The Official Politically Correct Dictionary and Handbook : Updated! New Entries!

Rating:
Summary: Averagely Amusing
Review: A boyfriend gave me this book as a gift because we had been making PC jokes for a while. It was funny, but not to the point where I was laughing out loud funny. I guess I wish he would have taken me out to a nice dinner instead of spending money on the book. Oh well. --Kim

Rating:
Summary: Entertaining and Useful Book to Own
Review: As we enter the 21st century, it has become very imprtant to improve our language skills for everyday use. Due to the reality of frivilous lawsuits or the development of customer relations skills in today's global economy, it has become very important to acquire advanced communication skills that don't refer to a person's age, race, gender, religion, sexual orientation, or any other human characteristic in a demeaning manner.

This is where "The Officially Politically Correct Dictionary & Handbook," comes into hand. Originally written as a humor book, this book is actually quite resourceful in anyday situations involving individuals who are different, irritating, or sensitive to what one might say. While working in retail, and later in marketing, I have found that this book allowed me to use proper terms that wouldn't offend anyone. While many of my coworkers and clients laughed at times, this book will come in handy for many service employees. Flight Attendants, Retail Workers, Human Resources Employees, etc..., this book has almost every correct word to say in today's complexed world of jargon.

Whether dealing with a "difficult woman," (primadonna), a "horizontally-challenged" person (fat), or a "Domestic Incarceration Survivor," (housewife) this humorous, yet helpful book will provide the reader with beneficial words and phrases to add anyone's vocabulary. Truly, this is a must have book in today's marketplace!

Rating:
Summary: An Average-Challenged Parody for the Millenium
Review: Beard and Cerf's spoof on political correctness was quite amusing when first published, but as with many things with topical humor: you had to be there. This is not to say that this book is not a great gift idea for that special someone that you know who was (was not) there and didn't (doesn't)"get it." Political correctness is still alive and well, but like new shoes the concept is becoming more comfortable in our lives. P.C. -- not to be confused with PCs that people embraced at a much faster rate -- still pinches our toes in places. So first time managers of people may appreciate receiving this little tongue-in-cheek guidebook on the complexities of workplace diversity to gain perspective of the times. For the price, this irreverent reference piece by Beard and Cerf is a humorous "hard back disadvantaged" book for those with special needs.

Rating:
Summary: Funny, yet Frightening
Review: Far from being entertaining this book is scary stuff! Words whose meaning has been redefined, new incomprehensible words, ambiguous combinations of words, all in the apparent belief that we shouldn't upset anyone at anytime has a deadly seriousness about it! It reminds me of the Wolf Biermann song "Das Hoelderlin Lied", the first three lines of lines of which translate as: "in this country we live like strangers in our own house / our own language which we encounter we no longer understand / yet they who speak our language understand us"
The authors should be congratulated for producing this book and I think it should be made compulsory reading for all!

Rating:
Summary: Entertaining? hardly!
Review: Far from being entertaining this book is scary stuff! Words whose meaning has been redefined, new incomprehensible words, ambiguous combinations of words, all in the apparent belief that we shouldn't upset anyone at anytime has a deadly seriousness about it! It reminds me of the Wolf Biermann song "Das Hoelderlin Lied", the first three lines of lines of which translate as: "in this country we live like strangers in our own house / our own language which we encounter we no longer understand / yet they who speak our language understand us"
The authors should be congratulated for producing this book and I think it should be made compulsory reading for all!

Rating:
Summary: Pretty fun at first, but it gets old
Review: Henry Beard and Christopher Cerf have written a book that is filled with irony and fun. It's meant as a dictionary for politically correct terms, and some of them are pretty well thought up, such as "optically challenged, hair disadvantaged and pharmacological preference, but unfortunately, the subject of ridicule, political correctness, is a fun but far from large subject, and in my opinion, the authors have written a much too large book on a much too small subject. At first it's pretty good entertainment, but it just gets old and corny, and it isn't funny once you reach page 40.

Rating:
Summary: Guide to the US mind for strangers ?
Review: I bought the book on a holiday to the US. Read it. Shook my head. Talked about it with friends in the US. So - that's PC ? This book helped me to understand - and laugh about - the concept of politically correct talking by the reality-challenged folks who obviously USE such terms... Recommended !

Rating:
Summary: Funny, yet Frightening
Review: When I first bought the book, I was expecting high quality entertainment, providing razor-sharp satire on a society rapidly increasing its speed into the chasm of death. I got that, but I got so much more.

The book does an excellent job of providing a realistic look at the language the few schmucks in power have forced upon us.

Of course I laugh at everything, because it all seems so stupid. But, after finishing the book and going back out into the real world, I was shocked at exactly how true the book really was.

What has happened to this country? Have we become so paranoid about the remote possiblity of offending someone that we've really created a euphemism for the word dead? I mean, how many dead people are going to be offened if we call them dead? Answer: None.

This book helped me realize exactly how pointless the whole process of political correctness is. When are these people going to realize that changing the word does not change the condition? It's not only pointless, but it's hurting this country. All these people are doing is sheilding people from reality. Political correctness is a stupid idea which needs to be eliminated (I'm sorry, neutralized).

Good book, bad idea.