"Millions of people visit xkcd.com each week to read Randall Munroe's iconic webcomic. His stick-figure drawings about science, technology, language, and love have a large and passionate following. Fans of xkcd ask Munroe a lot of strange questions. What if you tried to hit a baseball pitched at 90 percent the speed of light? How fast can you hit a speed bump while driving and live? If there was a robot apocalypse, how long would humanity last? In...

A new collection from David Sedaris is cause for jubilation. His recent move to Paris has inspired hilarious pieces, including Me Talk Pretty One Day, about his attempts to learn French. His family is another inspiration. You Can't Kill the Rooster is a portrait of his brother who talk's incessant hip-hop slang to his bewildered father. And no one hones a finer fury in response to such modern annoyances as restaurant meals presented in ludicrous towers...

In this new collection of original essays, the #1 bestselling author of "Are You There, Vodka? It's Me, Chelsea" delivers one laugh-out-loud moment after another as she sets her sights on the ridiculous side of childhood, adulthood, and daughterhood.

What does it mean to be JUST A GUY? -A guy doesn't think before he speaks. -Eating and sleeping always come first. Always. -A guy may get married, but he doesn't have to like it. -It's tough to admit, but all guys are exactly the same. Blue Collar Comedy Star Bill Engvall is JUST A GUY. He's been one his whole life. He can't help it. He was born that way. And that makes him an expert on the subject. For the record, here's the official definition...

"From television actress, Broadway star, and New York Times bestselling author Kristin Chenoweth comes I'm No Philosopher, But I Got Thoughts, an inspiring high-design, colorful book featuring philosophical-ish musings on connection, creativity, loss, love, faith, and closure. Just like Kristin's grandmother inspired her to trust her heart and develop her own belief system, you'll be inspired to develop your own life philosophies, as you journey through...

The Devil's Dictionary (1906) is a work of satire by Ambrose Bierce. Although he is commonly remembered for his chilling short stories on the experiences of Civil War soldiers, Bierce was recognized in his day as a leading journalist and humorist who spent decades ruffling feathers and drawing laughter with his witty opinion columns, poems, and definitions. Toward the end of his career, he decided to compile these satirical definitions into a book,...

A renowned Syracuse University professor builds on her memoirs and literary anecdotes to outline her personal writing process while identifying the elements of a successful memoir.

Dunlop Fantasia has a passion for marketing, excellent ideas, hovercrafts and avoiding rehab. A dark, complicated family upbringing sets him on course for early divorce, a blunder with his father's mistress, making TV shows, the heartbreaking death of a manservant, pursuit of celebrity endorsements and winning respect for his growing advertising empire. Follow his satirical exploration of wealth, self-help advice, business success, gritty optimism...

Erma Bombeck's hilarious guide to using self-help books to prosper ormore likelyto perish As far as Erma can tell, her life is going well. Her children speak to her, her husband smiles at her, and she's capable of looking in a mirror without screaming. But her friends know better. No matter how happy Erma thinks she is, she's in need of help, and the only way to fulfillment is a ten-foot stack of self-improvement books. From Sensual Needlepoint to...

"Laughter: An Essay on the Meaning of the Comic" is French philosopher Henri Bergson's treatise on laughter and the timeless role of comedy in human society. Originally published in three parts in French in 1900 and translated into English in 1924, Bergson makes three essential observations about laughter and comedy. First, that comedy is a necessary human behavior and acts as a sort of caricature or parody of essential human activities and behaviors....