The Boomer Bible (Paperback)

by R. F. Laird (Author) "At the beginning there was nothing but a big ball of gases..." (more)
Key Phrases: great comedy show, punk writers, punk writing, Most Chosen Nation, United States, John Wayne (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
The Boomers of management consultant Laird's title are baby boomers, and the author systematically skewers all of the things he claims that generation holds sacred--television, Wall Street avarice, the heroes of our nation's history and our Eurocentric cultural heritage. Boomers have forsaken established religions to follow Harry, the First Babe of the Boom, who gives them great things to eat, drink and inhale and who proclaims for them total exemption from responsibility for their actions. This "bible" also includes "The Book of the Damn Yankees," a version of American history, and the "Psongs" ("Happy is the man who gets to walk around with a pocketful of cash"). All of these topics have been treated better before. The book's pseudo-biblical style can be amusing at first, but it wears thin long before the end of the volume's 700-plus pages. The author is capable of an insightful observation or a genuinely funny line, but these are few and far between. And with his hipper-than-thou attitude, Laird seems to despise everyone but himself, while his muddled politics, neither left nor right, seem designed to confuse and deliberately offend readers.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review
And then there is The Boomer Bible, a sprawling, wickedly funny modern rewriting of the Bible that's meant to sum up a generation. -- Meg Cox, The Wall Street Journal

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Product Details

• Paperback: 880 pages
• Publisher: Workman Publishing Company; First Edition edition (January 10, 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1563050757
• ISBN-13: 978-1563050756
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6.5 x 2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (33 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #478,706 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Life changed, April 25, 2001

By	Brenly Drake (WashDC USA) - See all my reviews

I first came across this book in juvenile detention. I was kept in there for truancy charges, and one boring day I hastened over to a not commonly visited area, the bookshelf. The fact it was thick stood out, any thick book must be important, so I thought at the time, and saw the front cover, not like any other book I'd seen, sat down, and read the introduction, which at the time I almost believed. I went on to read the histories, one of the most offensive, I'd ever read in a long time, full of racial stereotypes that I almost wanted to believe were untrue, but I could not find any evidence against the well established/proven statements. Then came the punk testament,

Ways 34.5 We want to be more, not less than the dead. Ways 7.7-8 And they must've known something, More than a lie.

Us 1 Are we all alone out here? Are we crazy and hopeless and doomed? We don't think so, And if you don't think so either, You are welcome to come with us.

I stayed awake almost the entire night reading it, I resolved to make my life a lot more meaningful, I wrote a note on the inside cover to the next person that picked up the book: and then passed it onto someone who needed it when I was released. I went out and bought it, despite the fact I had no income. (Yes it's that good) I then followed the message of the punks of South Street (Yes, its still that good) and studied classical works, even going back and the Holy Bible normally collected dust at home. This book will change the way you think almost as much as the Holy bible would. But only `If you can manage to live up to it.' (Psayings 5A.45)

In closing, this book is a satire, it lifts you up on your toes putting others down, then swiftly kicks your un-guarded rear by putting YOU down. One of the greatest books of all time, you don't have to agree with it or disagree, you don't have to hate or like it, just don't be apathetic towards it.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best book ever. Laird is a genius, February 19, 1999

By A Customer

I read the Boomer Bible 5 years ago. At first I thought it was just a humor book. It's sold in the humor section of book stores. The book is indeed hilarious. But it's also a profound and frightening journey into our modern world. Virtually every subject from the beggining of time is touched upon and we learn from Laird's distinctive style of writing just how we got into this modern mess we're in. After reading the censored chapter (where some harrier has crossed out all the lines they don't want you to read-a very clever device), I felt profoundly depressed. I believed I was a harrier and that there was no hope. Laird's satire really hit home. But the punk testament pulled me right out of the myre and gave me new hope. Laird is a genius, the book is hilarious and brilliant. At first you hear of Harry and you are excited and amused by his teachings. You want to believe in the things he believes in. He speaks for you, but slowly you learn that holding on to those beliefs and not questioning them are where we've gone terribly wrong. When I started the book, I was indeed a Harrier, after reading it, I'm a punk with an axe to grind. I've bought at least 15 copies of this book as gifts for friends. I think it's one of the most importants book ever written. It should be read and studied by everyone.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars SomeOfTheMostBeautifulAndImportantWritingInEnglishHerein., February 17, 2000

By	[e-mail] (North Carolina) - See all my reviews

In this gorgeous book, R F Laird accomplishes many miracles, foremost among them an old man is lying on a gurney in a hospital doped up waiting to die and thinking back through his life and questioning his choices, his fate, his disappointments, and at one point his much addled mind grabs hold of first Jesus then Lincoln and makes a glorious amalgam of them in the torque of his heart's strings and the end of his rope and it is as beautiful as any passage written in English. This book was poorly marketed and its literary heights and cerebral depths and perceptual vistas are masked by the cover which is only in the most superficial and banal sense compatible with its content. Buy this book--it is the most important thing you can do if you care about rescuing a book that should never be forgotten from the jaws of potential (likely) obscurity.