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Miscellanea, and Oddities — How-to Manuals — Human Stupidity & Ideas —
Disinformation Guides/Straight Dope — Toilet Readers

Recommended titles
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- How-to Manuals -

A Paranoid's Ultimate Survival Guide : Dust Mites to Meteorites, Tsunamis to Ticks, Killer Clouds to Jellyfish, Solar Flares to Salmonella by Patricia Barnes-Svarney, Thomas E. Svarney Prometheus Books, 2002. 225 pp.     "This entertaining book discusses the hidden (and sometimes not-so-hidden) dangers of our world--from what's lurking at your next picnic or on a kitchen sponge to the dangers of asteroids whizzing close to Earth. The authors do more than just list the possible dangers we all face both inside and outside our homes. They also help you judge the severity of these lurking threats and suggest remedies and solutions. " book description Don't Try This at Home : How to Win a Sumo Match, Catch a Great White Shark, Start an Independent Nation and Other Extraordinary Feats (For Ordinary People) by Hunter S. Fulghum Broadway Books, 2002. 288pp. "Chances are slim that you'll ever need-or want-to go over Niagara Falls in a barrel or tow an iceberg to a drought-stricken nation, but improbability certainly hasn't stopped the extreme-situation how-to juggernaut launched by Joshua Piven and David Borgenicht, creators of the original Worst-Case Scenario book and its multiplying cousins. But while the Piven-Borgenicht volumes offer advice that just might be helpful-it's possible, after all, that you would someday need to jump off a building into a dumpster-Fulghum takes the loony route, offering tips on how to do what you never should: chop down an old-growth sequoia, sink a submarine, break into Fort Knox, Buckingham Palace or Area 51. Fulghum's dry sense of humor enlivens the chapters of offbeat challenges, each with its own shopping list of items needed to pull the stunts off..." --Publishers Weekly How to Hold a Crocodile: Plus Hundreds of Other Practical Tips, Fascinating Facts and Wicked Wisdom by The Diagram Group Firefly Books, 2003. 196pp. A how-to guide that offers at least as much browsing pleasure as it does practical advice, this colorful volume is sure to please those who love weird facts and unusual tidbits of information. With 188 brief, instructive and illustrated entries on natural oddities, mathematical formulas, rules of etiquette and handy skills, this compendium offers readers tips on everything from silly tricks (how to make an egg swim, tell a Zebra from a Zubra, recognize the Queen of England's swans and make hand shadows) to useful talents (how to count in roman numerals, calculate compound interest, repair a flat bicycle tire and ease a backache). Based on everyman's history, kitchen science and a goofy sense of humor, this motley collection will raise eyebrows, encourage wry smiles and maybe even teach a whole new generation how to make something used by WWII soldiers in the North African desert: a camel dung cigarette lighter." --Publishers Weekly

The Spy's Guide: Office Espionage
by H. Keith Melton, Craig Piligian, Duane Swierczynski
Quirk Books, 2003. 180pp.

"In today's business world, information is everything - and no one gathers information more effectively than spies. So why not bring real spying techniques into your workplace? The same tactics used by CIA and KGB agents can also be used at offices and corporations of any size - and these techniques will help you get ahead fast! The Spy's Guide: Office Espionage features illustrated step-by-step instructions on tapping phones, sending anonymous e-mails, disguising your identity at a trade show, and much more. The authors also share real-life stories about how these tactics have been employed by professional spies in the CIA, KGB, Fortune 500 companies, and other settings. Advance your career with espionage!" --book description

The Worst-Case Scenario Survival Handbook
by Joshua Piven, David Borgenicht
Chronicle Books, 1999. 176pp.

"Danger! It lurks at every corner. Volcanoes. Sharks. Quicksand. Terrorists. The pilot of the plane blacks out and it's up to you to land the jet. What do you do? The Worst-Case Scenario Survival Handbook is here to help: jam-packed with how-to, hands-on, step-by-step, illustrated instructions on everything you need to know FAST-from detecting a bomb to delivering a baby in the back of a cab." --book description

Worst Case Scenario Survival Handbook: Travel
by Joshua Piven, David Borgenicht
Chronicle Books, 2001. 176pp.

"If you have to leave home, TAKE THIS BOOK! The team that brought you The Worst-Case Scenario Survival Handbook now helps you navigate the perils of travel. Learn what to do when the tarantula crawls up your leg, the riptide pulls you out to sea, the sandstorm’s headed your way, or your camel just won’t stop. Find out how to pass a bribe, remove leeches, climb out of a well, survive a fall onto subway tracks, catch a fish without a rod, and preserve a severed limb. Hands-on, step-by-step instructions show you how to survive these and dozens of other adventures. An appendix of travel tips, useful phrases, and gestures to avoid will also ensure your safe return. Because you just never know..." --book description

View all Worst Case Scenario Survival handbooks.

The Action Hero's Handbook: How to Catch a Great White Shark, Perform the Vulcan Nerve Pinch, Track a Fugitive, and Dozens of Other TV and Movie Skills
by David Borgenicht, Joe Borgenicht
Quirk Books, 2002. 192pp.

"Everyone wants to be an action hero--as smooth as James Bond, as clever as Captain Kirk, as tough as Charlie's Angels. And now you can: The Action Hero's Handbook is the ultimate guide to an action-packed lifestyle, with genuine step-by-step instructions on interrogating a suspect, catching a great white shark, performing the Vulcan Nerve Pinch, stopping a wedding, navigating a ventilation shaft, and much more. All information is reality-based and comes from a host of experts (including FBI agents, marine biologists, karate champions, wedding planners, and air duct cleaners). With more than 35 illustrations throughout, this dynamic little handbook will teach us all how to keep up with the Indiana Joneses." --book description

The Action Heroine's Handbook
by Jennifer Worick, Joe Borgenicht, Larry Jost
Quirk Books, 2003. 192pp.

"Worick (The Worst-Case Scenario Survival Handbook: Dating and Sex) and Borgenicht (The Action Hero's Handbook) offer girl-power advice for Charlie's Angels wannabes that ranges from the eccentric (the tips on "how to survive as a mob wife" include "do not ask your husband too many questions" and "become familiar with state and federal law") to the efficient ("how to give birth under pressure," where readers learn to have two towels on hand and to breathe slowly). Although seemingly far-fetched, the how-tos are actually backed up with legitimate advice from professionals, so a stuntwoman explains how to win a catfight ("put your hair up and out of the way to avoid a vicious hair-pulling"), a zoologist describes how to protect your child from a ferocious beast ("draw the beast's attention to you") and a speech and language pathologist offers advice on eavesdropping from a distance (determining the topic of conversation beforehand helps). Line drawings spruce up this alternately goofy and serious book." --Publishers Weekly

The Experts' Guide to 100 Things Everyone Should Know How to Do
by Samantha Ettus
Clarkson Potter, 2004. 336pp.

"Let's face it: most of us are never going to be in a position to get advice from Arthur Sulzberger, Bob Vila, Donald Trump, Larry King, Howie Mandel, and Suze Ormond, now are we? That's why we need this book. These experts and 94 more show you how to read a newspaper (New York Times publisher Sulzberger), tell a joke (comedian Mandel), save money (financial guru Ormond), and, well, pretty much anything else you can think of. ... The authors call the book "Cliff Notes to life," and that about sums it up. It's more fun than Cliff Notes, though." --David Pitt for Booklist

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