Bathroom Readers' Institute

This book will help you survive when it’s just you against the great outdoors. Actually, after you read this book, you will likely never again venture into the great outdoors. Because the outdoors isn’t really all that great. But if you’re foolhardy enough to challenge the woods, this book will help you fight a bear, survive violent storms, tornadoes, and lightning, not eat poisonous berries, weeds, and mushrooms, find edible bark, find natural meds, build a shelter, make fire, and do show more lots of other things you really never want to do. All this advice about what to do and more importantly, what not to do, is delivered with a large dose of humor. My advice, stay indoors and enjoy reading this book. show less

So much weird information in one place! I learned a lot of interesting and crazy tidbits reading this, and a few pretty awful things too, but I had a blast doing it! People have done some ridiculous things with poop, including using it as a contraceptive. History is full of crazy facts like that, and this book is jam packed with them.

I was in a pretty foul mood today till I started reading this; then the old time insults made me grin, and the story of an Egyptian general's traitorous fart show more had me cracking up!

This is a book for those who love history and for those who don't yet know they do. It doesn't need to be read in any particular order, so readers can go from cover to cover or peck around and see where they land. I enjoyed this! (PS: If trepanning makes yet another comeback, count me out! I need a hole in the head like I need a...well, you know.) show less

This book was so much fun to share with my kids! It is truly more than just a 'bathroom reader' - filled with so many wonderful facts that most people would never even think of, let alone wonder. This book kept us entertained for a very long time, and in just one sitting. It is a great book to just pick up and read randomly - just skip around and pick a page. Even more fun if you read out loud with your family and friends - quite a lot of these 'random facts' are funny and will set you all show more into a fit of giggles. But, and I assure you, you will also learn a lot. Some may be trivial, but a quite a lot are historical facts that is quite useful information. Definitely a fun way to learn new things.

There SO many fun and odd facts! A few of our favorite are:

- Creepy Cuisine: "People have been eating strange food since... well, since people first felt hungry. How hungry would you have to be to try some of these delicacies?" page 15.
(Ewww... who would have thought to make a meal out of these... things!)

- More Gross Stuff: "Essential (but nasty) information about your body." page 119.
(And he wasn't kidding, SO gross!)

- Travel Guide to Imaginary Lands: "Let Uncle John be your guide to some fantastic places that can only be found in books. Forget the movies - there's nothing like a great novel." page 260.
(LOVE that he tells us how to get to Narnia, Never-Never Land and a few other magical places!)

And at the bottom of every single page, throughout the entire book, there are additional miscellaneous facts! Like...

"Kid power: On average, a child laughs 400 times a day; an adult laughs about 15." page 131

"In one day, your blood will travel nearly 12,000 miles." page 136

"When dogs and humans sleep together, they dream at the same times." page 204

Over 280 pages filled with amazing knowledge - I know that my kids and I will continue to pick this book and read odd bits and will definitely share the knowledge with each other and others too! Definitely a fun book to gift, to all readers and nonreaders! To kids and adult too!
We look forward to picking up more of Uncle John's books soon!

(I received a hardback from the publisher/tour host for an honest review. All thoughts are my own.) show less

I'm a big fan of the Uncle John's Bathroom Reader series, but this book is a complete miss. It tries for the wry tone of the other readers but just comes out sounding juvenile and often flippant when discussing serious topics - for example, its rather graphic description of how to dismember a human corpse (in a chapter about cannibalism) has a disconcertingly cheery tone, and when the very same tone is used in the next chapter (a discussion of how to create cosmetics in the wild - yeah, I'm show more going to be concerned about my appearance when I don't know where my next meal is coming from), it's just irritating. I'm actually annoyed that I wasted both money and time on this book. Take my word for it and don't bother. show less