as funny as a book can get
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simply hilarious. This book is a mickey-take of every country in the world. it's not particularly informative, but that's the point. it is joke after joke after joke.
if you're at all sensitive about cultural stereotypes avoid, but if not, buy it.
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Dumb, dumb
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What a disappointing Christmas present. With no prior knowledge of `The Onion' I suppose I wasn't all that well prepared for what I was about to read. It is unfortunately a very `American' book. When I say `American' I actually mean `ignorant'. The book is indeed funny in some parts but will leave you with a rather unpleasant taste in the mouth as you become soaked with the cheese of American arrogance. The satire seems to be based on old fashioned stereotypical views. We've heard them all before!! If only the book spent a bit more time taking the p**s out of the USA, which if we are honest has more things to be ashamed of than perhaps the rest of the world put together. If you are thinking of buying this as a present for someone (who isn't to the best of your knowledge a fan of The Onion) then please, please, please think twice.
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A neat idea, but lacks the wit of the Onion
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I'm a big fan of the Onion. For those of you who don't know, the Onion is a parody newspaper- its articles are fictional. So, from the Onion team comes this- a fictional atlas! Its a nice idea. Countries of the world are covered, each one with comedy descriptions, funny little "facts" for the visitor, and generally a bit of light hearted racial sterotypes- done from a parody, rather than a "Bernard Manning" angle of course. At times the humour touches on Monty Python style.
The success of "parody travel guides" such as Molvania lies in the fact that thier humour is witty and cutting. Tourists, Locals and above all guidebooks themselves are mocked with a cruel, and very perceptive eye. "Our Dumb World" attempts to do the same. It is a really bold effort- I think they do their best to cover each country, and to come up with specific jokes relating to every nation really must take some doing. However, it is in this that my criticism lies. Often, the Onion Newspaper can be downright cruel, and loveless, but above all it is perceptive- and strikes a chord with jaded readers. This is makes it humour so neat and cutting. However I feel what lets this book down somewhat is that it lacks the same wit. They go for very easy targets. The British "Like Their Tea" the Germans "Started World Wars" etc. These jokes, if nothing else, are somewhat obvious. OK, it could be that they are parodying traditional sterotypes, but this get confusing rather than funny. People have been making jokes about the Irish being Drunks, the English being stiff upper lipped retroverts, The French being... French etc for a long time. Because their comedy targets are so obvious, it lacks the wit and bite that is associated with the magazine.
Its certainly worth buying if you are an Onion fan- its good fun, but not as good as the Onion itself. It also comes a distinct second to the much more biting "Jetlag" series. That said, it would be a good gift for someone who likes something a bit different.
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OK, but not a patch on 'Our Dumb Century'
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I was a massive fan of The Onion, and 'Our Dumb Century' is one of the funniest books around. It showed a superb grasp of history with a very cutting sense of irony. Go out and buy it now if you've never read it. 'Our Dumb World' just doesn't seem so funny or biting. On the US it's great, but outside North America the material seems to wear fun and occasionally smacks of ignorance (unintended rather than feigned, one of The Onion's stocks-in-trade).
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Get this on the National Curriculum now!
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I hated geography at school, almost as much as I hated history. If this book had been around then, things would have been very different.
For those unfamiliar with The Onion, think Mad for older readers or perhaps a US equivalent of Private Eye and Viz. It is unrelentingly funny, but also incredibly educational. In many ways, it can be seen as a companion to Our Dumb Century, The Onion's 100 years of spoof newspaper articles (I'd have loved history, too, if that one had existed when I was at school). Witty, obscene (when required), daring and impeccably researched, no one gets away scot free (certainly not America, if that's a concern!)
It's lavishly illustrated, in full colour and the ideal present for all those people who have 'seen a bit of the world' and keep going on about it. It's not the first time this has been done: in the eighties, Mel Smith and Griff Rhys Jones, having just finished Not the Nine O'Clock News, put their name to a 'World Alas', too. That was very funny in its time, but the world has changed unbelievably since then. This atlas (or should that also be 'alas'?) hits the spot.
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United States | 
United Kingdom | 
Canada