Straight Dope [Paperback]

Cecil Adams (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 24, 1998

Is it true what they say about Catherine the Great and the horse? How do they measure snow? How do they get the stripes into toothpaste? Do cats have navels? How are coins taken out of circulation? Why do men have nipples?

Cecil Adams has tackled these questions and more in his outspoken, uncompromising, and always entertaining weekly newspaper column, The Straight Dope. Now the best of these questions and answers--from the profound to the ridiculous--are collected in book form so that you can know a little about a lot. Exploding myths, revealing shocking truths, and explaining all major mysteries of the cosmos, The Straight Dope contains more than four hundred fully-indexed entries on topics ranging from sex to consumer products, science to history, and rock 'n' roll to much, much more!

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

This collection of Adams' best newspaper columns answers with erudition and wit all the weird questions Americans ponder to distraction. Why didn't the Incas invent the wheel? Is the frequency of bald women on the increase? And how many square feet of flesh on the human body? Incredibly sarcastic, knowledgeable and entertaining, The Straight Dope makes a great bathroom book or gift book or personal treasure. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From the Publisher

This is the book that STARTED IT ALL! It's Cecil's very first book collection! We've been dying to publish this book in trade paperback to match the other book in the series ever since we started publishing the "Straight Dope" columns in book form. And now we're finally able to make this format available to all of the fans who have Cecil's other books in this size. So enjoy! --E. Zack, Sr. Editor

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 432 pages
• Publisher: Ballantine Books; 1st Ballantine Books trade ed edition (February 24, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345422910
• ISBN-13: 978-0345422910
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.2 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #330,806 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars For Trivia Addicts everywhere!, January 3, 2001

By 

Karen Bierman Hirsh (Greenwich, CT) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Straight Dope (Mass Market Paperback)

The Straight Dope books are some of the best trivia books out there today - they cover all sorts of odds and ends from animals, media, sports to other abnormal oddities.

Cecil Adams began his quest for truth in 1973 by accepting letters from the Teeming Millions (as he calls his readers) at the Chicago Reader and his been answering bizzare trivia questions ever since. Cecil has stuck around due to his irrevrant sense of humor and willingness to answer just about anything the public can throw his way. His column is currently seen in more than 30 newspapers throughout the United States and Canada but his books are must haves!

The Straight Dope is the first in the grouping and covers all sorts of inane topics such as: What does the 'H' stand for in Jesus H. Christ? Why do pigeons bob their heads? Is it true what they say about Catherine the Great and the horse? Why is there no Channel One?

and so on... buy this book and you will be the envy of all your friends - or at least you will be on your way to becoming King or Queen of all useless knowledge. This book makes a great gift (I would know as I tend to buy it for friends) or can be useful for great party chatter!

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Insightful, Funny, and Entertaining, November 21, 2000

By 

Bill R. Moore (New York, USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Straight Dope (Mass Market Paperback)

Ever ask yourself questions, seemingly silly ("What if...", "How does...", or "Hmmm... you know...") that you think are interesting but will never be answered? Sure you do. Well, THEY ARE ANSWERED IN THIS BOOK. Most of them anyway. Tons of questions of this type are answered in this book with humorous and insightful commentary from the one and only Cecil Adams. I personally have spent many, many hours wading through the vast Straight Dope archives. Pick up this book and you will probably do the same. If you a person who wonders about slightly off-kilter, perhaps unscientific topics, then this book is for you, it'll be a Godsend. The various sequels are good, if not quite on this one's level. Pick them up if you get addicted, but definately start here. Highly reccommended.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Book Answering Some of Life's Little "Trivia", August 19, 2000

By 

D. Leybman "Dima" (Fort Wayne, IN USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Straight Dope (Mass Market Paperback)

I first got this book at a local Borders and was amazed at its interesting explanations and addicting prose.

The books seems average enough. Its 420 pages long divided into different sections. Pretty tame and normal. But the content is far from it.

The premise is also simple. Cecil Adams a pseudonym for an unknown person who I personally believe is Ed Zotti. The people send in questions and he answers them. But these are real questions. The kind that the average person thinks about or nulls about. The kind of questions that involve physics and sports and just plain out little riddles that we think about and never really received the answer to.

Whats great is the intersting level and way that Cecil writes the answeres in. He writes so funny that I found myself laughing OUTLOUD which I usually never do. The questions are also answered not given some dumb explanation which no dumby could understand. Accompanied with the book are little cartoonsih pictures that are ok.

Cecil is a national resource and i am glad that I got to know his books. They are fun and certaintly not boring as a lot of others can be. I recommend for the child (11 to 16) Know It All which is also quite entertaining. Buy this book for a laugh and YOU SHALL GET IT!