Uncle John’s Truth, Trivia, and the Pursuit of Factiness Bathroom Reader

by Bathroom Readers' Institute

It’s all about the facts—and Uncle John is back with a ton of them!

For the 32nd year, Uncle John and his loyal researchers have teamed up to bring you the latest tidbits from the world of pop culture, history, sports, and strange news stories. If you want to read about celebrity misdeeds, odd coincidences, and disastrous blunders, Uncle John’s Truth, Trivia, and the Pursuit of Factiness has what you need. With short articles for a quick trip to the throne room and longer page-turners for an extended visit, this all-new edition of Uncle John’s Bathroom Reader is a satisfying read.
 

Genres: Nonfiction, Trivia, Reference, Humor

512 pages, Paperback

First published September 3, 2019

About the author

The Bathroom Reader's Institute UJBR boasts more than 12 million books in print and a membership base topping 40,000 loyal readers . . .

Reviews

[J.J. Lair · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another year and another enjoyable book of facts, quotes, and stories. Superhero firsts and a game matching what killed superhero parents. Logo origins I didn’t know. Best sellers of the 19th century and facts about 1962 and 1927. The story of the president desk was interesting. There are the usual articles on dumb criminals. Lists. 1980s Movie Trivia. Casting changes in movies.

[Buddy Gott · Rating 4 out of 5]

Even though I've known about this series for many years, this is the first time I've read one of the books. I'm very glad that I finally did!

There are a lot of fun and interesting things to be found here. What's especially great is that even when there was a topic that I might not have been interested in, it was then only a matter of a few pages before I found another topic that I ended up being very interested in.

Definitely a fun and informative book here. I'm happy I read it and I'll now be seeking other books in this series.

*I received a copy of this book from the publisher, via NetGalley, in exchange for a fair review.

[David Caldwell · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is another entry in the Uncle John's Bathroom Reader series. It is a collection of trivia articles ranging from a page to several pages (or a series of articles.

This series has some good points and some bad points that are true for all of their books.

Starting with the "bad". Most of them are just a little too big to comfortable carry in their printed book form. The articles are mixed to give the readers short, medium, long articles which can be helpful but if you don't read them in order than you just have to try to remember which you have read and spend awhile looking for unread articles as you read more and more. There is a table of contents which breaks the articles down into subject and then length. It would be helpful to have a glossary to help find the article if you want to go back for some reason.

The "good". These books are very reliable. If you like one, you will like most of them. They are extremely sturdy with reinforced paper covers.I like that the articles are different lengths so you can pick ones to fit your reading time.

With this particular entry, I found that I didn't care for the series of articles that run through the book. (There was a series of longer articles about where founding fathers are buried.) It just didn't seem as much fun as some of the other books in the series.

[Diane Hernandez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Talk about multi-tasking! Read a 500-page book in the time it takes to “use the facilities”, wait to be called in by your doctor, or get through the checkout line. John’s bathroom books are always a joy to read and Uncle John's Truth, Trivia, and the Pursuit of Factiness Bathroom Reader is no exception.

What is the one food hated by Guy Fieri? Eggs! Why would anyone want to steal a 10 foot long inflatable colon, an ambulance, or a human toe? Because it was there. Why does your cat keep “gifting” you with dead birds and rodents? It’s trying to teach you to hunt. How about some restaurant secrets? Outback Steakhouse is as Australian as you are (assuming you aren’t Australian, of course). It’s a US company based on the Crocodile Dundee movies. The McRib sandwich’s meat is mainly pork tripe so why isn’t it an American hangover cure like menudo?

Uncle John's Truth, Trivia, and the Pursuit of Factiness Bathroom Reader is really in a class by itself. Full of entertaining stories sized by how long you have to read, this book is a perfect way to fit more reading into your life. Plus you’ll have some interesting tidbits to share with your friends, family, and co-workers. 5 stars!

Thanks to Portable Press and NetGalley for a copy in exchange for my honest review.

[Phillip Murrell · Rating 4 out of 5]

I get the most recent copy of this book series every year for Christmas. I then take the year to read all the interesting articles and trivia. This started in 2007, when I was deployed to Iraq and waiting to come home. I had three days of absolute boredom, but I found the first three books of my collection. This year's entry was just as good as the previous. I can't wait to get the latest book next week.

[Denice Langley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've bought the Uncle John's series of books for my grandson and nephews for years so had to check this one out. As always, these books are designed to be read in short periods of time, namely a bathroom trip. They are very amusing and full of information you'll find yourself repeating even if you don't read them in the bathroom. Another great book for somebody's stocking this year.

[Janet · Rating 4 out of 5]

What fun! This book will definitely appeal to trivia buffs. It actually might appeal to anyone with a sense of humor and wonder. I found it to be refreshingly easy to read and to tell the truth, I feel the need to share what Ive "discovered" whenever possible. Great gift book.
I received my copy through NetGalley under no obligation.

[Dan Stern · Rating 5 out of 5]

Uncle John's Bathroom Readers and specialty books have made me smarter, taller, and better looking for decades. I still enjoy them, but am finding the newer ones a little less interesting than they used to be. Perhaps it's me, perhaps I'm jaded. I just don't get the "OMG" feeling as often as I used to. Still, these are still great books for throne sessions, and I can recommend them heartily.

[Brentman99 · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't think I've ever read a bad Bathroom Reader book.

When you have bathroom business to do, there is nothing like reading a good Bathroom Reader while doing it. I have to say that I'm guilty of extending my time in the second library to finish a particularly good article.

These are a great read and very entertaining. Highly recommended.

[Ken Nilsestuen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well, can I really say I read from cover to cover? It isn't than kind of a book. Pick it up, spend a while learning fun things, set it down. I have probably read half of it and am ready to retire it to the bookshelf. Great fun, I am more ready for a trivia game than ever before. May pick it up again someday.

[Tom Darrow · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like the long set of stories about founding fathers burial sites, but the cyber security one was a bit weak. Some of the quote ones were a bit off, too. But, overall, the best of the bathroom readers.

[Andrew · Rating 3 out of 5]

The usual quality fare from Uncle John. More fun facts and interesting tidbits than you can shake a stick at. My favorite set of articles from this edition were the ones on the burials of several of the Founding Fathers.

[Elizabeth Golding · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was another bathroom reader...full of one liners, short stories and longer stories. This one had a few multi part stories. It is good reading when sitting in that one place where you can read privately until someone knocks.

[Bob Cantrell · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is just another home run for Uncle John in the trivia world. I love trivia and this one place I know I can get it. There is just a bit of everything to read about in this book. If you want trivia this is the place to get it.

[Heather Bennett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this book of you are looking for something fun a interesting. Informative and entertaining. Well written and easy to read.

[Noelle Walsh · Rating 5 out of 5]

This fun-to-read book is great for the trivia nerd and the humour-lover. if you're looking for something that will grab your attention and keep your interest (even if you aren't using the facilities), then this is the book for you!

[Nick Vantangoli · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not a bad book. The Institute isn’t quite putting out the great quality books of a few years ago, but this one surely is generally solid.

[Abraham Ray · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great young adults read!!

[Patricia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Always fun to read the bathroom readers!

[Alex · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well-researched book; variety of subjects. There were a few chapters I skipped but that was only because I wasn't interested in a particular topic and not because the writing was necessarily bad.

[Lisa Montgomery · Rating 4 out of 5]

This naturally took me longer to read than just picking up a novel. Three or four short pieces a day just so mind could wind down. Learned lots of facts also.

[Joe Crowe · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is good stuff.

The book delivers its works of weirdness, fun, trivia, and weird fun trivia into categories of short, medium, and long -- based on how long you are going to be using the bathroom.

So convenient. Should every book divide itself up this way? I think so.

There are so many good things in this collection. The inside front cover itself is a collection of quotes about facts, including Homer Simpson: "Facts are meaningless. You could use facts to prove anything that's even remotely true."

More things you will need to read herein: "When Athletes Fart." "Why is a Raven Like a Writing Desk?" "Bad Canadian TV." "Weird Podcasts." (That should probably be a long one.) "Superhero Orphans."

Get this now. You might never want to come out of the bathroom.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

I''m new to the Uncle John's readers, this being just the second one that I've read. I found this one nearly as much fun as the other, full of strange-but-true stories, trivia, history, and a good helping of just-for-laughs.