Dave Barry Is Not Making This Up [Audiobook, CD] [Audio CD]

Dave Barry (Author), Arte Johnson (Reader)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 2006

You can't make this stuff up! Dave Barry would never lie -- and here are the real life, laugh-out-loud stories from across America to prove it: a U.S. Supreme Court justice shares his remedy for preventing gas (I had not realized that this was a matter of concern in the highest levels of government); a newspaper headline in Ohio announces the combustibility of strawberry Pop-Tarts (A story that can really help you gain a better understanding of how you can be killed by breakfast snack food); the frightening fact that snakes have mastered the pipelines leading directly to your toilet -- and they're not shy (Many women might view this as a fair punishment for all the billions of times that guys have left the seat up).

So get up-close with Dave as he swears to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth . . . so God help you!

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

The title, as Dave Barry admits, is not entirely accurate. To be sure, this collection of articles does contain what the Pulitzer-Prize-winning author calls "an unusually high (for me) level of factual content." But there is also an abundance of goofy reportage, fart jokes (see "It's A Gas"), and Barry's long-overdue thoughts on natural childbirth. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

From Publishers Weekly

Barry ( The Taming of the Screw ) is in top form in his latest collection of essays from the Miami Herald. He introduces readers to his teenage son, who rarely leaves his room except to demand new sneakers; to his two dogs, Earnest and Zippy, so fearsome to intruders that Barry had to install an alarm system; to certain Florida UFOlogists, who sound like prospective candidates for psychiatric study. There are several pieces about Barry's contest to pick the worst modern pop song, which drew 10,000 responses, with "MacArthur Park" the clear winner. Exceptionally good are the travel articles about China and Bimini. Other topics involve lefthandedness, the hazards of air travel (principally the other passengers) and masochistic consumers.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Audio CD
• Publisher: Phoenix Audio; Unabridged edition (September 1, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1597776831
• ISBN-13: 978-1597776837
• Product Dimensions: 5.7 x 4.9 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 0.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #976,309 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

The New York Times has pronounced Dave Barry "the funniest man in America." But of course that could have been on a slow news day when there wasn't much else fit to print. True, his bestselling collections of columns are legendary, but it is his wholly original books that reveal him as an American icon. Dave Barry Slept Here was his version of American history. Dave Barry Does Japan was a contribution to international peace and understanding from which Japan has not yet fully recovered. Dave Barry's Complete Guide to Guys is among the best-read volumes in rehab centers and prisons. Raised in a suburb of New York, educated in a suburb of Philadelphia, he lives now in a suburb of Miami. He is not, as he often puts it so poetically, making this up.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Dave Barry at his best., January 25, 2001

By 

James Yanni (Bellefontaine Neighbors, Mo. USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Dave Barry Is Not Making This Up (Paperback)

If you're already familiar with Dave Barry, all I need to say is that this book is unquestionably one of his best, along with "Dave Barry Talks Back", "Dave Barry Turns 40", and "Dave Barry's Only Travel Guide You'll Ever Need". If you aren't familiar with his work, all I can say is that he's one of the funniest writers I've ever encountered, and as long as you don't object to irreverence (read 'intentionally immature for effect') you will probably love his writing, too.

Ironically, this book contains my all-time favorite Dave Barry column, which happens also to be one of two of his columns I've ever read that are not humorous, but are decidedly serious. This column is "Uneasy Rider", the column about his twelve-year-old son having a semiserious bicycle accident; it is an immensely powerful description of what it feels like to be a parent in that situation. The book also contains the two or three columns that were the genesis of his later book, "Dave Barry's Book Of Bad Songs". If you have read that book, you'll have seen these columns, but if you haven't, you're in for a treat. (He runs a reader survey, and does two columns on the results, asking "what is the worst rock/pop song ever written?")

Marvellous book; I can't recommend it any higher.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Light and funny, May 31, 2001

By 

M. Stabile (Gwinnett County, GA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Dave Barry Is Not Making This Up (Paperback)

Being a huge Dave Barry fan, I had to read this book, and I was not disappointed. The book is a collection of columns he wrote, mostly from the early 1990's; presumably, these are his funniest and the ones that got the most responses from readers. And you'd be surprised the kind of responses he gets from readers, some of whom can't seem to grasp that Dave's columns are supposed to be funny.

I, unlike those readers, had no trouble finding the humor in this book. I've probably read it 100 times, and parts of it still crack me up. He writes mostly about unusual news stories sent in by "alert readers" regarding exploding toilets and other such oddities. Its format-short essays of about 2 or 3 pages each-makes it ideal for people with short attention spans, but others will enjoy it too. If you've never read a Dave Barry book, you need to start, and I'm guessing this one will help get you hooked.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Dave Barry is 'Da Bomb..., February 1, 2006

By 

Holly Golightly (Ohio) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Dave Barry Is Not Making This Up (Mass Market Paperback)

I have yet to read a Dave Barry book I didn't like. Although I had already read some of the stories in previous books - they were still funny. I usually have to watch Mystery Science Theater 3000 to keep from getting bored while walking on the treadmill, but this book had me laughing hysterically. Two thumbs, way up!