Rating: 
Summary: VERY funny but frightening, at the same time!
Review: If the test responses collected here are an example of who's going to be running the country in the near future, Lord, help us!
Rating: 
Summary: Oh PUH-LEEZE. If this is real, I'm Marilyn Monroe.
Review: Yeah, right -- these are REAL student comments. Uh huh. Oh, I just bet.Just a little TOO cutesy, a little TOO pat, and waay too adorable. AND...worst of all, not very funny. Thumbs down.
Rating:
Summary: Do Not Operate Machinery While reading This Book..
Review: HILARIOUS. Be warned you may laugh yourself sick!
Rating:
Summary: Read it and weep!
Review: I read this book, not in amusement, but in disbelief. If these are the products of our public education system, then the future is in very slippery hands. While it does recall another classic of historical mis-representations, Sellar and Yeatman's "1066 and All That", Henriksson's compilation is not a satire. This is taken directly from term papers and blue book exams of students of some of North America's finest universities! Acording to these young minds, the Sumerian culture began about 3,500 years before Christmas, the Ancient Greeks founded the Olympics in 1896, Jihad is a Swahili god, Charles V spent most of his reign aging, Bakunin was an anachronist, and during World War 2, Germany invaded Poland, France invaded Belgium, and Russia invaded everybody. In later years, Martin Luther gave his famous "If I Had A Hammer" speech, and President Kennedy told his story of "Itch Ben the Berliner". Short attention spans, too much coffee, too much TV, too little sleep, something in the water, or perhaps the "better living through chemistry" their parents' practiced when they themselves were younger; there must be SOME reason why these students are such dim lights in the dark halls of ignorance! To quote Col. Walter E. Kurtz in "Apocalypse Now": "...the horror...the horror..."
Rating:
Summary: Laugh Out Loud and Choke Yourself Doing So
Review: Absolutely hysterical. How could so-called "educated" students make these ludicrous errors? Sadly, as a college student myself, I have seen such errors made by my peers. And worse. (teacher) "What do we mean when we refer to the 'Western world?'" (student) "Texas?"
Even those who do not have a very firm grip on history will find this book a riot. If you do have extensive knowledge on world history, try not to wet yourself, and enjoy.
Rating: 
Summary: Careful where you read this
Review: Because when you start laughing and weeping at the same time, people will think you're crazy and you might find yourself in a straitjacket! And you won't be able to explain because you'll be at a loss for word, mumbling incoherently, gasping for breath and holding on to your sides for fear you'll crack up! But READ IT for sure! And until you have taken the short quiz at the end, hold your judgment of these poor misguided souls. Depending on YOUR OWN SCORE, you may end up commiserating with them instead of berating them. Evic846
Rating:
Summary: A Gud Examannation of Edukation Tuday
Review: Two things struck me as I read this book: one, students in 'higher education' are universal, especially in their misreading/misunderstanding of history (which I teach); and two, students' mistakes can be hilarious. This book is a must for any teacher on any level who teaches not only history, but any subject that involves the buzzwords 'critical thinking' (and the lack thereof). Although funny, these entries also bring up some troubling questions about our future leaders: yes, they know Hitler is a "bad man", but do they know exactly WHY? Do they understand the difference between 'Russia' and the 'Soviet Union'? Do they even know where that part of the world is? Every term, I receive answers to questions on exams very much like Henriksson has collected, and a brief sample includes items such as "Slaves were wiped severely" rather than "whipped"; Pearl Harbor happened "December 7, 1942 -- a day that will live in infamy"; and "Teddy Roosevelt came up with the New Deal". I laugh, then I cry...
Rating:
Summary: Too stupid to be funny.
Review: In order to enjoy this book you have to have several beers first. If that's not possible, then you might enjoy it if you appreciate really stupid humor. Three Stooges fans - This book's for you. If you have an IQ above 80 or so, you will probably find this book to be inane. I did.
Rating:
Summary: Laughed 'til I cried!
Review: I highly recommend this book to anyone with a sense of humor and some small knowledge of history. It is a hilarious collection of actual excerpts from college students' papers. I keep this book on my desk and whenever I need a lift, I open it to any page and am soon laughing out loud.
Rating:
Summary: History grundled onward
Review: I wasn't expecting too much from this book -- 'kids say the funniest things' humor doesn't do much for me. But I was pleasantly surprised to find a number of truly funny excerpts and turns-of-phrase here and there ('Socrates was accused of sophmorism and sentenced to die of hemroyds.'). One ('Arranged marriages required women to accept a kind of *mate accompli.*) even made me wonder if it really was a mistake, or in fact a truly clever pun. There's a lot in here to laugh at... ... until you start crying at the realization of who produced these errors. In his 'Postscript: The Meaning of All This,' Henriksson seems reluctant to call his book an indictment of the school system. He notes, fairly, that the stress of test taking and an over reliance on spell-check programs have much to do with it. He also points out that the classic of this genre, Sellar and Yeatman's '1066 and All That' (1930), satirized some of England's very best preparatory schools. At the same time, though, we need to remember that, despite all evidence, the examples in this book didn't come from sixth graders in remedial history classes, but from 'some of the most selective and academically renowned institutions in the United States and Canada.' That a student who would write 'United States Grant was a Civil War heroe who later proved corrupulent as President. He died after drinking up to twenty cigars a day' was admitted to one of those allegedly selective institutions in the first place, is cause for alarm. Apart from that larger issue, however, the book is pretty funny.
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