Boogers Are My Beat : More Lies, but Some Actual Journalism!

From Publishers Weekly Readers know what to expect from Barry: antic takeoffs on thenews and home life, frequently prompted by participantobservation. This collection of columns is best read in segments:while Barry uses the same basic bag of tricks, a judicious dose canstill provoke involuntary laughter. ''Florida's #3 industry, behindtourism and skin cancer, is voter fraud,'' he declares, amid a serieson his home state's elections. At political conventions, parties are''sponsored by large corporations with a sincere public-spirited desireto become larger.'' Utah was chosen to host the Olympics afterofficials ''carefully weigh[ed] numerous wads of cash supplied by localorganizers.'' At home, his windows suffer from ''some kind of windowleprosy.'' Yorkshire terriers, he declares, were ''originallydeveloped... to serve as makeup applicators.'' And feeding his toddlermeans ''picking her food off the floor and checking to see if it'sstill clean enough to eat.'' He ends the book with two effective,somber pieces written after the September 11 attacks, but notes thathe'd rather not write about serious topics, because that meanssomething bad has happened. Barry's a franchise, so while this hardlybreaks new ground, it should consistently please his considerable fanbase. Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. From Barry has never been as funny as he is in this rip-roaring, hilarious new collection of columns, which parodies everything from the 2000 election snafu to so-called smart appliances. Barry went to the Republican and Democratic primaries, where he saw Republicans '''getting down' as only Republicans can'' and Al Gore give a ''speech that really 'rocked the house.''' Next Dave is off to the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, where he grapples with the some of the competitors' amusing names and the controversy surrounding the French skating judge. (''Don't trust any judge with two first names,'' Dave sagely cautions.) But lest readers begin to think Dave only goes to high-profile places, he also includes several essays about his trip to North Dakota, a state he often gently pokes fun at. North Dakotan politicians entreat him to visit the state, and when he does, they name a sewage lift-station for him. Barry also tackles cell phones, feng shui, and deck building, with nothing less than outrageously funny results. The collection concludes with two moving pieces on the aftermath of September 11 and the bravery of the passengers on Flight 93. Whether funny or serious, Barry is always on target. This work on the ''booger beat'' is nothing short of excellent. Kristine Huntley Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

The New York Times calls him “the funniest man in America,” and his legions of fans agree, laughing and snorting as they put his books on bestseller lists nationwide.

In Boogers Are My Beat, Dave gives us the real scoop on:

• The scientific search for the world’s funniest joke (you can bet it includes the word “weasel”)
• RV camping in the Wal-Mart parking lot
• Outwitting “smart” kitchen appliances and service contracts
• Elections in Florida (“You can’t spell Florida without ‘duh’”)
• The Olympics, where people from all over the world come together to accuse each other of cheating
• The truth about the Dakotas, the Lone Ranger, and feng shui
• The choice between death and taxes And much, much more—including some truths about journalism and serious thoughts about 9/11.

Dave Barry won the Pulitzer Prize for commentary in 1988, and his columns are syndicated in more than 500 newspapers. His most recent books, Dave Barry Is Not Taking This Sitting Down and the novels Big Trouble and Tricky Business, were national bestsellers. He lives in Miami, Floriduh.

Also available as an eBook

Library Journal

The New York Times has referred to Barry as the funniest man in America, and he is funny, to be sure, but his humor is exhausting to the listener. He throws funny words and phrases into bloated sentences like Velcro, hoping that some of them stick. Whether he's reporting on the Salt Lake City Winter Olympics, Yorkshire terriers, or presidential primaries, he overstuffs every sentence with humor; after a while it just gets to be too much. Add Dick Hill's frenetic reading and you are left with a feeling of enough already! Only when Barry presents two somber pieces on September 11 does he mercifully stop with the barrage of whiz-bang zingers, but by that time many will have given up. Barry has a legion of fans who apparently have a different sense of humor than this reviewer, so most libraries will probably want to add this to their collection, budgets permitting.-Joseph L. Carlson, Allan Hancock Coll., Lompoc, CA Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

Annotation The New York Times calls him "the funniest man in America," and his legions of fans agree, laughing and snorting as they put his books on bestseller lists nationwide. In Boogers Are My Beat, Dave gives us the real scoop on: - The scientific search for the world's funniest joke (you can bet it includes the word "weasel")- RV camping in the Wal-Mart parking lot- Outwitting "smart" kitchen appliances and service contracts- Elections in Florida ("You can't spell Florida without 'duh'")- The Olympics, where people from all over the world come together to accuse each other of cheating- The truth about the Dakotas, the Lone Ranger, and feng shui- The choice between death and taxesAnd much, much more--including some truths about journalism and serious thoughts about 9/11. Dave Barry won the Pulitzer Prize for commentary in 1988, and his columns are syndicated in more than 500 newspapers. His most recent books, Dave Barry Is Not Taking This Sitting Down and the novels Big Trouble and Tricky Business, were national bestsellers. He lives in Miami, Floriduh. Also available as an eBook "From the Hardcover edition The New York Times calls him the funniest man in America, and his legions of fans agree, laughing and snorting as they put his books on bestseller lists nationwide. In Boogers Are My Beat , Dave gives us the real scoop The scientific search for the worlds funniest joke (you can bet it includes the word weasel) RV camping in the Wal-Mart parking lot Outwitting smart kitchen appliances and service contracts Elections in Florida (You cant spell Florida without duh) The Olympics, where people from all over the world come together to accuse each other of cheating The truth about the Dakotas, the Lone Ranger, and feng shui The choice between death and taxes And much, much moreincluding some truths about journalism and serious thoughts about 9/11. Dave Barry won the Pulitzer Prize for commentary in 1988, and his columns are syndicated in more than 500 newspapers. His most recent books, Dave Barry Is Not Taking This Sitting Down and the novels Big Trouble and Tricky Business , were national bestsellers. He lives in Miami, Floriduh. Also available as an eBook Annotation "In Boogers Are My Beat, Dave Barry reminds us that while many journalists view their job as an opportunity to comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable, for others, like Dave, it's mostly a great source of booger jokes. In any case, Dave gives us the real scoop on: The scientific search for the world's funniest joke (you can bet it includes the word ""weasel"") RV camping in the Wal-Mart parking lot Elections in Florida (you can't spell Florida without ""duh"") The Olympics, where people from all over the world come together to accuse each other of cheating The truth about the Dakotas, the Lone Ranger, and feng shui And much more, including Dave's sober and heartfelt essays on September 11 and new introductions to many of the pieces that Dave's fans won't want to miss." A new collection of zany columns from the Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist and author of Dave Barry Is Not Taking This Sitting Down sheds new light on such topics as elections in Florida, uncooperative kitchen appliances, RV camping in the Wal-Mart parking lot, the Olympics, owner's manual safety warnings, and more. Reprint. 75,000 first printing. Before I analyze the presidential election, I want to make a statement, on behalf of South Florida, to the state and local candidates who ran all those TV ads, especially Elaine Bloom, Clay Shaw, Bill McCoIlum, and Bill Nelson: We hope that you and all your media advisers rot in Campaign Hell, okay? A collection of the author's columns sheds new light on such topics as elections in Florida, uncooperative kitchen appliances, RV camping in the Wal-Mart parking lot, the Olympics, and owner's manual safety warnings.