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Originally Posted by DixieGal
3. Anything in the "for Dummies" series - Instead of being ashamed of being too dumb to read a manual or take a course, people in my office proudly display this series.
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i saw a very interesting BBC documentary about stupidity (i think it was just called "stupidity", in fact, although i can't remember now). according to this documentary, it is actually more culturally and socially acceptable in the US to be stupid than to be smarter than the rest of the people in the room. the "for dummies" series was cited as being simultaneously an example and a symptom of this attitude.
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7. Anything Jane Austen - Sorry, Dr D, but I'm a lit graduate and had these prissy, precocious books shoved down my throat again and again throughout college. Since then, anything that reeks of rural spinsters with good manners just sort of riles me up.
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i understand lit graduate genre overdoses but it's funny, i had the exact opposite reaction the first time i read a book by Austen : i found it incredibly witty and sarcastic, the opposite of prissy. i spent most of the book laughing.
ha ! that reminds me of another one :
the journal of Bridget Jones. a friend of mine recommended this to me (and lent me her copy) saying it was so hilarious that she had to stop reading it in the métro because it was becoming too embarassing, people were staring at her, and that i would love it because it was a modern day transcription of Pride and Prejudice (which i *do* love). i only laughed once, a little bit (more like a snicker) : when Bridget says "It struck me as pretty ridiculous to be called Mr Darcy and to stand on your own looking snooty at a party." not the worst i ever read, but not worth the hype either ; completely superficial, not particularly well-written, completely lacking any meaningful insight, and not more than mildly funny. i haven't seen the movie version but now that i've read the book i don't particularly want to.