Uncle John's Plunges into California


Book Description

California here we come! Uncle John is taking a full-color plunge into the land of freeways, fun in the sun, cable cars, and movie stars. From the redwood forest to the Mexican border, the Pacific coastline to the Mojave Desert, California is the most populous state in the Union and the eighth-largest economy in the world. And what better way to honor America’s most influential state than by devoting an entire Technicolor compendium to the cause? Inside this book, readers will discover obscure history, learn fascinating facts, and meet the unique people who make California so great. So grab your sunglasses, hold on to your gold-miner’s hat, and plunge into the Golden State!




Uncle John's Bathroom Reader Plunges Into Hollywood


Book Description

Flush with delightfully useless--and sometimes even useful--information about sports, movies, music, politics, American and world history, and much more, this book is the most extensive reference guide in the series to date.




How to Fight a Bear . . . and Win


Book Description

A humorous guide to surviving in the wilderness, that also might make you want to avoid the wilderness forever. For more than twenty-five years, Uncle John’s Bathroom Reader has helped you learn amazing things you didn’t know. Now, Uncle John will show you how to do things you didn’t know how to do . . . and probably should never, never, never actually do, unless you’re in a survival situation and really, really, really need to do. It’s How to Fight a Bear . . . and Win. A new approach to survival guides and how-to books, this book provides step-by-step instructions for how to make do in any rugged terrain. But if you’re expecting “how to start a fire,” think again. This isn’t the kind of book that will tell you how to make a fire by rubbing two sticks together—it will tell you how to make a fire using a car battery. It will also tell you: · How to swing from a vine like Tarzan · How to land an airplane in an emergency · How to fight a bear . . . and win · How to perform emergency surgery in the woods · How to identify what insects you can—and cannot—eat And lots, lots more




The Grossest Joke Book Ever!


Book Description

Jokes and riddles guaranteed to make you gag! Soon to be banned everywhere from Boston to the dinner table, this little book has a double helping of EEW-inducing fun. With more than 500 knock-knock jokes, one-liners, riddles, and puns to choose from, kids can always find the wrong joke…for the right occasion. How do you make a tissue dance? Put a little boogie in it. What’s brown and sticky? A stick. What was Beethoven doing in his grave? Decomposing. Do zombies eat candy with their fingers? No, they eat the fingers separately.




Uncle John's Actual and Factual Bathroom Reader


Book Description

It’s an actual fact—Uncle John is the most entertaining thing in the bathroom! Uncle John and his team of devoted researchers are back again with an all-new collection of weird news stories, odd historical events, dubious “scientific” theories, jaw-dropping lists, and more. This entertaining 31st anniversary edition contains 512 pages of all-new articles that will appeal to readers everywhere. Pop culture, history, dumb crooks, and other actual and factual tidbits are packed onto every page of this book. Inside, you’ll find . . . Dogs and cats who ran for political office The bizarre method people in Victorian England used to resuscitate drowning victims The man who met his future pet—a stray dog—while running across the Gobi Desert Searching for Planet X—the last unknown planet in our solar system Twantrums—strange Twitter rants that had disastrous effects The true story of Boaty McBoatface And much more!




Before We Were Strangers


Book Description

From the USA TODAY bestselling author of Sweet Thing and Nowhere But Here comes a love story about a Craigslist “missed connection” post that gives two people a second chance at love fifteen years after they were separated in New York City. To the Green-eyed Lovebird: We met fifteen years ago, almost to the day, when I moved my stuff into the NYU dorm room next to yours at Senior House. You called us fast friends. I like to think it was more. We lived on nothing but the excitement of finding ourselves through music (you were obsessed with Jeff Buckley), photography (I couldn’t stop taking pictures of you), hanging out in Washington Square Park, and all the weird things we did to make money. I learned more about myself that year than any other. Yet, somehow, it all fell apart. We lost touch the summer after graduation when I went to South America to work for National Geographic. When I came back, you were gone. A part of me still wonders if I pushed you too hard after the wedding… I didn’t see you again until a month ago. It was a Wednesday. You were rocking back on your heels, balancing on that thick yellow line that runs along the subway platform, waiting for the F train. I didn’t know it was you until it was too late, and then you were gone. Again. You said my name; I saw it on your lips. I tried to will the train to stop, just so I could say hello. After seeing you, all of the youthful feelings and memories came flooding back to me, and now I’ve spent the better part of a month wondering what your life is like. I might be totally out of my mind, but would you like to get a drink with me and catch up on the last decade and a half? M




The Funniest Joke Book Ever!


Book Description

Over 500 giggles, groans, and belly laughs! Kids can’t resist sharing jokes (even you try to stop them), so they always need a fresh supply. We’ve stuffed the pages of this little joke book with the funniest jokes we could find. Old favorites, new favorites, and a few festering stinkers, all guaranteed to make kids laugh out loud. You’ll find Q&A jokes, knock-knock jokes, riddles, and one-liners. And, of course, we’ve included entire chapters of those all-time kid-pleasers: elephant jokes, pirate jokes, and space jokes. Here’s a sampling: What's black and white, black and white, black and white? A penguin rolling down a hill. Why don’t zombies eat clowns? They taste funny. Why did the hen scold her chicks? They were using fowl language. What kind of books do skunks read? Best-smellers! How does Darth Vader like his toast? On the dark side. . . . and many more!




I Love Jesus, But I Want to Die


Book Description

A compassionate, shame-free guide for your darkest days “A one-of-a-kind book . . . to read for yourself or give to a struggling friend or loved one without the fear that depression and suicidal thoughts will be minimized, medicalized or over-spiritualized.”—Kay Warren, cofounder of Saddleback Church What happens when loving Jesus doesn’t cure you of depression, anxiety, or suicidal thoughts? You might be crushed by shame over your mental illness, only to be told by well-meaning Christians to “choose joy” and “pray more.” So you beg God to take away the pain, but nothing eases the ache inside. As darkness lingers and color drains from your world, you’re left wondering if God has abandoned you. You just want a way out. But there’s hope. In I Love Jesus, But I Want to Die, Sarah J. Robinson offers a healthy, practical, and shame-free guide for Christians struggling with mental illness. With unflinching honesty, Sarah shares her story of battling depression and fighting to stay alive despite toxic theology that made her afraid to seek help outside the church. Pairing her own story with scriptural insights, mental health research, and simple practices, Sarah helps you reconnect with the God who is present in our deepest anguish and discover that you are worth everything it takes to get better. Beautifully written and full of hard-won wisdom, I Love Jesus, But I Want to Die offers a path toward a rich, hope-filled life in Christ, even when healing doesn’t look like what you expect.




Do Geese Get Goose Bumps?


Book Description

A wildly entertaining Q&A collection filled with fun facts on everything from science to sports to late-night infomercials. Find the answers to hundreds of life’s most perplexing questions in this entertaining collection from the team behind the multimillion-selling, award-winning Uncle John’s Bathroom Readers. Do Geese Get Goose Bumps is filled with simple explanations for complex topics, everything from “Why is air transparent?” to “Why do late-night commercials always offer to throw in a second, identical product ‘at no extra cost’?” Clearly written and thoroughly researched, this book will shed new light on science, history, politics, sports, animals, food, pop culture, and more. It’s the perfect book for anyone who’s ever wondered: *Can an elephant cry crocodile tears? *Why do clouds float? *Why is abbreviation such a long word? *What's in a hot dog? *Why does Hawaii have interstate highways? *What did they call a photographic memory before the invention of photography? *Why does Superman wear his underwear on the outside? *Why do dogs come when you call them, but cats ignore you? *What’s a male ballerina called? And much, much more!




The Best of Uncle John's Bathroom Reader


Book Description

Find out what millions of trivia lovers already know: Uncle John is your #1 source when it comes to throne-room reading entertainment. This book celebrates the very best articles from the BRI’s first ten years--plus 150 all-new pages! As always, the contents are divided by length: short articles for the reader on the go, medium articles if you have a few minutes to spare, and the extended sitting section for those truly leg-numbing experiences. Read about . . . * The origin of Twinkies * Who invented the Hula Hoop * The untold history of the Three Stooges * Space toilets: where no man has gone before * 1876: the year they stole the presidency * The FBI’s "Ten Most Wanted" list * How to start your own country * Celebrity imposters And much, much more!