Rating: 
Summary: Very uncommon Side Effects
Review: Allen's style hasn't been duplicated in thirty years. How could anyone attempt to copy him--his creativity has its own realm. Side Effects is a must for any home library. I've read it over and over, and every time I pick it up, I laugh just as hard as the time before. Just like good music, true comedy doesn't get worn out by repetitiveness. This book and SeinLanguage by Jerry Seinfeld are my two favorite humor books. And I'm still waiting for a Steven Wright compilation, by the way.
Rating:
Summary: Very uncommon Side Effects
Review: Allen's style hasn't been duplicated in thirty years. How could anyone attempt to copy him--his creativity has its own realm. Side Effects is a must for any home library. I've read it over and over, and every time I pick it up, I laugh just as hard as the time before. Just like good music, true comedy doesn't get worn out by repetitiveness. This book and SeinLanguage by Jerry Seinfeld are my two favorite humor books. And I'm still waiting for a Steven Wright compilation, by the way.
Rating: 
Summary: Biting, yet it hurts so well . . .
Review: As with all of Allen, a great pitch for social satire as well as deeply thought out philosophy. A raving psychosis writing from the psychologist's couch. Well worth the time. One of the few comedians you can read and not feel as if you are escaping quo escaping.
Rating:
Summary: Philosophical funnies -- or are they all equivocation?
Review: Certainly not all of this is funny only if you have read enough philosophy to catch the drift. Is Needleman a metaphor for Heidegger? Or is this whole tid bit on existentialism per se? Will Free Press add a "Woody Allen" to their series on the World's Living Philosophers? Is Woody living? Is he a philosopher? And if so, is he a living philosopher? Equivocation: I am convinced that all jokes are logical fallacies. The conclusion is the punch line. We should be able to analyze each joke and find which fallacy it takes. A rough review of what I remember in this book strikes me that equivocation is all that Woody uses. Or are there non-sequitors as well? That is what Dave Barry always uses. Booger booger booger. Woody is much more sophisticated. Hence, has a smaller audience. Is it still politically correct to let everyone know we still like Woody or would this suggest bad things about our characters especially if we have adopted daughters? If Woody writes an autobiography and we go to a magician who throws in Woody's book with us -- what would happen? What would happen if the magician throws in this book? Would we find ourselves back in the same magician's office? Why is there no sequel?
Rating:
Summary: Monty Python in New Yorkish and with a point
Review: Even for people who do not like Woody Allen's movies, his satiric books must give a great laugh! This man is so intelligent that he allows himself to un-taboo'ize just about everything. He makes fun of religion without being blasphemic, about stereotypes without being prejudicial, and so on. This is the most sophisticated fun any American has ever come up with!
Rating:
Summary: GREAT!
Review: I hate books but I loved this one
Rating:
Summary: Funny, but not as good as Feathers
Review: I liked it, but was a little disapointed. I thought 'Without Feathers' was funnier. At seven bucks for a paperback this is good but could be better. Kind of like paying to see 'Small Time Crooks.' His 'My Speech to the Graduates' was great. Too bad he couldn't clone himself so one could keep writing short stories, or the little asides in the beginning of 'Feathers', while the other wrote and directed movies.
Rating: 
Summary: Entertaining
Review: I think the best aspect of this book is that the stories are very short. I'm not saying that in commentary to Allen's writing ability. I just think it's the truth. After a while, the non-sequiter style humor begins to grate you. It's funny for a time. But then it fades into teenage repetitiveness. The book is a good toilet reader. Easily digestible bites of writing over a fairly short book make reading a chapter in 5-10 minutes possible. Likewise, reading stories in quick succession turn the book from a quick bit of mindless entertainment to a bit of a chore to get through. Not all of the stories are non-sequiter nonsense, but most are. They're generally light, filled with references out of left field, and are usually funny enough to warrant a laugh. This essentially typifies everything I have read from Allen. I think, in general, the book gets better from front to back. So if you can get by the initial 3-4 shorts you'll be fine all told. Don't expect a great book by any stretch. It's clearly not that. But it's funny, light, and easy enough to read.
Rating:
Summary: OK, but not the best
Review: I thought that this book was not as good as Without Feathers or Getting Even. Certain points are funny, even hilarious. However, there are largely unfunny passages such as "Retribution". However, there are a few good vignettes, most notably "Confessions of a Burglar" and "Nefarious Times We Live In". If you've already read his other books, this still has some laughs; if not, I recommend his two previous selections.
Rating:
Summary: Extremely Enjoyable Short Stories
Review: I usually have a hard time finding the time to read books these days, but this one was well worth the time I put aside. The stories are hilarious and his form of writing is brilliant. This book contained some of the most entertaining stories I have ever read. You must buy this book!!
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