The Cover of Wicked Japanese

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Book Review: Wicked Japanese

Author: Howard Tomb

Reviewer: Mark Groenewold

Date: December, 2003

Howard Tomb is a man after my own sense of humor. This guy is really quite outrageous and he has written a very funny little book that may either get you in a lot of trouble in Japan trying to speak Japanese, or lots of true admirers as to what a witty guy you are. For humor purposes this book is really irreplaceable and has provided more than a couple loud guffaws. It also fits nicely into your pocket so you can read it in any bathroom you like should you be wandering about town.

This little phrase book has important sections like, "Play-by-Play Sumo", "Zen Cab: What is the Final Destination of Motionless Taxi?", "Golf as War", and "Dining Etiquette for Barbarians". Hilarious stuff. So if you ever want to know how to say, "Do you serve any completely dead domestic animals?" you will be well equipped. I know I do.

But this book is not only full of useless humor that cannot help you find a Western-style toilet when you really need one. There are some very practical expressions within as well such as, "You are as beautiful as spring's first cherry blossom", "Pardon me, but do you have a bigger towel", and "Please massage my thighs".

So if you need a distraction from wrangling with that nasty dictionary on kanji, and trying to remember what characters to use when you may need to write "rhinoplasty" in Japanese, this is the book for you.

Highly recommended for Japanese learners of all weight classes.

Mark Groenewold
December, 2003

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