A sharp, funny, and engaging introduction to socialist ideas, movements, and solutions for a world in crisis. Now with 50% more socialism! Socialism...Seriously is a warm and witty introduction to the radical traditions of protest and politics that stretch from Karl Marx through today's movements for democracy, equality, and a livable planet. In this thoroughly revised and expanded edition, Danny Katch uses humor and imagination to take an unflinching look at the rising threats posed by climate change, billionaire oligarchs, and the far right-and makes a compelling case that a socialist world is both necessary and possible. Katch separates the lies spun by capitalism's defenders from the system's brutal realities, and is candid about debates and challenges facing the socialist movement today. This book is for people who want to take a deeper look at what socialism is... but maybe not that deep. Sincere, irreverent, informative, and playful, Socialism... Seriously is a unique and timely contribution to our movements for justice.

Jump into the wacky, wild world of Florida For more than 30 years, investigative journalist and New York Times bestselling author Craig Pittman has chronicled the wildest stories Florida has to offer. Featuring a selection of columns that have appeared in the Tampa Bay Times and other outlets throughout Pittman's career, this book highlights just how strange and wonderful Florida can be. With a folksy style, an eye for the absurd, and a passion for the history and environment of his home state, Pittman describes some of Florida's oddest wildlife as well as its quirkiest people. The State You're In includes a love story involving the most tattooed woman in the world, a deep dive into the state's professional mermaid industry, and an investigation of a battle between residents of a nudist resort and the U.S. Postal Service. Pittman introduces readers to a who's who of Florida crime fiction, a what's what of exotic animals, and an array of beloved places he's seen change rapidly in his lifetime. Many of these stories are funny, some are serious, and several offer rare insights into the heart of the Sunshine State. For Pittman, Florida is both inspiring and dangerous-an "evolutionary test" for those who live in it. Together these pieces paint a complex picture of a fascinating state longing for an identity beyond palm trees and punchlines.

From parties to proposals, Prosecco is just spiffing and this tip-top collection of retro photos and frightfully funny captions captures everything to love about a glass of bubbly. The Wit and Wisdom of... is a series of terrifically humorous books brought to you by the rip-roaringly funny folks behind the best-selling On-the-Ceiling greetings cards. Also available: The Wit and Wisdom of Mum The Wit and Wisdom of Dad The Wit and Wisdom of the Husband The Wit and Wisdom of the Wife The Wit and Wisdom of Wine The Wit and Wisdom of Beer

From parenting to prosecco, mums are jolly smashing and this tip-top collection of retro photos and frightfully funny captions capture everything to love about motherhood. The Wit and Wisdom of... is a series of terrifically humorous books brought to you by the rip-roaringly funny folks behind the best-selling On-the-Ceiling greetings cards. Perfect as a birthday, Christmas or Mother's Day gift for long-suffering mums everywhere. Also available: The Wit and Wisdom of the Wife, The Wit and Wisdom of Grandma, The Wit and Wisdom of Wine, The Wit and Wisdom of Prosecco, The Wit and Wisdom of the Husband and The Wit and Wisdom of Grandad.

Duck and Cover is a wry, laconic memoir penned by Kathie Farnell, based on her perspective as a smart-mouthed, unreasonably optimistic white girl growing up in Cloverdale, a genteel and neatly landscaped neighborhood of Montgomery, Alabama, in the late 1950s and early 1960s. During those decades Montgomery's social order was slowly-very slowly-changing. The bus boycott was over if not forgotten, Normandale Shopping Center had a display of the latest fallout shelters, and integration was on the horizon, though many still thought the water in the white and colored drinking fountains came from separate tanks. Farnell's household, more like the Addams family than the Cleavers of Leave it to Beaver, included socially ambitious parents who were lawyers, two younger brothers, a live-in grandmother, and Libby, the family maid. Her father was a one-armed rageaholic given to strange business deals such as the one resulting in the family unintentionally owning a bakery. Mama, the quintessential attorney, could strike a jury but was hopeless at making Jello. Granny, a curmudgeon who kept a chamber pot under her bed, was always at odds with Libby, who had been in a bad mood since the bus boycott began. Farnell deftly recounts tales of aluminum Christmas trees, the Hula-Hoop craze, road trips in the family's un-air-conditioned black Bel Air, show-and-tell involving a human skeleton, belatedly learning to swear, and even the pet chicken she didn't know she had. Her well-crafted prose reveals quirky and compelling characters in stories that don't ignore the dark side of the segregated South, as told from the wide-eyed perspective of a girl who is sometimes oblivious to and often mystified by its byzantine rules. Little did she know that the Age of Aquarius was just around the corner.

Throughout her years visiting people's homes as a cat groomer, Anita Kelsey has amassed a vast array of funny, cute and ridiculous stories about cats and, of course, their owners. In Claws, she picks out just a few of her favourite tales to share with the reader from, 'Sammy the Swooner' to 'Tubbs: The Fat Cat Caught in His Flap'. Claws is a must-have book for all cat lovers by an author drawing on a lifetime of living with and professionally caring for cats in their various guises and eccentricities. In the pages of Anita Kelsey's entertaining and heart warming book, you'll meet twenty of the most characterful cats, all eventually calmed and preened to their natural beauty and animal magnificence by the author. Meet their owners, too, and enjoy Anita's take on the individual relationships between pet and owner.

No poems can live long or please that are written by water-drinkers. Horace, Roman poet I like [champagne] because it always tastes as though my foot is asleep. Art Buchwald In Wine Froth, Washington Post wine columnist Dick Rosano celebrates 8,000 years of wine-stained history with this droll, profound, bizarre, hilarious, charming, and totally entertaining collection of wine quotes, anecdotes, and trivia. Here s another sample: Richard Nixon knew his wines, and which were being served at White House dinner functions. He instructed the serving staff to hide the labels of certain bottles, and that he was to be poured the best of them, and particular guests were to get the other stuff. Also included in this richly illustrated little book are scores of tips to help make wine a little easier to enjoy, such as: adding kosher salt to your bucket of ice will chill wine faster. Merlot is French for little blackbird"

The Best Mum in the World is a glorious collection of more than 300 quotes celebrating mothers and motherhood. Mums have deservedly attracted thousands of amazing quotes, thoughts and observations and this unique anthology features contributions from the deeply philosophical to the wonderfully humorous, and is the perfect present to say thank you for all their hard work on your behalf. With witty and wonderful quotes from the stars of stage, screen and literature, the worlds of music, comedy and politics, The Best Mum in the World makes for a delightful book and gift. 'A mother is one to whom you hurry when you are troubled.' Emily Dickinson. 'All I am I owe to my mother.' George Washington. 'Whatever else is unsure in this stinking dunghill of a world a mother's love is not.' James Joyce. 'God could not be everywhere, and therefore he made mothers.' Ruyard Kipling.

"Damn, this book is good."-Jon Stewart "A biting, darkly hilarious collection of personal essays that begs to be read aloud."-Chicago Tribune Emmy Award-winning writer Adam Resnick began his career at Late Night with David Letterman before honing his chops in movies and cable television, including HBO's The Larry Sanders Show. While courageously admitting to being "euphorically antisocial," Resnick plunges readers deep into his troubled psyche in this uproarious memoir-in-essays. Shaped by such touchstone events as a traumatic Easter egg hunt and overwrought by obsessions, he refuses to be burdened by chores like basic social obligation and personal growth, adhering to his own steadfast rule: "I refuse to do anything I don't want to do."

Follow the adventures of Charlie, an urban three-year-old on the fast track, and his slow-track mommy. In this hilarious volume, Charlie gets a haircut like Sting’s, runs up a tab at a baseball game, and prefers the garlic press to any of his expensive “educational” toys. Charlie is a kid learning to be a consumer. His mommy reveals important secrets, like which stroller is “in,” which is the “right” playgroup, and how to throw a fabulous fourth birthday party. Moms and dads alike will find these anecdotes of parenting at the end of the century to be truly priceless.

James Crosbie was Britain's most wanted man in 1974. With a successful business and an enviable lifestyle, he seemed to have everything going for him - until he got bored with his life and turned to armed robbery. He ended up in Peterhead Prison, doing time with some of the hardest, and funniest, men in crime. Peterhead Porridge is a remarkable account of the people he met. People like The Saughton Harrier who escaped from prison by dressing up as a runner, complete with running vest and number, and joining in as a race went by. And another escapee, Tweety Pie, was so-called because, when he flew the coop, he had a nasty case of jaundice. Then there's Square Go, the prison warder who was always up for a fight. And discover the practical jokes that were the trademark of Glasgow's Godfather Arthur Thompson and what really happened when someone poured their porridge over his head in the breakfast queue. Funny, sad and at times barely believable, Peterhead Porridge is a unique insight into the other side of prison life.

From the sublime to the ridiculous, Just My Typo is a hilarious collection of typographical errors, slips of the pen and embarrassing misprints which, like any typo of any kind, should never have happened, cannot be excused, and must not in any way be glorified. Enjoy. You'll travel back in time to meet great figures from history: Sir Francis Drake (who circumcised the world in a small ship), Queen Victoria (who pissed graciously over the Menai Bridge), and Rambo (the famous French poet). You'll find moral instruction ('Blessed are the meek, for they shall irrigate the earth') and pearls of wisdom ('love is just a passing fanny'). You'll be outraged by politicians who exploit disasters to boost their pubic profiles; entranced by lambs that gamble in the fields; concerned for a man who was admitted to hospital suffering from severe buns; and appalled to meet 11-year-old twins Helen and Ugh.

In "Best Friends, Occasional Enemies, ""New York Times" bestselling author Lisa Scottoline and her daughter, Francesca Serritella, are the best of friends--99.9% of the time. They're number one on each other's speed dial and they tell each other everything--well, almost everything. They share shoes and clothes--except one very special green jacket, which almost caused a catfight.

In other words, they're just like every mother and daughter in the world. Best friends and occasional enemies. Now they're dishing about it all: their lives, their relationship, and their carb count.

Lisa on Being a Mom: Motherhood has no expiration date. Francesca lives in the city, and I worry about her all the time. My daughter moved out, so why am I still lactating?

Francesca on Being a Daughter: My mother is always right. Just ask her.

Something immediately annoyed writer Harris Wittels about Twitter. All of a sudden it was OK to brag, so long as those brags were ever-so-thinly masked in crappy, transparent humility. Once Harris identified this widespread issue, he decided to take action by naming this phenomenon and creating the twitter account called Humblebrag--solely dedicated to retweeting the humblebrags of others. Started less than a year ago, the Twitter feed is literally adding thousands of subscribers every day. A humblebrag, as defined by Harris, is a specific type of boast that allows the offender to broadcast their achievements without the necessary shame and guilt that should normally accompany such claims. Here are two examples: @JoshHighland tweets: "Just filed my taxes. Biggie was right, mo money mo problems." @glowyjoeybunny tweets: "I hate when I go into a store to get something to eat and the male staff are too busy hitting on me to get my order right :( so annoying!" Harris also shows us what humblebrags might look like from some of history's most notable names, as well as devoting an entire chapter to @TotesMcGotes, the greatest humblebraggart of them all.

In this brutally honest collection of often cringe-inducing episodes, David Yoo perfectly captures the cycle of failure and fear from childhood through adulthood. Whether he's wearing four layers of clothing to artificially beef up his slim frame, routinely testing highlighters against his forearm to see if he indeed has yellow skin, or preemptively sabotaging promising relationships to avoid being compared to former boyfriends, Yoo celebrates and skewers the insecurities of anxious people everywhere.

THE GRIPES OF WRATH is guaranteed to make you laugh - and also make your blood boil! This mind-blowing collection of absurd and yet completely true stories, rules, claims, and crazy legislation portrays the Britain that we have become, almost without realizing it. Political columnist Simon Carr has scoured national and local newspapers, Hansard parliamentary reports, the minutes of parliamentary committee meetings, statements from quangos and local councils to compile hundreds of true stories, anecdotes and events that will prompt the scandalized response of: 'I don't believe it!'. From political sleaze to massaged waiting lists, from barmy health and safety concerns to bizarre compensation claims, everyone who believes in justice, decency, fair play and common sense will find something in this attractively produced book to infuriate them.

This is an A to Z guide to turn to whenever you need to set someone straight. It is by the executive vice president of the National Sarcasm Society! Why tolerate ignorance? James Napoli, the executive vice president of the National Sarcasm Society, has provided an A to Z guide to turn to whenever you need to set someone straight. From advertisements to email, from materialism to remote controls, there's a sarcastic answer for every situation.

Britain. What's that all about then? Having skewered modern life and culture in the bestselling Is it Just Me or is Everything Shit?, Steve Lowe and Alan McArthur set out to uncover the deep dark truth about Britain - its history, its myths and its people. Over the course of a year they endure the Last Night of the Proms and search for a couple of pissed dragons under a hill in Wales. They witness Scotland rising again (a bit), encounter terrifying Europhobe ladies in Surrey and lose the will to live in Gibraltar. They also meet a lot of druids. Hilarious, provocative and filled with fascinating facts, Blighty offers a brilliant, alternative vision of Britain - the island in the Atlantic that some people call Britain.

"The New Yorker" is, of course, a bastion of superb essays, influential investigative journalism, and insightful arts criticism. But for eighty years, it's also been a hoot. In fact, when Harold Ross founded the legendary magazine in 1925, he called it "a comic weekly," and while it has grown into much more, it has also remained true to its original mission. Now an uproarious sampling of its funny writings can be found in a hilarious new collection, one as satirical and witty, misanthropic and menacing, as the first, "Fierce Pajamas." From the 1920s onward-but with a special focus on the latest generation-here are the humorists who set the pace and stirred the pot, pulled the leg and pinched the behind of America.
S. J. Perelman unearths the furious letters of a foreign correspondent in India to the laundry he insists on using in Paris ("Who charges six francs to wash a cummerbund?!"). Woody Allen recalls the "Whore of Mensa," who excites her customers by reading Proust (or, if you want, two girls will explain Noam Chomsky). Steve Martin's pill bottle warns us of side effects ranging from hair that smells of burning tires to teeth receiving radio broadcasts. Andy Borowitz provides his version of theater-lobby notices ("In Act III, there is full frontal nudity, but not involving the actor you would like to see naked"). David Owen's rules for dating his ex-wife start out magnanimous and swiftly disintegrate into sarcasm, self-loathing, and rage, and Noah Baumbach unfolds a history of his last relationship in the form of Zagat reviews.
Meanwhile, off in a remote "willage" in Normandy, David Sedaris is drowning a mouse ("This was for the best, whether the mouse realized it or not").
Plus asides, fancies, rebukes, and musings from Patty Marx, Calvin Trillin, Bruce McCall, Garrison Keillor, Veronica Geng, Ian Frazier, Roy Blount, Jr., and many others.
If laughter is the best medicine, "Disquiet, Please" is truly a wonder drug.

"From the Hardcover edition."

Ten years in the making, Dribble! is an A-Z of credulity-twanging facts and stories about what Pele once memorably dubbed 'my bloody job'. It includes definitive explanations of everyday phrases such as 'the magic of the cup' and 'low centre of gravity'; a complete guide to becoming a terrace character and an in-depth account of how Roy Keane's pyjamas got him a smack on the nose . . . It also addresses hitherto ignored aspects of the beautiful game, including its longstanding relationship with Country and Western. Johnny Cash dubbed himself 'The Man in Black' in homage to his idol, referee Arthur Ellis and wrote what is arguably the greatest song ever written about the life of an assistant referee - 'I Walk the Line'.

The ultimate collection of X-rated and decidedly politically incorrect limericks! This bumper new volume contains over 2,000 dirty verses, from the moderately blue to the absolutely filthy - all illustrated throughout by Gray Jolliffe, creator of the bestselling Wicked Willie cartoon character. Here are verses so rude that even a blonde would blush, on subjects ranging from the bedroom to the bathroom and beyond. You'll find plenty of up-to-date limericks relevant to contemporary life as well as lewd old favourites on every imaginable topic, all of them guaranteed to make you laugh. Includes many newly devised limericks. On the breast of a barmaid named Gail Was written the price of the ale And on her behind, For the sake of the blind Was the same information in Braille.

When Dionysus the Renegade faked a Sophocles text in 400BC (cunningly inserting the acrostic 'Heraclides is ignorant of letters') to humiliate an academic rival, he paved the way for two millennia of increasingly outlandish literary hoaxers. The path from his mischievous stunt to more serious tricksters like the controversial memoirist and Oprah-duper James Frey, takes in every sort of writer: from the religious zealot to the bored student, via the vengeful academic and the out-and-out joker. But whether hoaxing for fame, money, politics or simple amusement, each perpetrator represents something unique about why we write. Their stories speak volumes about how reading, writing and publishing have grown out of the fine and private places of the past into big-business, TV-book-club-led mass-marketplaces which, some would say, are ripe for the ripping. For the first time, the complete history of this fascinating sub-genre of world literature is revealed. Suitable for bookworms of all ages and persuasions, this is true crime for people who don't like true crime, and literary history for the historically illiterate. A treat to read right through or to dip into, it will make you think twice next time you slip between the covers of an author you don't know...

Are the end times near? Is the Rapture really just around the corner? Could Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson possibly be right? About 1 billion people among us believe, yes, absolutely.
And that means one thing: investment opportunities
For those who are not as expertly versed in the Book of Revelation, Ellis Weiner and Barbara Davilman, authors of the bestselling "Yiddish with Dick and Jane," helpfully offer both illumination and advice: What exactly is the Rapture, anyway? How is it different from the Tribulation? Who are the Antichrist, the Four Horsemen, and the 144,000 male virgins, and what do they want? And, most important, how can I make money during the 7 years of societal breakdown before Armaggedon?
Taking the familiar form of a how-to investment guide, HOW TO PROFIT FROM THE COMING RAPTURE instructs those readers who will certainly be left behind (Jews, Catholics, Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus, less ardent Protestants, and many more) on how to exploit the inevitable demise of the world in order to make a tidy profit. Sure, the rivers and seas will run with blood, locusts will swarm, mountains will move all over the place, and famine will strike. But for the "five billion" of us left behind, the post-Rapture world will be a time of even more unique investment opportunities.

Celebrities would have us believe they lead a charmed life, and never make mistakes like us mere mortals. Charmed life my arse! With his wicked trademark wit, Ricky Tomlinson reveals the truth: they're just as likely to suffer from bloopers, blunders and bloody awful cock-ups as the rest of us. Packed with hilarious gossip and stories, and with a cast of characters from golden age superstars right through to reality TV wannabes, CELEBRITIES MY ARSE! is the perfect book for anyone who wants to know what goes on when the camera isn't looking . . .