Jokes to Offend Men

by Allison Kelley, Danielle Kraese, Kate Herzlin

A modern, feminist take on the classic joke book to amuse and empower readers who are tired of being the punchline.

A man walks into a bar. It’s a low one, so he gets a promotion within his first six months on the job.
 
Four comedy writers transform classic joke setups into sharp commentary about the everyday and structural sexism that pervades all facets of life. Jokes to Offend Men arms readers with humorous quips to shut down workplace underminers, condescending uncles, and dismissive doctors, or to share with their exhausted friends at the end of a long day. A cutting, cathartic spin on the old-fashioned joke book, Jokes to Offend Men is a refreshing reclamation of a tired form for anyone who's ever been told to "lighten up, it's just a joke!"
 

Genres: Nonfiction, Feminism, Humor, Audiobook, Comedy, Womens, Essays

176 pages, Hardcover

First published October 25, 2022

Reviews

[shanayaa · Rating 3 out of 5]

➳ 3.5/5 stars

⚘ "Do you think Santa Claus is real?
A man who demands you believe in him despite no evidence? Sounds real to me!"

⚘ "Why was the woman told to speak up? Because the man was never told to shut up."

If this book rubs you the wrong way, congrats — you’re the inspiration!

[Petra X · Rating 2 out of 5]

Review This very short book was filled with bitterness in the guise of humour. I understood the bitterness, I'm just as fed as other women with the little slings and arrows of living in a society that doesn't value women or women's work as highly as men. These days 'white privilege' is a popular trope, but that is lumping together men and women as equally privileged and that just isn't so. Think of the average day of a couple with two or three children, any race, religion or none at all.

In the morning he gets up, gets himself ready, has breakfast, he may have made the coffee, and will take the children to school if it is on his way (note: I know Americans all have a school bus, so you are going to have to adapt this narrative).

In the morning she gets up, throws something on, wakes the kids, makes breakfast, makes sure the kids look ok for school, have their lunches and all their school books with them. Checks that the one who is playing football after school has their kit with them and tells them she'll pick them up to bring them home. Then she throws a load of washing into the washing machine, checks the kids' rooms (they make their own beds), gets herself ready for work, taking along a list of what she needs to do at lunchtime including phoning her friend who is taking the kid to football, and noting that she is the one designated to buy a present for the latest office birthday.

He goes to work. At lunchtime he goes out with his mates for a drink and a sandwich.

She goes to work and sneaks in a few calls to her mother to see if she is ok, to remind her friend to pick up the kid from school, picks out a birthday gift on Amazon and arranges it to be sent to the office tomorrow morning. At lunchtime, she drops off the dry cleaning, buys a card, pops into the supermarket for some sandwiches and gets a few groceries at the same time.

After work, she goes home to find the kids have been dropped off and are playing games on their computers. She hustles them to pick up their school uniforms from the floor and get on with their homework which she helps them with. Puts the groceries away. Changes into house clothes. She takes the clothes out of the washing machine/dryer (this is Europe, they are all in one) hangs them up and irons school shirts for the next day. Starts to get the meal on for dinner, just an easy chicken dish with vegetables that need peeling and a fresh fruit salad for afters. At the same time she washes and dries the lunchboxes, boils some eggs, makes egg mayo sandwiches, cuts up an apple and a few grapes and a biscuit from a packet and puts the filled lunchboxes in the fridge.

He comes home late from work having 'networked' down the pub for a quick drink with the lads, gives his wife a peck on the cheek (she is in the kitchen making dinner) slumps onto the sofa, turns the tv on and gets out his phone. 'Hard day, today' he says in passing, this is conversation. 'What are we having for dinner?'

The table set by one of the kids, they all sit down to dinner. After dinner he tells the kids to unload the dishwasher so he can help by clearing the table and loading it up. He then slumps down in front of the tv again with his phone. She gets the kids off to bed making sure that their rooms look reasonable, that all have brushed their teeth, bags are packed for tomorrow and too exhausted to do the vacuuming, joins her husband on the sofa. He puts his arm around her, draws her closer, 'what about a little nooky, ' he suggests. She doesn't whack him one, she turns to this little book and finds the appropriate bitter joke and reads it to him. But to no avail, his head has fallen back and he's snoring.

Or something like that!
__________

Reading notes and the only funny joke The first joke, in the introduction, that made me chuckle with agreement, thinking of all the times it is written in the media,"What's found across every industry and through every generation but still considered 'an isolated incident,'? Unwanted male attention. Lol, how do you say lol ironically lolI?

[Dawn Solaris · Rating 3 out of 5]

★彡 3 stars 彡★

𓂃 𓈒𓏸 Felt cute, might mock the male species later >ᴗ<


⋮ ⌗ ┆ ƢƲƠƬЄ ƑЄƧƬ (𝔾𝕣𝕚𝕝𝕝-&-ℝ𝕠𝕒𝕤𝕥 edition):

°˖➴ ❝Why was the woman told to speak up?
Because the man was never told to shut up.❞


°˖➴ ❝ An optimist sees a glass that’s half-full. A pessimist sees a glass that’s half-empty. Greg sees a glass of water that’s spilled and does nothing.❞


°˖➴ ❝I like my men like I like my carrots: I don’t like them.❞


°˖➴ ❝How can you tell when you’ve offended a man?
He goes on a rant about how you’re too easily offended.❞


°˖➴ ❝That’s not very ladylike,” said the man who knows nothing about what ladies like. ❞

[Sophie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is incredibly funny. I have screenshots of every single page and I was rolling over laughing while going through it.

What an amazing and empowering book! Jokes to Offend Men is a modern, feminist take on the classic joke book. The authors have taken classic joke setups and turned them into sharp commentary about the everyday and structural sexism that pervades all facets of life.

If you're looking for a book that will help you laugh in the face of oppression, then Jokes to Offend Men is the perfect read for you! This hilarious collection of jokes was written by four outstanding comedy writers who are tired of being the punchline.

So why should you buy this book? Because it's funny, empowering, and it will make those annoying sexist dudes think twice before they open their mouths again. Buy it for yourself, buy it for your friends, or buy it as a gift for that special someone in your life who's always ready with a zinger. Jokes to Offend Men is the perfect way to fight back against the patriarchy - and have a whole lot of fun doing it.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an arc in exchange for my review.

[Helena (helenareadsxx) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think this book is so important for everyone to read. I think it highlights through 'jokes' how misogynistic our society is as a whole, some of which I didn't even realize until I read this book as it is so integrated into society. Enlightening read. Thank you so much to Edelweiss and Simon and Schuster for this ARC.

[Arushi♡ [comment restriction] · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.25💫

The cover looked cute and I just wanted to do what it says read it.

Why was the woman told to speak up?
Because the man was never told to shut up.

A woman was in costume at her work Halloween party and no one successfully guessed who she was.
“Isn’t that annoying?” asked a coworker.
“No,” she replied. “I’m used to having to defend my clothing choices to the men on this team.”

Do you think Santa Claus is real?
A man who demands you believe in him despite no evidence? Sounds real to me!

How do you know you’re in the presence of a creative genius?
He will remind you.

Why wasn’t the woman allowed to testify against her assailant?
The court decided that her outfit spoke for her

“Women are so emotional,” said the man who just punched a hole in the wall.

[tanveer ⋆｡✧ · Rating 4 out of 5]

an absolute delight to read. i've highlighted almost every page lol 🫶🏻

–––––––
pre-review

What do men and jars have in common? It’s exhausting to get them to finally open up.

this is gonna be amazing lol

[Andrea ☾ [is inconsistently consistant] · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jokes To Offend Men is a collection of witty, painful jokes that have made me both laugh out loud and become even more rationally angry than I usually am. But the thing is, sometimes a little reminder that we’re not alone in the outskirts of society is all we can give each other. I believe this book lends itself to do precisely that. I will leave here my favourite joke in the entire book, one of the only ones where I just could keep the laughter in.

“What happened when the director shot a hetero sex scene where the woman didn’t have a screaming orgasm immediately upon penetration?
Too many men complained that it was unrealistic.”


*Thank you to Net Galley and publisher for the eARC*

[mena ౨ৎ · Rating 1 out of 5]

this was such a let-down :( very... millenial-core. i jumped at the opportunity to read a compilation of jokes about misogyny from female comedy writers, but these just were not.... good. i may have smirked at a few of them, but overall, a lot of these looked like something you'd see attached to a minion meme on a middle-aged woman's facebook in 2015. lovely idea and concept, but the execution was garbage.

[MissBecka Gee · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was fantastic!
Hilarious from start to finish (and a little sad from the truth found in the jokes)!

"What do men and pie have in common?'
"When given the opportunity, I prefer cake."

I highly recommend taking an hour out of your day to feel seen and have some fun.
Much love to NetGalley & Andrews McMeel Audio for this fabulous audio!!!

[Trisha · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am crying at the irony of the situation where instead of laughing at these jokes, I'm so mad at the world, especially at all the Gregs who think they have a license to look down on women and give unsolicited advises and recommendations and what not. Honestly, this book is more of a social commentary than a jokes book and it would offend everybody - the oppressor and the oppressed.

Enjoyed the audio book narration! Recommended.

Thanks to Andrews McMeel Audio and NetGalley for the ALC.

3.5/5🌟(rounding up).

TW: Misogyny, Patriarchy and similar stuff.

[Alexander Peterhans · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hey, I'm a man, and none of the jokes offended me (I'd guess 80% of reviews by men of this book will begin the same way). Not that strange, as self-selection does its soothing work.

There's a lot of jokes here, and some made me laugh. There are also quite a few non-jokes, wry to bitter observations that are more sad than funny.

Still, not bad.

(Picked up a review copy through Edelweiss)

[Annie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was just okay for me. I LOVE the idea. It reminded me of my much beloved Misandrist Lullabies from The Toast. But unfortunately most of the jokes didn't feel like jokes, more like the author's fantasies of comebacks to misogynistic comments, or mildly annoyed observations. They just weren't that funny to me. I love nothing more than a good joke at the expense of men, but these just didn't do it for me. I think I chuckled once. I was hoping for a lot, and was just a bit disappointed.

Thanks to NetGalley and Andrews McMeel Publishing for the free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Urtė Caspo · Rating 1 out of 5]

Didžiausia šitos knygos problema – nejuokingi bajeriai 😬.

[Dreamcatcher (HIATUS)]

Look at that 3.4 average rating and tell me that you're surprised. Sighh.

There were quite a lot of typos here and there; Greg was mispelt as Gorg at one point, but otherwise it had what the title says lol
Here's a compilation of my personal favorites:

What did the man do after being introduced to the concept of emotional labor?
Asked his spouse to explain it to him.
What did he say after it was explained?
“Oh, I wasn’t listening. Explain it again.”

-

What do you call a man who just graduated with half an internship on his résumé?
Hired.

-

What do men and Pluto have in common?
They were promoted before we knew their credentials.
Their demotion got more attention than anything a woman has
accomplished.
The more we learned about them, the more we realized they
didn’t deserve their title.
They got too much real estate in my school textbooks.
They were both judged by their potential and not their
accomplishments.
Despite the evidence, people will continue to defend their
position.

-

What do student loans and politicians who break campaign promises have in common?
They both generate a lot of interest and prevent us from moving forward.

-

If a man is playing devil’s advocate, how many hours will he continue to talk at you if you just smile and nod?
I don’t know yet, ask me when he’s done!

-

What do you call a man who walks into a bar and calls “dibs” on an attractive stranger?
A cab.

-

What did the theoretical physicist say when his colleague told
him they were sexually harassed?
“Sorry, but I’m going to need to see some proof.”

-

What did the mayor say to the governor?
“Isn’t it cool how neither of us is a man even though most
people would assume we are based on our job titles?”

-

Why are there so few female astronauts?
Men feel threatened when women take up space.

-

Why couldn’t the toadstool take a seat?
The fungi had spread out and he didn’t leave her mushroom.

-

What did the doctor give his patient Eddie?
A diagnosis.
What did the doctor give his patient Edie?
A lecture.

-

What happened to the man who expected the women in his life to manage his calendar?
He had a hard time finding a date.

-

“I wish you could see how beautiful you really are,” the man said.
“And I wish you would give me back my glasses,” said the woman. “I can’t see anything.”

-

Why did the dad cross the road?
Because the neighbor called him a chicken and he just couldn’t let it go.

-

What do you call someone who claims to be a feminist but doesn’t believe that trans women are women?
A lot of things, but definitely not a feminist.

-

Why did the duck cross the road?
You don’t have to be a chicken to leave a situation that’s not right for you.

-

A man is feeling sick, so he goes to a walk-in clinic. The doctor introduces herself and asks what’s bothering him. Startled, the man says, “Oh, I assumed you were the nurse.”
The doctor frowns and says, “Sounds serious. Let me send you home with some literature.”

-

How did the dermatologist respond when he was reported for harassment?
He performed a mole check.

-

What do you call a female doctor?
A doctor.

I wanted to add a lot more but at this point—just read the book

[Marianne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jokes To Offend Men is a compilation collected by Allison Kelley, Danielle Kraese, Kate Herzlin, and Ysabel Yates. It covers diverse areas: in the workplace, at home, on holidays, mansplainers, doctors and more.

A reader might take issue with the title because, surely the remit of a joke is to be funny? And while these statements, quips and remarks are smart, insightful, clever and incisive, and quite often offensive to men, they are not all that funny. This is because, tragically, so many of them are true, accurate assessments of the current state of play. There’s nothing hilarious here. The joke in the blurb is probably the best of the lot. This little volume might appeal more to readers in USA. It’s a quick read and some lines might be worth remembering for personal use.
This unbiased review is from an uncorrected proof copy provided by NetGalley and Andrew McMeel Publishers

[Danai · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you net galley for providing me with a free arc of Jokes to Offend men in exchange for a honest review.


Hilarious, throught provoking and unapologetically sarcastic this book is an absolute must read for any feminist

[Kris · Rating 1 out of 5]

Unfortunately didn’t find any humor in this book. I was really excited for the man slander but it was just disappointing. There were very few jokes that were slightly funny but definitely not enough to make an entire book.

Here are a few of the jokes for reference:

“What’s it called when you expect women to hate carbs?
Enforcing outdated gender rolls”

“What do the holiday turkey and my husband have in common?
Nice legs”

“How do we know the female lead is a victim?
She’s playing a single mom”



Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

[Paula · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am all for jokes that offend men, but this simply offended me with how cringe the jokes were hahahaha. It felt like the script writers for Riverdale wanted to take a stab at writing a book through the perspective of Veronica Lodge.

[Carly Mae · Rating 5 out of 5]

this book made me laugh harder than i have in a long time. i highly recommend— it’s now sitting on my coffee table and it’s perfect.

[Cari Gillette · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great Christmas present for your conservative father.

When he gets offended just say “that’s the problem now, people can’t take a Joke.”

[Isabelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fun book that allows you to laugh (instead of cry) about just how messy the world can be sometimes. It was quick and light, a definite easy read.

Thanks NetGalley and Andrews McMeel Audio for this audiobook!

[Lauren · Rating 1 out of 5]

I’m all for offending men, but this book was not for me. To the people who have given this book 4 or 5 stars: did we read the same book?!

This could've been a great opportunity to support four female comedy writers, to show that the phrase 'women aren't funny' is far from true, but unfortunately in this case, these women truly aren't funny. I can appreciate a good joke (a particular section of Twitter is full of all kinds of comedic treasure) but these were simply not good jokes.
Many of them weren’t even jokes, just bitter statements ranting about the (very real) sexism women experience at the hands of men. The whole thing was very cisgender and heteronormative, with the occasional mention of a non-binary/genderqueer person and a gay couple for some ✨ token diversity ✨, but it honestly didn't feel genuine, more like it was thrown in at the last minute when someone noticed how cishet it all was.

There were a couple, maybe ten or so, jokes that I thought were somewhat funny. These could’ve been — should’ve been — tweets. There simply wasn’t enough good material to fill a whole book.

Here are a some of the 'good' ones:

What do you call a man who walks into a bar and calls "dibs" on an attractive stranger?
A cab.

-

"Women are so emotional,"
said the man who just punched
a hole in the wall.

-

Three women went to see a mechanic for an oil change.
They were spoken to respectfully, charged a fair price,
and not pressured into getting anything they didn't
need. How is this possible?

They were on each other's shoulders, wearing a trench c oat, pretending to be a very tall man.

And a few examples of what I thought were bad ones. Make of it what you will:

What happened when the husband increased
his wife's allowance?

An allowance? What is she, his child?
What the fuck?

-

Why didn't the working mother go
to a four-year college?

Why don't you mind your own business?

-

A woman walks into a bar. And then walks right out
of it. The environment was hostile; it was awful.

Disclaimer: A digital copy of this book was provided to me by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

[Katerina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good, fun, entertaining

[su ୨୧ · Rating 1 out of 5]

“I like my men like I like my carrots: I don’t like them.” 🤓 someone come get their aunt

[aashi · Rating 4 out of 5]

𝕃𝕒𝕤𝕥 𝕣𝕖𝕒𝕕 𝕠𝕗 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕐𝕖𝕒𝕣

3.5/5 ✨🤍

I enjoyed this book so much and devoured it so fast. It is definitely worth reading.


Here are some jokes I loved 🥰 those may be able to convince u to read the book


„That’s not very ladylike,” said the man who knows nothing about what ladies like.“

„Did you hear the one about the princewho needed saving?
Of course you didn’t. Men’s vulnerability is vastly underreported.“

„What do you do with a man who won’t accept that you just don’t like him that way?
Put him in the we’re-no-longer-friends zone.“

„So, what? You just don’t like men?” said the man.
“Yes,” said the woman.“ (only when they’re fictional)

„How do you make a woman on a dating app send you nudes?
You don’t.“


„What do you call it when an abusive man complains about being the victim of a “witch hunt”?
Pure hocus-pocus.“


„How many Republican senators does it take to change a light bulb?
None. They welcome the return of the Dark Ages.“



„Why do we call our planet “Mother” Earth?
We think its main job is to support life but we don’t support it back.
We won’t appreciate all it’s done until it’s gone.
Empty statements about its importance stand in for real actions that could actually help.
We’re always expecting it to bring us water.
We mine it for energy 24/7 and once a year we give it a card.
Because as long as we assume it’s a woman, we’ll be happy to keep using it.“

[Kiara ✨ · Rating 5 out of 5]

⇢ ˗ˏˋ 5 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘀 ✧🫧

"Jokes to Offend Men" is a funny book that makes you think about how guys and girls are treated differently in our society. It talks about things that might make some people uncomfortable, but it's all in good fun. Reading it helps you see the world in a new way and understand how we all fit into it. If you like jokes and want to learn something too, this book is for you.

[Mia · Rating 4 out of 5]

«What happened when the director shot a hetero sex scene where the woman didn’t have a screaming orgasm immediately upon penetration?
Too many men complained that it was unrealistic.»

[Michela · Rating 2 out of 5]

Jokes to Offend Men is a collection of jokes that serve as a sharp commentary about what women have to endure pretty much every day of their lives. It's a short read: some jokes were quite good, but most of them fell flat for me unfortunately. There are lots of repetitions, so some jokes were really predictable, I have laughed out loud to only one joke, but I think the point of this book is more about making fun about something that is still a problem, a sort of "reclamation" of a certain structure of jokes that were almost always targeting the weaker part, rather than making the reader actually laugh. Still, I think I would have enjoyed this more if it had more funny (meaner) puns and less bitter statements: I'm pretty sure these jokes will not offend men at all.

* I'd like to thank Allison Kelley, Danielle Kraese, Kate Herzlin, Ysabel Yates, Andrews McMeel Publishing and NetGalley for providing this ALC in exchange for my honest review.

[Dylan | itsthelymanlibrary · Rating 3 out of 5]

This joke book had me feeling a lot of uncomfortable feelings. Made me pretty mad. Made me laugh. Made me even madder that experiences I’ve had (and hated) are so universal across gender roles that some comedians and satire writers literally wrote a joke about it. I mean it; I was super mad. I wanted to laugh but it was way too real to even laugh, I just wanted to cry.

I mostly recommend this to people who are looking for a way to cope with the patriarchy. It’s a brilliant way to feel camaraderie and to feel seen, even when life as a woman or non-binary person makes you feel invisible.

Do I think anyone who needs to read this book will? No. No I don’t. But thank you to the authors for writing about a really difficult and angering and sad thing in a way that made me smile.

Thanks to net galley for the advanced copy!