Humour

This is by no means an exhaustive list so do feel free to send us your recommendations: geraldine@jewishbookweek.com

I Feel Bad About My Neck: And Other Thoughts on Being a Woman

Nora Ephron

Transworld ISBN: 9780552773812  

March 2007

With her disarming, intimate, completely accessible voice, and dry sense of humor, Nora Ephron shares with us her ups and downs in I Feel Bad About My Neck, a candid, hilarious look at women who are getting older and dealing with the tribulations of maintenance, menopause, empty nests, and life itself.

The woman who brought us When Harry Met Sally . . . , Sleepless in Seattle, You’ve Got Mail, and Bewitched, and the author of best sellers Heartburn, Scribble Scribble, and Crazy Salad, discusses everything—from how much she hates her purse to how much time she spends attempting to stop the clock: the hair dye, the treadmill, the lotions and creams that promise to slow the aging process but never do. Oh, and she can’t stand the way her neck looks. But her dermatologist tells her there’s no quick fix for that.

Ephron chronicles her life as an obsessed cook, passionate city dweller, and hapless parent.  She recounts her anything-but-glamorous days as a White House intern during the JFK years (“I am probably the only young woman who ever worked in the Kennedy White House that the President did not make a pass at”) and shares how she fell in and out of love with Bill Clinton—from a distance, of course.  But mostly she speaks frankly and uproariously about life as a woman of a certain age.

Utterly courageous, wickedly funny, and unexpectedly moving in its truth telling, I Feel Bad About My Neck is a book of wisdom, advice, and laugh-out-loud moments, a scrumptious, irresistible treat.

Jewish Humour

Ben Eliezer

Prion Books ISBN 9781853754968 

November 2003

There have been a lot of great Jewish humourists - Woody Allen, Sid Ceasar, Groucho Marx, Mel Brooks, Marty Feldman - but is there such a thing as Jewish humour? Ben Eliezer - a great authority on the subject (he has countless commendations from relatives and friends) - thinks there is. It is the ultimate in ethnic humour - the humour of minorities everywhere. Over-anxious, seeing insults where none are intended (sometimes), obsession with identity - boasting of it or trying to hide it, the struggle to emancipate, the fight against emancipation, and, as the people of The Book an obsession with logic that goes wrong. And there are recurring characters, mostly taken from the old, vanished Yiddish-speaking world of eastern Europe - Jewish beggars (always arrogant), marriage brokers (unbelievably pushy). There are the usual obsessions with sex, mothers, money (of course) and, above all, making light of disastrous circumstances. Sigmund Freud started to make a collection of Jewish jokes but never published it. Ben Eliezer wrote two previous books - "The World's Best Jewish Jokes" and "More of the World's Best Jewish Jokes" - and he has plundered these long out-of-print books, taking the best of them, while adding new stories.

Jewtopia

Bryan Foger and Sam Wolfson

Little, Brown ISBN 9780446579544  

You'll kvell. You'll plotz. You'll laugh your head off.

Bryan Fogel and Sam Wolfson, two nice Jewish boys who speak to their mothers an average of 12.6 times a day, deliver the ultimate book of Jewish humour.

Filled with full kosher colour photos, quizzes and illustrations, Jewtopia includes: The Official Jewish babysitter Application, requiring a urine sample; Middle school GPA and 14 non-family references; The Jewish Nursery blueprint, complete with panic room, fireproof wallpaper and guardian ninja; The top-ten list of Jewish 'don'ts' (No. 1: Never be in perfect health); The complete timeline of Jewish expulsion and much more.

Yes, But Is It Good For the Jews?

Jonny Geller

Penguin  ISBN 9780713999594

For the first time, the secrets of the ancient art of Judology are revealed. Think of it as the third cousin of Kabbalah. Yes, but is it Good for the Jews? is a hilarious and indispensable A–Z of world history and popular culture, measuring whether a wide variety of subjects are, in fact, Good for the Jews.

We can reveal to the outside world (yes, Non-Jews are allowed to buy this book), the mathematical formula that determines whether someone or something is Good for the Jews. The Judological Institute of Spiritual Mathematics (or JISM) will show that while Guilt, Google and Star Wars are Good for the Jews, Sudoku and Colonic Irrigation are Not. In a whistlestop tour you’ll also discover just what’s right about Big Brother, what’s wrong about Madonna, what products you should avoid, and which ones you really should rush out and buy.

Bonus features include a list of top Jews to marry (Scarlet Johanssen is Jewish!), a ‘Jew or False’ quiz and ‘Ashamed of Your Name? Jews that Switched’ – which reveals the original name of Kirk Douglas, among others.

For the confused Gentile, a simple questionnaire ‘How Jew are You?’ may help. (Remember, as the first Prime Minister of Israel himself said, ‘Anyone meshugge enough to call himself a Jew, IS a Jew.’)

You can visit Jonny Geller's website and blog at www.isitgoodforthejews.com.

Jonny Geller, Director of JISM, whose international headquarters is in Cockfosters.

The Cassandra Chronicles

Ariel Leve

Portobello Books ISBN 9781846272035

August 2009

Ariel Leve has the ability to turn any personal disaster into a funny, endearing, self-deprecating story. Her Cassandra column is one of the most popular in the Sunday Times, and this book gathers together the very best of the pieces, arranging them into themes, ranging from ways of getting through the day, to health concerns, romantic disasters, personality defects and a whole calamitous catalogue of worst case scenarios.

Hypochondriac, neurotic, habitual sweater-of-the-small-stuff, Cassandra is one of life's worriers. She counts it a good day if she manages to get out of bed. If someone should ask: what's the worst that can happen? she has a ready-made list and lives in permanent fear of what's to come. But at least, as a pessimist, she's fully prepared for any eventuality: people who see the glass half full are only a spill away from disappointment. Whether you've been dumped by the love of your life, lost your job, said the wrong thing at a party, or forgotten to have children, Cassandra is there to remind you that it could be worse - you could be her

The Gibbon's in Decline but the Horse is Stable

Anthropoemorphic Ramblings

Maureen Lipman

Robson Books ISBN 9781861059697  

An Owl adored a sorceress
But loved a white witch too
Which to wed and which to bed?
To wit: which witch to woo?

From the ostracised Ostrich to the dandy Cayote they called Don Quixote, from the fetishistic Zebra to the missing Lynx, here is a delighful menagerie of irreverent, laugh-aloud animal verse from the ever-inventive pen of the wonderful Maureen Lipman. Brilliantly illustrated by Gerald Scarfe, Posy Simmonds,Mac, Jan Pienkowski  and other leading cartoonists, and with all royalties going to the International Myeloma Foundation, here is a book destined for the best-seller lists.     
 
One of Britain's best-loved actresses, Maureen Lipman is currently directing the BBC dramatisation of her late husband Jack Rosenthal's autobiography in which she appears. Her best-selling books include How Was It For You?, and Lip Reading.

101 Classic Jewish Jokes: Jewish Humor from Groucho Marx to Jerry Seinfeld

Robert Menchin

Mustang Publishing ISBN 9780914457886  

From the Borscht Belt shtick of Rodney Dangerfield to the urbane wit of Jerry Seinfeld, Jewish humor has had an enormous influence on modern comedy. Jokes about doctors, jokes about food, and of course, jokes about mothers - 101 classic jokes are in this book, along with several witty essays and numerous charming cartoons by Joe Kohl.

This book is a must for any fan of Jewish humor - and everyone who needs a good laugh!

The Ultimate Book of Jewish Jokes

David Minkoff

Robson ISBN 9781861058218 

March 2005

This is, quite simply, the most comprehensive collection of Jewish jokes, ever! The author has sourced over 1000 jokes and witty anecdotes that will have your sides splitting. With topics ranging from Rabbis to relationships; hairdressers to honeymoons; Bar Mitzvahs to bodybuilders; and from shopping, dating and in-laws to miracles, Viagra and chutzpah - and you don't have to be Jewish to enjoy them.

This unique book also contains jokes for children, a compatability test for dating couples, humourous quips that can be used in speeches for special occasions, and a generous sprinkling of naughtier jokes.

David Minkoff runs his own Jewish humour website, www.awordinyoureye.com. He lives in Edgware, London.