tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4734590638266769310.post1991686334649932517..comments2023-09-16T09:33:11.757-04:00Comments on Diary of an Eccentric: Review: College in a Nutskull by Anders HenrikssonAnnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08046635675540466183noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4734590638266769310.post-29492830304440387872010-06-03T10:22:06.256-04:002010-06-03T10:22:06.256-04:00Troy: Humor definitely is subjective. And thanks...Troy: Humor definitely is subjective. And thanks for letting me know about the first book. I'll keep it in mind.Annahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08046635675540466183noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4734590638266769310.post-33690062576954171642010-05-10T09:23:20.074-04:002010-05-10T09:23:20.074-04:00Hi Anna. I have just read Henriksson's earlier...Hi Anna. I have just read Henriksson's earlier compilation, Ignorance Is Blitz.<br /><br />I think Ignorance Is Blitz (originally published as Non Campus Mentis) is a much better -- ie, funnier -- compilation than College In A Nutskull.<br /><br />Here are some examples from Ignorance Is Blitz of bloopers having a double-meaning:<br /><br />"The invention of the sex tent helped to determine place and orientation at sea" (p 47).<br /><br />"Francis Drake was permitted by Queen Elizabeth to sail the seas and find illegal things to do with the Spanish" (p 48).<br /><br />"Oliver Cromwell solved this and other problems by removing prominent things from people who disagreed with him" (p 59).<br /><br />And in the following examples, there is a humorous absurdity:<br /><br />"[Roman] Senators wore purple tubas as a sign of respect" (p 18).<br /><br />"Two hundred years of rule by the Tarts explains why Russia became so backward" (p 37).<br /><br />"The modern piano replaced the clavicle as instrument of choice" (p 66).<br /><br />I point these bloopers out just to highlight the contrast between what I regard as "true bloopers" and "mere mistakes".<br /><br />To me, true bloopers are much funnier than mere mistakes. Then again, humor is a subjective thing.Troy Simpsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00063856364535684529noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4734590638266769310.post-59017900508192656512010-05-06T10:10:03.108-04:002010-05-06T10:10:03.108-04:00Troy: Thanks for stopping by and leaving your tho...Troy: Thanks for stopping by and leaving your thoughts. I went over and read your review. I guess I didn't think there was much of a difference between "silly mistakes" and "funny bloopers." I can see how some of the other books you mention might be funnier. And while I agree that not everything in College in a Nutskull is funny, most of them made me laugh. I guess I just didn't take the book seriously and started reading in the hopes of getting some laughs out of it, and I did.Annahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08046635675540466183noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4734590638266769310.post-79750749622742658132010-05-06T09:52:24.626-04:002010-05-06T09:52:24.626-04:00To me, "College in a Nutskull" is a disa...To me, "College in a Nutskull" is a disappointment. It is more a book of silly mistakes than it is a book of funny bloopers.<br /><br />To be funny, bloopers require more than just mistakes of fact. <br /><br />What, for example, is funny about these student mistakes in "College in a Nutskull"? ... <br /><br />"The Prime Minister heads the Church of England" (p 94);<br /><br />"American women won the right to vote in 1973" (p 131);<br /><br />"Common law is for the common people" (p 92).<br /><br />A "blooper", in contrast to a simple "mistake", usually has a double meaning, or reveals an accidental insight, or innocently uncovers some kind of uncomfortable truth. <br /><br />Yet few of the specimens in "College in a Nutskull" contain these added elements.<br /><br />As a result, I found little to laugh at in "College in a Nutskull". <br /><br />Overall, I prefer the more subtle, more insightful bloopers in a book like "Anguished English" by Richard Lederer or one of the classic "Boners" books.Troy Simpsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00063856364535684529noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4734590638266769310.post-34474353847998269762010-05-05T13:30:13.090-04:002010-05-05T13:30:13.090-04:00Thank you all for taking time to read my review an...Thank you all for taking time to read my review and leave a comment. If you think those quotes are funny, you definitely should give the book a try...wait until you see some of the others. Hilarious!Annahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08046635675540466183noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4734590638266769310.post-7028390560769391612010-04-29T10:04:47.765-04:002010-04-29T10:04:47.765-04:00I had the exact same experience with this book. It...I had the exact same experience with this book. It was unexpected - and unexpectedly HILARIOUS! I, too, was reading aloud sections to my husband with tears (of laughter) streaming down my face.<br /><br />But I had a hard time getting away from what it said about the education system. =)<br /><br />At any rate though - it *was* funny.Carriehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08772667430500306088noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4734590638266769310.post-83916859658049709872010-04-29T08:24:08.985-04:002010-04-29T08:24:08.985-04:00I enjoyed this book, too. I'll have my review...I enjoyed this book, too. I'll have my review up Saturday and I chose one of the same quotes as you!bermudaonionhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10726401178972099557noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4734590638266769310.post-50894419610977859192010-04-29T07:34:44.637-04:002010-04-29T07:34:44.637-04:00I really enjoyed this book as well. I'll be r...I really enjoyed this book as well. I'll be reviewing it soon!Serenahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04745809545249574387noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4734590638266769310.post-371073526420061652010-04-29T07:27:19.186-04:002010-04-29T07:27:19.186-04:00This sounds hilarious! Thanks for the review!This sounds hilarious! Thanks for the review!Danahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13791309582153979145noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4734590638266769310.post-4131525540881718642010-04-29T07:24:20.466-04:002010-04-29T07:24:20.466-04:00Those examples are hilarious! I definitely remembe...Those examples are hilarious! I definitely remember the type of people that would have wrote stuff like that. :)Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00823616282284779390noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4734590638266769310.post-22090991804317271342010-04-29T05:24:44.714-04:002010-04-29T05:24:44.714-04:00Loved the quotes, I now see why this book was so f...Loved the quotes, I now see why this book was so funnyBlodeueddhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03435479623560871881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4734590638266769310.post-26323802299379827752010-04-29T02:13:24.540-04:002010-04-29T02:13:24.540-04:00This sounds like a really fun book!
Thanks for pos...This sounds like a really fun book!<br />Thanks for posting those quotes!Sullivan McPighttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15133432350331782496noreply@blogger.com