If at All Possible, Involve a Cow: The Book of College Pranks (Paperback)

~ (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

A humorous collection of the most clever college pranks ever committed describes how Harvard students hoisted the Soviet flag over the U.S. Supreme Court building during the Red Scare and other pranks and includes documentary photographs.

Product Details

• Paperback: 239 pages
• Publisher: St Martins Pr; 1st edition (August 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312078102
• ISBN-13: 978-0312078102
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #685,305 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A reasonably scholarly but still enjoyable study of pranks., March 25, 1997

By A Customer

No matter what anybody does, anywhere, there's an anthropologist or journalist watching... Fortunately, in this case, the result is a book that is not so scholarly it's dull, nor so fluffy 101-psychobabble it's dull. It goes through the early days of colleges and relates student pranks and misdemeanors of those days, and then takes us to the present, with a large assortment of the high-tech/low cunning pranks pulled at M.I.T. and Cal Tech. For those who sigh for the good old days when young people were decent and respectable, the history part might be disillusioning. For students, the entire book will be inspiring (one hopes) though it is not a how-to. For administration and professors, it might cause mild insomnia. (Don't worry, though, read a few student papers, the insomnia will pass.) For anyone looking for an interesting, funny book that might be shelved under Applied Humor, check this one out.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A funny and serious look at college life, November 18, 2007

By	T. Briggs (Knoxville, TN) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This book is worth the price it's currently selling for. The writing is great - engaging, funny, and with just the right amount of analysis of the pranks. Just reading about the crazy things that have gone on at colleges around the country is hilarious. It makes me wish I'd been a bit more lively when I was in college.

If you have fond memories of college, like pranks, or just like cows, I highly recommend this book.

Edit: I see that the price has now dropped to much more reasonable levels. Now there's no reason not to check this one out...

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A view of the best academia offers., February 26, 1998

By A Customer

Steinberg illuminates the halls of academia where the true creativity is, well, really WAS taking place. It is both a view of a time long forgotten-where students were trusted to push boundaries-and a lament for that loss of exuberance. Universities have become too serious, too cautious, when compared to the antics this book aptly depicts. One truly wishes to be a member of the Harvard Lampoon pranksters, the UCLA students crazily running through USC with blue paint for Tommy Trojan, or the MIT students scaling thier dome. This book celebrates the creative energy that is possible in a college setting, not the bookish individualism that is the predominate image found elsewhere-and is too alive and well.