After years of painstaking, round-the-clock research, surviving on a mere twenty minutes of sleep a night, and collaborating with lexicographers, plumbers, and mathematicians, DeGeneres has crafted a book that is both easy to use and very funny. Along with her trademark ramblings, The Funny Thing Is...contains hundreds of succinct insights into her psyche, supplemented by easy-to-understand charts, graphs, and diagrams so that you'll never miss a joke.
Overseeing all aspects of production, DeGeneres labored over details both significant and insignificant, including typefaces, page number placement, and which of the thousands of world languages to use. Ultimately she selected English, as it's her mother tongue, but translations into Hindi and Pig Latin are already in the works.
DeGeneres takes an innovative approach to the organization of her book by utilizing a section in the beginning that includes the name of each chapter, along with a corresponding page number. She calls it the "Table of Contents," and she is confident that it will become the standard to which all books in the future will aspire.
Some of the other innovative features you'll find in this edition:
• More than 50,000 simple, short words arranged in sentences that form paragraphs.
• Thousands of observations on everyday life -- from terrible fashion trends to how to handle seating arrangements for a Sunday brunch with Paula Abdul, Diane Sawyer, and Eminem.
• All twenty-six letters of the alphabet.
Sure to make you laugh, The Funny Thing Is...is an indispensable reference for anyone who knows how to read or wants to fool people into thinking they do.
4 pages, Audiobook
First published October 28, 2003
169 people are currently reading
5463 people want to read
About the author
Ellen DeGeneres
27 books2,550 followersEllen Lee DeGeneres is an American stand-up comedian, actress, and currently the Emmy Award-winning host of the syndicated talk show The Ellen DeGeneres Show.
She has hosted both the Academy Awards and the Primetime Emmys. As a film actress, she starred in Mr. Wrong, appeared in Edtv and The Love Letter, and provided the voice of "Dory" in the Pixar animated hit film Finding Nemo. She also starred in two television sitcoms, The Ellen Show from 2001 to 2002 and Ellen from 1994 to 1998. In 1997 during the fourth season of Ellen, she "came out" publicly as a lesbian in an appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show. Shortly afterwards, her character Ellen Morgan also came out and the series went on to explore various LGBT issues as well as the "coming out" process.
Ellen is married to Portia de Rossi.
She has hosted both the Academy Awards and the Primetime Emmys. As a film actress, she starred in Mr. Wrong, appeared in Edtv and The Love Letter, and provided the voice of "Dory" in the Pixar animated hit film Finding Nemo. She also starred in two television sitcoms, The Ellen Show from 2001 to 2002 and Ellen from 1994 to 1998. In 1997 during the fourth season of Ellen, she "came out" publicly as a lesbian in an appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show. Shortly afterwards, her character Ellen Morgan also came out and the series went on to explore various LGBT issues as well as the "coming out" process.
Ellen is married to Portia de Rossi.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 966 reviews
August 25, 2022
The “Funny Thing Is…”, is an ingenious effort, a book of comical essays on daily musings and ramblings. Comical books are mostly at a danger of sounding grotesque and outlandish, but this definitely didn’t go bizarre. It wasn’t an indispensable but definitely a one-time-read!
Ellen DeGeneres, has written about stances to be adopted in real life instances. The subtle-nuances in the book, went a tad imperceptible for me, though they are woven with sarcasm, but the chucklings acquired in the first-half of the book, succumbed to ennui, by the second half.
Light-hearted folks would love it was a one-time read, but wallflowers and serious-minded, might grapple to enjoy.
There are witty insights and light-hearted ribbings, but second half onwards the efforts sounded impetuous, hurried to finish the book!
Millennials, born in the generation of ipads, may find it a tad outdated. For instance, they may find citing of tangled and wired phones as obsolete and unrelatable. But 80s populace would find it very much relatable!
Book is primarily about circumventing or finding ways out of the daily confusions, events of embarrassments, or events that go oblique.
I am ambivalent if her efforts of jolly-well wallowing in the daily musings and ramblings paid off well for the majority. I lean towards a 3 to 3.5 stars! A one-time happy succinct text with sporadic fits of laughter!
NB-
If you are one of those readers, who always seek for some insight, bent upon deriving some insight, be it a trifle, then it is definitely a worthwhile one-time read.
The aspiring comical-writers/authors, should definitely read it atleast once. They may get a good take-away on creative writings wearing a logical-comical charade of daily-life musings and ramblings.
I so much wish if the book was packaged better.
Post the read my brain had to enforce itself to gather all I could in a flowchart, coz of the lack of structure.
Few of the noticeable citings/text from the book-
• You know, it's hard work to write a book. I can't tell you how many times I really get going on an idea, then my quill breaks. Or I spill ink all over my writing tunic. No wonder I drink so much! Then I get so drunk, I can barely feed the baby.
That's what I call myself when I'm drunk, "The Baby.
• Start thinking positively. You will notice a difference. Instead of 'I think I'm a loser,' try 'I definitely am a loser.' Stop being wishy-washy about things! How much more of a loser can you be if you don't even know you are one? Either you are a loser or you are not. Which is it, stupid?
• There are all sorts of books offering advice on how to deal with life-threatening situations, but where's the advice on dealing with embarrassing ones?
• Gratitude is looking on the brighter side of life, even if it means hurting your eyes.
• ...there are a lot of self-righteous people out there. And if you try to adjust your life to please them...you're just going to go crazy and risk being as unhappy as these self-righteous kooks are.
Finally…
• Enjoy your life. God gave us our bodies as a gift. (Granted, to some of us it's kind of a gag gift, but that's okay too.) Wear what you want, love who you want, and have fun.
Ellen DeGeneres, has written about stances to be adopted in real life instances. The subtle-nuances in the book, went a tad imperceptible for me, though they are woven with sarcasm, but the chucklings acquired in the first-half of the book, succumbed to ennui, by the second half.
Light-hearted folks would love it was a one-time read, but wallflowers and serious-minded, might grapple to enjoy.
There are witty insights and light-hearted ribbings, but second half onwards the efforts sounded impetuous, hurried to finish the book!
Millennials, born in the generation of ipads, may find it a tad outdated. For instance, they may find citing of tangled and wired phones as obsolete and unrelatable. But 80s populace would find it very much relatable!
Book is primarily about circumventing or finding ways out of the daily confusions, events of embarrassments, or events that go oblique.
I am ambivalent if her efforts of jolly-well wallowing in the daily musings and ramblings paid off well for the majority. I lean towards a 3 to 3.5 stars! A one-time happy succinct text with sporadic fits of laughter!
NB-
If you are one of those readers, who always seek for some insight, bent upon deriving some insight, be it a trifle, then it is definitely a worthwhile one-time read.
The aspiring comical-writers/authors, should definitely read it atleast once. They may get a good take-away on creative writings wearing a logical-comical charade of daily-life musings and ramblings.
I so much wish if the book was packaged better.
Post the read my brain had to enforce itself to gather all I could in a flowchart, coz of the lack of structure.
Few of the noticeable citings/text from the book-
• You know, it's hard work to write a book. I can't tell you how many times I really get going on an idea, then my quill breaks. Or I spill ink all over my writing tunic. No wonder I drink so much! Then I get so drunk, I can barely feed the baby.
That's what I call myself when I'm drunk, "The Baby.
• Start thinking positively. You will notice a difference. Instead of 'I think I'm a loser,' try 'I definitely am a loser.' Stop being wishy-washy about things! How much more of a loser can you be if you don't even know you are one? Either you are a loser or you are not. Which is it, stupid?
• There are all sorts of books offering advice on how to deal with life-threatening situations, but where's the advice on dealing with embarrassing ones?
• Gratitude is looking on the brighter side of life, even if it means hurting your eyes.
• ...there are a lot of self-righteous people out there. And if you try to adjust your life to please them...you're just going to go crazy and risk being as unhappy as these self-righteous kooks are.
Finally…
• Enjoy your life. God gave us our bodies as a gift. (Granted, to some of us it's kind of a gag gift, but that's okay too.) Wear what you want, love who you want, and have fun.
May 12, 2012
I love Ellen (who doesn’t?!). I think that she’s funny, insightful, and incredibly wise. While I enjoy watching her show, I also loved her before she became the dancing, housewife heartthrob. It is for this reason that I picked up her book. More specifically, I got a copy of her audiobook so that I could listen to her read her book to me. I thought it would be like a private stand-up show with Ellen in my car. Sadly, it missed the most important ingredient...laughter.
In this book, Ellen has compiled a bunch of random musing that are neither funny nor insightful. For example, she tells of a brunch she has with various entertainment figured ranging from Eminem to Paula Abdul. I thought that there might be some chuckles, but mostly I was left feeling like “huh?”. I suppose I should have known better because the entire introduction was about how she didn’t want to write a book and how hard it was. If it was written by anyone else, I would have thought that they did if for the money.
Sometimes, I feel as if Ellen is holding back some of her humor because she is thought of as being “G” or “PG” rated. This was one of the reasons I picked up her book because I thought that she would write some “PG-13” or maybe possibly some “R” rated humor. Sadly, this was as funny and racy as a TV show on Nick Jr. I don’t like crude or overtly sexual humor, but I was hoping for at least some social commentary. Last month, her new book came out and I have to say that it looks very similar to this oldie. Sadly, I would have to tell you to pass on this one.
www.iamliteraryaddicted.blogspot.com
In this book, Ellen has compiled a bunch of random musing that are neither funny nor insightful. For example, she tells of a brunch she has with various entertainment figured ranging from Eminem to Paula Abdul. I thought that there might be some chuckles, but mostly I was left feeling like “huh?”. I suppose I should have known better because the entire introduction was about how she didn’t want to write a book and how hard it was. If it was written by anyone else, I would have thought that they did if for the money.
Sometimes, I feel as if Ellen is holding back some of her humor because she is thought of as being “G” or “PG” rated. This was one of the reasons I picked up her book because I thought that she would write some “PG-13” or maybe possibly some “R” rated humor. Sadly, this was as funny and racy as a TV show on Nick Jr. I don’t like crude or overtly sexual humor, but I was hoping for at least some social commentary. Last month, her new book came out and I have to say that it looks very similar to this oldie. Sadly, I would have to tell you to pass on this one.
www.iamliteraryaddicted.blogspot.com
March 2, 2017
I saw many bad reviews about this one, and was not too sure I'd like it. But it made me laugh - be it the brunch, the conversation with God, or the random ramblings! Ellen is always a delight. (I did prefer Seriously, I'm Kidding, though).
August 10, 2018
I love Ellen DeGeneres show because who doesn't?
I read this quite quickly because it is very easy to read book. I don't know whether to call this memoir because there are some life events included...anyways it was light hearted and fun book.
I read this quite quickly because it is very easy to read book. I don't know whether to call this memoir because there are some life events included...anyways it was light hearted and fun book.
February 21, 2017
I love Ellen. I think she is a genuinely funny and kind person. However, I think that a lot of her humor is due to her timing and presentation. I don't find that it comes across as well in her written work. It helps to imagine the book being told in her voice, but not enough to make me love it.
September 15, 2014
The Funny Thing Is...as I was listening to this audiobook:
1-Suddenly the thought of cleaning my room sounded appealing.
2-I watched the whole season of the cancelled CBC show Friends With Better Lives, 12 full episodes.
3-I organized my ebook library, shelving is as important as reading!
4-I decided to learn and make all kinds of breakfast eggs:scrambled, poached eggs, cheese omelet, and basically anything I could do with a 30 egg carton.
ANYTHING not to listen to this audiobook!! I appreciated that it let me pursue my other interests, but other than that I did not find it funny or interesting. Just annoying, really annoying.
1-Suddenly the thought of cleaning my room sounded appealing.
2-I watched the whole season of the cancelled CBC show Friends With Better Lives, 12 full episodes.
3-I organized my ebook library, shelving is as important as reading!
4-I decided to learn and make all kinds of breakfast eggs:scrambled, poached eggs, cheese omelet, and basically anything I could do with a 30 egg carton.
ANYTHING not to listen to this audiobook!! I appreciated that it let me pursue my other interests, but other than that I did not find it funny or interesting. Just annoying, really annoying.
December 2, 2025
"The fact is, I'd rather write a book than read a book. It's like reading, only you get paid for it."Ellen DeGeneres is on the cusp of starting her talk show after many years as a successful comedian.
She gives her two cents about various subjects such as fathers, prison, embarrassing situations, gift exchanges, fashion and how she named her book.
Overall, this was a lighthearted memoir and brings back the "good" memories of Ellen - back when she was an up and coming TV star, before she became jaded by years of wealth.
I thought it was funny (not groundbreaking) but overall an amusing way to spend a few hours.
Also, can I add in the irony of this quote?
Audiobook Comments
"Be nice to everyone, even though you don't want to and you may not like certain people. Be kind, friendly, and respectful even if people are not nice to you."
Read by the author and she does a great job with the comedic pacing!
YouTube | Blog | Instagram | Twitter | Facebook | Snapchat @miranda_reads
January 6, 2017
Meh...O-kay..
The problem with this one is that it's kind of old and I probably have heard most of these jokes or antidotes in some of her old stand up. Don't get me wrong, it was "chucklesome". (Like that word do you? Lol) But I wasn't laughing hard. This book didn't really tell much about her per se. I don't know if it was supposed to? It was a lot of randomness put into a book. When at the beginning she said she thought she'd fill the time prior to her show starting (her current talk show), she wasn't lying. This is what it felt like. Random thoughts and puns to fill the time. And that is exactly what it did for me as I listened to this audiobook. As I accomplished other things I nonchalantly listened to Ellen ramble on about I'm really not sure what. I don't even remember much of it. Maybe because this is a bit dated or maybe it just wasn't too great. And I like her. Sorry Ellen.
I'm really leaning towards 2 1/2 to 3 stars. I wish there was the half here so she can have more credit just because I like her show. Well, to be honest this isn't about her show or her cool points so.. strictly based on this book...2.
Moving on....
The problem with this one is that it's kind of old and I probably have heard most of these jokes or antidotes in some of her old stand up. Don't get me wrong, it was "chucklesome". (Like that word do you? Lol) But I wasn't laughing hard. This book didn't really tell much about her per se. I don't know if it was supposed to? It was a lot of randomness put into a book. When at the beginning she said she thought she'd fill the time prior to her show starting (her current talk show), she wasn't lying. This is what it felt like. Random thoughts and puns to fill the time. And that is exactly what it did for me as I listened to this audiobook. As I accomplished other things I nonchalantly listened to Ellen ramble on about I'm really not sure what. I don't even remember much of it. Maybe because this is a bit dated or maybe it just wasn't too great. And I like her. Sorry Ellen.
I'm really leaning towards 2 1/2 to 3 stars. I wish there was the half here so she can have more credit just because I like her show. Well, to be honest this isn't about her show or her cool points so.. strictly based on this book...2.
Moving on....
November 20, 2014
I LOVE Ellen, but I don't love this book.
It's not funny! I'll admit I chuckled a couple times,but I actually fell asleep.
I still love her, though. ♡
It's not funny! I'll admit I chuckled a couple times,but I actually fell asleep.
I still love her, though. ♡
April 19, 2017
Humorous
But if you're a lifelong fan you'll recognize some old school skits being placed in the chapters of this book
But if you're a lifelong fan you'll recognize some old school skits being placed in the chapters of this book
November 14, 2019
"Ellen DeGeneres published her first book of comic essays, the #1 bestselling My Point...And I Do Have One, way back in 1996. Not one to rest on her laurels, the witty star of stage and screen has since dedicated her life to writing a hilarious new book. That book is this book.
After years of painstaking, round-the-clock research, surviving on a mere twenty minutes of sleep a night, and collaborating with lexicographers, plumbers, and mathematicians, DeGeneres has crafted a work that is both easy to use and very funny. Along with her trademark ramblings, The Funny Thing Is... contains hundreds of succinct insights into her psyche and offers innovative features."
After years of painstaking, round-the-clock research, surviving on a mere twenty minutes of sleep a night, and collaborating with lexicographers, plumbers, and mathematicians, DeGeneres has crafted a work that is both easy to use and very funny. Along with her trademark ramblings, The Funny Thing Is... contains hundreds of succinct insights into her psyche and offers innovative features."
October 15, 2014
Oh, I wish I had read this before picking up Seriously ... I'm Kidding.
The Funny Thing is... did make me laugh - of course, it's Ellen after all - but, with the exception of a few chapters, it is not as coherent and thought-provoking as her next book. The Funny Thing is... is just that little bit too silly to be really funny. It's cute, tho.
Review first posted on BookLikes: http://brokentune.booklikes.com/post/...
The Funny Thing is... did make me laugh - of course, it's Ellen after all - but, with the exception of a few chapters, it is not as coherent and thought-provoking as her next book. The Funny Thing is... is just that little bit too silly to be really funny. It's cute, tho.
Review first posted on BookLikes: http://brokentune.booklikes.com/post/...
November 18, 2018
Two books by Ellen heard in a single day. And you know what, I couldn't tell them apart. I'm now wondering why these books were written at all. They are a collection of completely random musings, which seem to be overly caricaturized versions of the actual incident, most of which aren't even funny.
So while the first one i heard today was decent becoz of the novelty factor, the second one is downright boring and unnecessary.
I would now say, you can skip all of them altogether.
Just watch Ellen's TV version, not the book version :-)
She's still awesome!
So while the first one i heard today was decent becoz of the novelty factor, the second one is downright boring and unnecessary.
I would now say, you can skip all of them altogether.
Just watch Ellen's TV version, not the book version :-)
She's still awesome!
October 14, 2015
“There are all sorts of books offering advice on how to deal with life-threatening situations, but where's the advice on dealing with embarrassing ones?”
Finished this in one afternoon because..
1. It's Ellen
2. I studied while listening
3. IT'S ELLEN.
Ellen is my favorite, and this book did a great job of showing her sense of humour. I listened to the audiobook and it felt just like watching her show. I wasn't the biggest fan of her diary portion when she was on tour, but everything else was hilarious.
Finished this in one afternoon because..
1. It's Ellen
2. I studied while listening
3. IT'S ELLEN.
Ellen is my favorite, and this book did a great job of showing her sense of humour. I listened to the audiobook and it felt just like watching her show. I wasn't the biggest fan of her diary portion when she was on tour, but everything else was hilarious.
February 23, 2019
I just love Ellen. She is funny. This was short and sweet. She read the audiobook and it was very well done.
August 22, 2018
Not “funny” at all. Honestly, one star is too generous. Highly disappointed!
August 23, 2017
Another fun, light and silly read from Ellen!
January 29, 2024
Pretty meh tbh and I like Ellen???
February 23, 2020
Full of confusion just like her!
June 9, 2015
Liked not loved, good not great. I love Ellen and thoroughly enjoyed Seriously...I'm Kidding(5 Stars) but this book just didn't pack the laughs I thought it would. It might be because it is an older book and I have heard this material before.
Once again I see that this is labeled biography/memoir, it isn't, it is a comedy book. The style is stream of consciousness/ridiculousness.
Once again I see that this is labeled biography/memoir, it isn't, it is a comedy book. The style is stream of consciousness/ridiculousness.
July 13, 2009
As funny as she is on TV, this was a yawn. Not good, since I listened to it while driving. I think I laughed out loud once or twice - very disappointing. She is so much better when she has people to play off, and I felt like there was very little sense of comic timing as she read, which is strange, because on TV she is a master. Maybe lack of facial expressions were a problem for an audio book too.
August 1, 2011
I love Ellen. She's funny, and fantastic, and an absolute icon. I'm just not entirely sure that her kind of comedy translates well into writing.
Oh, the book is humourous. I enjoyed it; I'm glad I read it; I'll probably keep an eye out for her other book. It's just also very disjointed and, because it is in print rather than verbal humour, lacks the delivery to make that final push.
Still, an entertaining read.
Oh, the book is humourous. I enjoyed it; I'm glad I read it; I'll probably keep an eye out for her other book. It's just also very disjointed and, because it is in print rather than verbal humour, lacks the delivery to make that final push.
Still, an entertaining read.
May 20, 2016
Since I'm writing this review about a month after listening to this I have to say: I remember mostly nothing about this book. Nonetheless I remember enjoying it: DeGeneres is a good and nuanced narrator, she has a clear voice and I like her humor so there you go. A fun listen and also not too long so the joke doesn't get old.
May 7, 2016
There were some funny bits (which though rare were Hilarious) but in general it felt like Ellen was somehow forced to write this book so it sounded like she was trying too hard to find random topics to talk about and put some humor into, unfortunately.. without success.
April 22, 2008
Snooze...pretty awful.
April 16, 2009
This book was not funny at all! What a complete waste of my time.
May 30, 2017
not funny at all.
March 1, 2020
“Gratitude is looking on the brighter side of life, even if it means hurting your eyes.”
I read two of Ellen's book back to back and honestly I couldn't tell them apart. They are a collection of completely random thoughts, which seem to be parody versions of the actual incident.
'What doesn't kill you puts you in a whole lot of pain and makes you cry a lot and want to crawl in a hole forever and live with rodents.”
I read two of Ellen's book back to back and honestly I couldn't tell them apart. They are a collection of completely random thoughts, which seem to be parody versions of the actual incident.
'What doesn't kill you puts you in a whole lot of pain and makes you cry a lot and want to crawl in a hole forever and live with rodents.”
July 16, 2023
Finished and deleting for good.
1 star.
1 star.
July 8, 2017
I’m a huge fan of the Ellen Degeneres show. I listened to this as an audiobook, because I wanted it to feel like I was attending my own personal taping, and that Ellen’s sole purpose was to entertain me. The anecdotes were funny, but I quickly realized that there was something missing. It felt like Ellen was reading the book. I know how that sounds--of course she was reading the book. But it felt like she was reading someone else’s words. Her voice was flat. It lacked her usual comedic timing and the nuances in tone that generally makes humour funny. I think the book would have greatly benefited from Ellen making the stories sound a little more “spontaneous” (even though that would be an act). The best parts were the handful of times when I could tell that Ellen was trying not to laugh. That made the audiobook more dynamic and charming to me.
That said, the stories were pretty funny, even though I knew it was all made up. With other celebrity essays/memoirs, the stories are a little more realistic, and although I intuitively know that the authors are lying through their teeth, I can pretend that the stories are based on true events. For The Funny Thing Is…, the stories definitely weren’t true (unless Ellen really did meet God buck-naked), but they were entertaining nevertheless.
3.5 stars.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 966 reviews