"To find out what a story's really about,' the Librarian said,

'you don't ask the writer. You ask the reader."


- SNOW & ROSE by Emily Winfield Martin


Thursday, July 3, 2014

Blog Tour (Guest Post/Review): UNCLE JOHN'S BATHROOM READER FOR KIDS ONLY! (Collectible Edition) by Gordon Javna (A/MG)




by Bathroom Readers' Institute (Gordon Javna)
Release date: April 8th, 2014
Published by: Portable Press
Genre: For all ages
Format: Hardback, eBook
Format read: Hardback from the publisher/tour host for an honest review.


SUMMARY 

Here is an exciting chance to own the very first Uncle John's Bathroom Reader For Kids Only! in a hardcover edition with all new illustrations! 

When our younger readers demanded a Bathroom Reader of their own, Uncle John put together this brain-boggling easy-to-read collection of facts, fads, quotes, history, science, origins, pop culture, mythology, humor, and more! Plus it's full of wacky and fun illustrations and Uncle John's famous "running feet" — those fun and fascinating facts on the bottom of every page. 

Curious young readers will learn about the real Dr. Seuss, baseball superstitions, the birth of The Simpsons, how carnival games are rigged, the history of dining on scorpions and tarantulas, shocking truths about thunder and lightning, and disgusting bodily functions like ear wax production and digestion (and why they're important), and much, much more!




GUEST POST by Gordon Javna

How do you narrow down what facts are important enough to go into a “Bathroom Reader?”


We're very discerning. We don't mind sharing a fact that will make {you} groan, or go, “Eww!” but we don't want to include any facts that might make you barf on the book. 
Other criteria: It should make you say, “You've GOT to be kidding me!” 
We like to include information that you haven't heard before — 
odd history, strange science, unusual origins. 
The only exception: jokes, because who doesn't want to know how to tell when an elephant’s been in the fridge? (By the footprints in the butter.) 
Or what you call a fly with no wings. (A walk.)


MY REVIEW

This book was so much fun to share with my kids! It is truly more than just a 'bathroom reader' - filled with so many wonderful facts that most people would never even think of, let alone wonder. This book kept us entertained for a very long time, and in just one sitting. It is a great book to just pick up and read randomly - just skip around and pick a page. Even more fun if you read out loud with your family and friends - quite a lot of these 'random facts' are funny and will set you all into a fit of giggles. But, and I assure you, you will also learn a lot. Some may be trivial, but a quite a lot are historical facts that is quite useful information. Definitely a fun way to learn new things.

There SO many fun and odd facts! A few of our favorite are:

- Creepy Cuisine: "People have been eating strange food since... well, since people first felt hungry. How hungry would you have to be to try some of these delicacies?" page 15.
(Ewww... who would have thought to make a meal out of these... things!)

- More Gross Stuff: "Essential (but nasty) information about your body." page 119.
(And he wasn't kidding, SO gross!)

- Travel Guide to Imaginary Lands: "Let Uncle John be your guide to some fantastic places that can only be found in books. Forget the movies - there's nothing like a great novel." page 260.
(LOVE that he tells us how to get to Narnia, Never-Never Land and a few other magical places!)

And at the bottom of every single page, throughout the entire book, there are additional miscellaneous facts! Like...

"Kid power: On average, a child laughs 400 times a day; an adult laughs about 15." page 131

"In one day, your blood will travel nearly 12,000 miles." page 136

"When dogs and humans sleep together, they dream at the same times." page 204

Over 280 pages filled with amazing knowledge - I know that my kids and I will continue to pick this book and read odd bits and will definitely share the knowledge with each other and others too! Definitely a fun book to gift, to all readers and nonreaders! To kids and adult too!
We look forward to picking up more of Uncle John's books soon!


(I received a hardback from the publisher/tour host for an honest review. All thoughts are my own.)



TOUR SCHEDULE

Monday, June 30th - Candace's Book Blog
Tuesday, July 1st - Cindy's Love of Books
Wednesday, July 2nd - Proud Book Nerd
Thursday, July 3rd - Bumbles and Fairy-Tales
Friday July 4th - Cassandra M's Place

 Monday, July 7th - Sweet Southern Home
Tuesday, July 8th - Confessions of a Book Addict
Wednesday, July 9th - Little Red Reads
Thursday, July 10th - Me, My Shelf and I
Friday July 11th - Bewitched Bookworms

Monday, July 14th - Kindle and Me
Tuesday, July 15th - Snowdrop Dreams of Books
Wednesday, July 16th - Hott Books
Thursday, July 17th - alwaysjoart
Friday July 18th - Captivated Reading


ABOUT THE AUTHOR - Gordon Javna

The life of Gordon “Uncle John” Javna, editor-in-chief and publisher of the Uncle John’s Bathroom Reader series, reads like one of his books. There’s a lot of fun, intriguing—often odd—information lurking around every corner. He went to art school, and then went on to become a musician, real-estate developer, writer, restaurateur, president of a pre-school, brew pub owner, and editor—not all at once, mind you, but he has been all of these things.
Eventually, though, he realized that because of his love of fascinating facts (and being a bathroom reader himself), he was naturally suited, perhaps even destined, to bring the joy of trivia to the world in a fun, informative way. He assumed the pseudonym Uncle John for the Bathroom Reader series and since then, Uncle John’s Bathroom Reader has become the longest-running, most popular series of its kind in the publishing industry.  To date, there are more than 15 million Uncle John’s Bathroom Readers in print and his fanatical flock of followers span from Australia to the United Kingdom and beyond.
Guided by their obsession with unusual trivia, amazing origins, and forgotten history, Gordon “Uncle John” Javna and his staff at the Bathroom Readers’ Institute have made Uncle John’s Bathroom Readers a must-have for book and gift stores worldwide for over two decades.  Gordon continues to expand his porcelain province from his throne room in Ashland, Oregon.


Kismet Book Touring

1 comment:

  1. So glad you enjoyed this one Margie!!! I can't wait to dive into all this trivia myself, and I love the misc. facts at the bottom of each page. Thanks so much for being a part of the tour:)

    ReplyDelete

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