|  | Author: The Onion
Creator: Scott Dikkers
Publisher: Little, Brown and Company
List Price: $27.99
Buy Used: $2.21
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New (41) Used (82) Collectible (1) from $2.22
Seller: noah74
Rating:  134 reviews
Sales Rank: 26261
Languages: English (Original Language), English (Unknown), English (Published)
Media: Hardcover
Edition: 73
Pages: 256
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 4
Dimensions (in): 11 x 8.6 x 0.8
ISBN: 0316018422
Dewey Decimal Number: 081
EAN: 9780316018425
ASIN: 0316018422
Publication Date: October 30, 2007
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 21-25 of 134
Amusing Geographic Skewering Could Use a Greater Distribution of Poison-Penned Stereotyping February 16, 2009
Ed Uyeshima (San Francisco, CA USA)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
If it wasn't for the title - granted a big "if" - you would swear this was one of those glossy DK Eyewitness Travel guides which stake their claim on elegant graphics that blend key facts, historical timelines, topographical maps and robust color photos. However, a flip to any page will expose the prevalent cutting humor - familiar to fans of the satirical faux-newspaper - that leaves the reader either offended or in stitches. I have to admit I am mostly in the latter camp since it soon becomes clear that no one remains completely unscathed is this parody of the paperback desk atlas, a literary species that has miraculously survived the Web since one can surmise that the globe in all its complexity is too enormous to present on one screen. There are definitely more hits than misses here, but the misses do swing wide.
Look at the section on Mexico, for example, which starts with the subheading, "Now Hiring 2.4 Million Busboys" and presents a photo comparison between the work done by ancient Mayans (The El Castillo pyramid at Chichen Itza) and that done by modern Mayans (a pile of dirty dishes shaped like a pyramid). In explaining the language, the editors assert "Mexicans speak Spanish as quickly as possible just to get it over with" and record that in 1953 that the U.S. decided to export San Diego back to Mexico. The Vatican City is described as "The Catholic Disneyland", while Brazil's iconic image of Christ the Redeemer has been photo-shopped into Christ the Avenger with automatic weapons extending from each hand. The Caribbean is lumped together as "The Seriously Who Cares Islands", and our cumulative indifference to Darfur makes the sarcastic description of Sudan rather apt - "All Better Thanks to You".
Not all their targeted zingers work well. Describing Uganda as "No Child Left Alive", the editors claim the country has the world's largest standing child army and that they are willing to be killed for their country if someone can help them tie their shoes. That's pretty harsh no matter how cynical one could get about the absurdist machinations in the third world. In contrast, some countries appear exempt from serious-minded skewering such as Australia which the editors describe as one giant nature cable TV show. The book could have been tightened up for such lapses to provide a more even hand in cultural stereotyping. Regardless, the editors made no country safe from the barrage of acerbic comments including ours. A good example is Florida, which is dubbed the "The Silent Holocaust". Some of the funnier comments show up upfront where one world map is subdivided into Bono Awareness, meaning each country is graded on how much U2 singer Bono cares about it within his personal agenda. This is funny stuff, although not consistently so and probably best absorbed in small doses. The cynicism can get overwhelming.
 Try "Our Dumb Century" instead January 27, 2009
Jyminee Attune
1 out of 5 found this review helpful
I usually laughed every couple of pages while reading "Our Dumb World"--but with 25 or so jokes per page, that's not a great batting average. How many funny jokes are there to make about the awful lives of Africans? The repetitive nature of the gags quickly becomes monotonous.
I would recommend the Onion's "Our Dumb Century" instead. Much funnier, and a much wider range of satiric targets.
Great pick and drop literature January 27, 2009
S. Moorthy (Philadelphia, PA)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
I loved this book! Its a great Christmas or Birthday gift for those who appreciate off-beat humor, especially the nerdy kind. I have it in the reading rack permanently and anytime I have a few minutes I pick it up and read a few pages. Awesomely funny!
 Da da da Dumb January 24, 2009
Sharon C. (Kansas, USA)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
You'll laugh your Assyrian Botswana off. Have a magnifying glass handy, though, as the tiny print is hard to read.
Snarky, cynical humor for everyone, fun for the whole family! January 13, 2009
L. lipkin (chicago illinois USA)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
Our Dumb World: The Onion's Atlas of the Planet Earth, 73rd Edition
This book could be labeled " the best of the onion", it is cynical, irreverent, sacreligious and outrageous. It takes geo-politics to a whole new hilarious level. A must have for anyone with a sense of humor.
Showing reviews 21-25 of 134
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