Snaps: The Original Yo' Mama Joke Book [Paperback]

James Percelay (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 18, 1994

Snaps is the first book ever to present the funniest, rudes, most creative insults from a unique African-American comic art form. Also known as signifying, joning, and playing the dozens, snapping is as old as the blues and as cutting-edge as hip hop and rap. The book features more than 450 snaps direct from the streets as well as from celebritites. This book will make you laugh out loud--and give you verbal ammunition for the next time someone tries to snap on you.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Snaps creator James Percelay is a former television development executive at Hearst Entertainment and film producer at Saturday Night Live. He is the executive producer of Snaps the Movie and is developing a comedy series with Fox.

Product Details

• Paperback: 176 pages
• Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks (February 18, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0688128963
• ISBN-13: 978-0688128968
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 7 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.3 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,068,258 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Must read, August 1, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Snaps: The Original Yo' Mama Joke Book (Paperback)

For all you homeboys out there without a sharp mouth, try these books, many funny and promising come-backs for dissing others. "Your so dumb, if you spoke your mind, you would be speechless" and others will win you the match and they wont mess with you again. The books are well in stock now, and i recommend it to everyone that isn't offended easily.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "The Dozens" 101, April 2, 2002

By 

JLind555 - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Snaps: The Original Yo' Mama Joke Book (Paperback)

"Snapping" is a form of "playing the dozens" which derives from the rich oral history of blacks in America. It's a verbal contest in which two opponents hurl all kinds of insults at each other, the object being to see which one can beat down the other without either of them losing their cool or resorting to physical violence. It does not mean cursing the opponent out; in fact, the most effective snaps, or insults, involve no profanity at all. Percelay, Dweck and Ivey have compiled hundreds of snaps from sources all over the black community and organized them into categories (fat snaps, skinny snaps, stupid snaps, ugly snaps, color snaps... well, you get the idea). A few examples: "Your mother's so fat, she has her own area code" or "Your mother's so fat, when I got on top of her my ears popped" (which is, in effect, a double snap -- she's not only obese, she's a lady of ill repute); or "Your father's so dumb, he leaves his fly open in case he has to count to eleven", or "You were so ugly when you were born, the doctor slapped your mother instead of you." "Snaps" is hilarious and will have you laughing out loud, as well as appreciating the razor-sharp wit of whoever dreamed some of these gems up. Check it out, as well as its companion book, "Double Snaps" -- double the pleasure and double the fun.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Yo Mamma So Dumb - She Won't Read This Book, January 17, 2004

By 

George Buttner "Agent0042" (Dayton, Ohio United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Snaps: The Original Yo' Mama Joke Book (Paperback)

"Snaps" is a good book that helps to preserve an oral tradition. It begins with a couple of interesting and well-written essays on the history of "snapping" / "the dozens." From there, it gets on to the really good stuff, the actual insults conveniently divided into sections such as "Stupid Snaps" and "Fat Snaps."

Some of the jokes may seem outdated, but one has to remember that the book was written in 1994 and didn't have the help of all of the people that wrote in with submissions to the later books. Even without that, it's still a quality work.