Product Description
This digital document is an article from Mind, Mood & Memory, published by Thomson Gale on May 1, 2007. The length of the article is 731 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Ask the doctor.(Editorial)
Author: Maurizio Fava
Publication: Mind, Mood & Memory (Magazine/Journal)
Date: May 1, 2007
Publisher: Thomson Gale
Volume: 3Issue: 5Page: 8(1)

Article Type: Editorial

Distributed by Thomson Gale ... Read more

Product Description
This digital document is an article from Nursing Homes, published by Thomson Gale on August 1, 2006. The length of the article is 1370 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Hypochondriacs beware!(funny YOU SHOULD ASK)(Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996)
Author: Gary Tetz
Publication: Nursing Homes (Magazine/Journal)
Date: August 1, 2006
Publisher: Thomson Gale
Volume: 55Issue: 8Page: 69(2)

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Product Description
This digital document is an article from Dermatology Nursing, published by Jannetti Publications, Inc. on December 1, 1996. The length of the article is 3996 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

From the author: Monosymptomatic hypochondriacal delusional syndrome (MHD) is the term applied to a disease characterized by a single prominent belief that there is a disease process present despite evidence to the contrary. Three forms of the syndrome and their diagnoses and treatment will be discussed.

Citation Details
Title: Three monosymptomatic hypochondriacal syndromes in dermatology.
Author: Gail E. Sands
Publication: Dermatology Nursing (Refereed)
Date: December 1, 1996
Publisher: Jannetti Publications, Inc.
Volume: v8Issue: n6Page: p421(6)

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Product Description
We live in worrisome times. Perhaps chief among these worries is a concern about health. Newly discovered diseases, ranging from Legionnaires' disease and Lyme disease all the way to AIDS, are reported regularly in the press. At the same time, expensive new technological devices, such as the CAT scan or the PET scan, are trumpeted urgently as ways of diagnosing and warding off otherwise hidden but possibly fatal conditions. New medical treatments, and alternative medical treatments, are advertised on television. It is no wonder that people focus on their health. And in the face of a prolonged or obscure illness, everyone becomes a health worrier. Nevertheless, some people worry all the time. Experiencing any kind of physical symptom, they imagine the worst possible illness. And they tend to express emotional distress by developing physical symptoms. These men and women are suffering from health anxiety.Their fears are unrealistic, but not entirely irrational. They are an outgrowth of certain common childhood experiences. Taken together, they reflect a set of mistaken ideas:about the nature of physical illness. about diet and sleep and bodily functions. about doctors and the way they think. about drugs and their side-effects. about physical examinations and laboratory tests. and about dying and death itself.Health anxiety is a distressing and debilitating condition and untreated continues on for years, worsening again every time the affected person becomes slightly ill.An innovative program of treatment begun in 1996 by the Anxiety and Phobia Center of White Plains Hospital has been tested overtime and found to relieve this otherwise chronic condition. This book and its companion, Worried Sick? The Workbook, explain the principles of the cognitive-behavioral treatment of health anxiety and give detailed direction on how to implement such a program. In addition, specific information is given correcting the various misconceptions of the health worrier. Experience has shown that health worriers willing to follow the explicit instructions in these books will experience considerable and long-lasting relief of their health anxiety. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Worried Sick? The Exaggerated Fear of Physical Illness
Briefly, this book speaks eloquently to the fears of people who worry too much about being sick; especially those who tend to be hypervigilant about any perceived changes of bodily sensations and functions, or who read something in lay media (magazines, newpapers, books or internet sites)and become certain they are about to die of a horrible illness.This book explains in easy to understand language how folks accidentally scare themselves even more because they don't understand how physicians approach diagnosis and treatment of diseases. It assists a person to know when to seek a physician's advice and how to begin thinking in "probability" terms instead of "possibility" terms. It also demonstrates how to undo the thinking processes that keep worriers trapped in their fears.It and the companion volume, "The Worried Sick Workbook" (which offers the sufferer homework sheets to use on a daily basis) make it possible for readers to move themselves from the prison of fear of illness to educated and reasonable health self care. I heartily recommend these excellent publications. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (1)

The obvious epitaph: "I told you I was sick"
An immensely readable account of nine individuals whose depression and/or anxiety (and in one case, damn-near psychosis) manifested itself in hypochondria. You can't help feeling some sympathy for these sufferers -- in addition to the near-constant fear of, and preoccupation with, disease, they all experience a range of physical and emotional symptoms, ranging from the merely irritating to the downright debilitating.

One fascinating point the author makes is that, by and large, hypochondria is based on the false belief that a healthy body is a neutral, static entity, when in fact bodies - even the healthiest ones - are in a constant state of flux and self-correction. The curse of hypochondriacs is to mistake every infinitesimal fluctuation as a sign of illness.

A second interesting point is the way in which these sufferers relied on their hypochondria (or, in their view, their actual infirmities) to control their lives to some extent. For several of these individuals, illness was the only way to achieve and maintain the physical and/or emotional distance from others they needed in order to function.

Overall, a fascinating look at a disorder that, more than most, dearly tries the patience of the patient's family and friends. Many emotional disorders are romanticized from time to time; hypochondria, we must admit, is usually only the butt of jokes.
... Read more

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Customer Reviews (23)

The giver thought it was great
...the recipient didn't think so.....It REALLY hit home.Nice company to deal with.

Fun series of Books
DeClaudio has written several "Guide Books" that are excellent to leave laying around for guests to pick up, turn to any page and get a smile.He has basically taken a subject and then bull dog through the topics that are most apt to make the reader squirm (and laugh out loud).Lots of fun.I'm using the same review of all books in the series.No matter which ones you choose you'll enjoy equally.....bg

Wrong Shippment
I was sent the wrong item! Instead, I was sent something that dealt with STD's....

Hypochondriac's Beware; We have your diagnosis!
This book was a delight. I work in a Radiology department of a community hospital. All of us got a hoot out of this book. We even have some of these patients. I have bought several copies as my copy keeps disappearing!

HYPOCHONDRIAC'S POCKET GUIDE
I BOUGHT THIS AS A GAG GIFT, AND IT WAS PERFECT! HAS GREAT, FAR OUT DISEASES THAT ARE REAL, BUT RARE.A PERFECT GIFT FOR THE HYPOCHONDRIAC IN YOUR LIFE! :-) ... Read more

Product Description

When every hiccup sounds like the call of doom, each stomach pang hints at incipient cancer, and a headache means it's time to firm up your last will and testament, The Hypochondriac's Guide to Life. And Death. provides just the relief you need. Gene Weingarten has spent his whole life immersed in the eclectic details of bizarre symptoms, self-diagnosing every minor ache as a potentially deadly disease. Weingarten examines:

• The mind of a hypochondriac
• How your doctor can kill you
• Ulcers and other visceral fears
• The snaps, crackles, and pops of your body that spell disaster
• Things that can take an eye out
• Interpreting DocSpeak

Blending the neurotic anxieties of Woody Allen, the folksiness of Garrison Keillor, and the absurdist vision of Dave Barry, Gene Weingarten conjures up a hilarious prescription for the hypochondriac that lurks inside all of us. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (21)

The Hypochondriac's Guide to Life. And Death.
One of the funniest books I've read, even for a bit of a hypochondriac like myself. FULL of the most fear-inducing information that one shouldn't take on board- like the chapter on ordinary body quirks that could meant the most catastrophic of illnesses. Particularly amusing (for me) was the chapter where the author interviews a Proctologist. Hilarious, with insane little footnotes, and illustrations. Be prepared for a rather sobering finale. Great book.

Truly a great read
Despite the macabre subject matter, this is a hilarious book.I laughed out loud many, many times.And while it may, indeed, feed a true hypochondriac's neurosis, it can also show just how obnoxiously far you can take it.I will admit that even I (not so much a hypochondriac) took a few of the `tests' presented in the book.I evidently have about a half-dozen serious medical conditions...

If you like Dave Barry, you'll like this book.

Great entertainment.
Warning... this is not for the paranoid, for those that read every bad bio-terrorisim book out there then wonder if they've contracted Ebola, or for those who call emergency when they've stubbed their toe thinking it's fleah eating cancer....
Great book full of witty looks at all the medical disasters that can kill ya...
It is well written, funny, well organised and lends itself to reading to friends and relatives who enjoy combining a lack of medical background with pure paranoia. Keep a copy around for flu season...

hit and miss
Several laugh out loud moments. Weingarten's newspaper column is funnier than this book. I love the column. The book isn't bad.

If you truly want to sample Weingarten at his best read his column.

Will cure you
Gene Weingarten used to be Dave Barry's editor at The Miami Herald.Enough said. ... Read more

Product Description
Grounded in current theory and treatment research, this highly practical book presents a comprehensive framework for assessing and treating health anxiety, including full-blown and milder (subclinical) forms of hypochondriasis. The current state of knowledge about these prevalent and costly problems is reviewed, and assessment methods and empirically supported treatments described. Clear, step-by-step recommendations are provided for engaging patients or clients, implementing carefully planned cognitive and behavioral interventions, and troubleshooting potential pitfalls. Important advances in pharmacotherapy for persons with health anxiety disorders are also discussed. Enhancing the utility of this clinician- and student-friendly resource are numerous case examples and sample dialogues, quick-reference tables and boxed material, and over 20 reproducible handouts and assessment forms.
... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Doctors Should Read This
While this book is geared more toward doctors and researchers on health anxiety, I found it to be IMMENSELY helpful to me as well. I'm not a doctor and I'm not a health professional. I'm just someone who has had "health anxiety" (a term that doctors apparently aren't aware of yet) and it helped me to overcome many issues regarding this mental state.

It helped me to understand how doctors think, why they do and say the things they do, and what you can do to help yourself.
Basically, if you have health anxiety, GET THIS BOOK because it will help you to realize that you're NOT crazy and there are very real reasons why you feel the way you do. More importantly, it will help you to understand that most doctors unfortunately don't have the time to care as much as they could and should. They have to make money too, you know!

There is help out there for the suffering you feel. I sought help for many years through "professionals," but honestly this book helped me more than they did.

A seminal contribution with emphasis on the practical
The collaborative work of clinical psychologist Steven Taylor (Department of Psychiatry, University of British Columbia, Canada) andprofessor of psychiatry Gordon Asmundson (Research Director, Faculty of Kinesiology and Health Studies, University of Regina, Canada), Treating Health Anxiety: A Cognitive-Behavioral Approach is a solid, in-depth resource focusing especially on helping those people for whom fears of contracting a serious illness cause excessive, serious, and chronic problems with day-to-day life. Reviewing current knowledge about health anxiety disorders, stressing the need for continuing collaboration between Cognitive-Behavioral practitioners and primary care physicians, outlining recent advances in the treatment of health anxieties, and much more, Treating Health Anxiety is a seminal contribution with emphasis on the practical and a welcome contribution to mental health reference shelves.
... Read more

Product Description
Got the sniffles? Probably flesh-eating fungus in your respiratory system. You need this book—pronto.Sure, everyone gets sick sometimes, but do you realize that plenty of those folks also die slow, unpleasant deaths from diseases that stumped even the experts at top-notch (still privately run) hospitals? That’s right: There are plenty of illnesses that even physicians have never heard about. Nodding Disease, Alice in Wonderland Syndrome, and Cutaneous Horn (yes, you grow a horn) are all featured here in pithy, energetic entries. You won’t have to worry about socialized medicine if you have this book—even if your doc could see you within a month, you might die due to his ignorance. Lucky for you and your loved ones, Ian Landau (who has no medical training but is a hell of a researcher) includes:

• Descriptions of each disease
• Background and history
• How to diagnose yourself and others
• Suggested treatments
• Prevention methods

Customer Reviews (2)

A fun read, or a resource for the easily panicked
There are oh so many things out to end your life in painful and utterly gruesome ways. "Hypochondriac's Handbook: For the Treatment of Syndromes, Diseases, and Ailments that Probably Should Have Killed You by Now" is a guide to the unusual ailments that exist and how they are all out to get you and ruin and/or end your life. With a humorous slant, Ian Landau brings readers a look into diseases that can be as minorly inconvenient as making you talk a different accent, to turning your entire body to a bone statue. "Hypochondriac's Handbook" is a fun read, or a resource for the easily panicked.

How Original!
"Gosharooti, what a great idea for a book!" -- Gene Weingarten, author of "The Hypochondriac's Guide to Life.And Death." (1998), which had a pill-bottle cover, orange on black, and contained a symptom-by-symptom analysis of dreadful, unusual diseases you just might have.The subtitle was "Hiccups Can Mean Cancer." Here's the cover -- check it out![...]
... Read more

Product Description
Does your blood pressure surge if the car in front of you turns without signaling? Do your neck veins pulsate when a cashier takes too long to ring you up? Does relaxing seem like it'll have to wait until you're dead? Then your name could very well be Brian Frazer.

On paper, Frazer is the world's healthiest guy. He eats right, exercises regularly, gets plenty of sleep, has never smoked and has missed only one day of flossing in the last five years. But inside he's a swirling vortex of angst, capable of contracting a new malady every month. Once Frazer realized that all his ills were tied to stress, he went on a quixotic quest for calm, venturing into everything from Tai Chi, serotonin blockers and Kabbalah to an unfortunate incident involving pineapple-chicken curry at a Craniosacral therapy session. Never has the road to wellville taken so many unforeseen turns.

Achingly funny, uncomfortably true and always entertaining, Hyperchondriac is just the medicine for anyone who wants to take it down a notch. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (67)

Laugh, cry, rage at the sky
The comedy is in the lengths Brian will go to shed his anger...panty shields, smashing his weekly coconut in the driveway and undergoing male mouth massage. And then somehow he gets you to shed some real tears at the end (not the kind that you rub your eye for twenty minutes to create) when he becomes a vessel (I think that's Kabbalah) and absorbs a new piece of information about his mother, her demonic multiple sclerosis and himself. NakedRunning with Scissors: A Memoir

Hands Down, Funniest Book I've Ever Read
I guess I'm just adding to the overoad of good reviews, but what they say is true, this book is sooo funny!!! I am forever searching for laugh-out-loud books and so few are out there. Some Onion stuff, but those are short reads. Colbert was good too, but other than that, it's tough to find anything comparable. I've been disappoited by quite a few books with great reviews and little to offer, but this book really did make me crack up. I had to laugh into a pillow when my boyfriend was sleeping because I just could not hold it in. Great buy.

One of the best books I've read all year!
I don't generally read a lot of memoirs, but I couldn't put this book down!Each page leaves you wanting more of the story, and even though sometimes you think Brian is ridiculous, you really end up rooting for him!This book will help pretty much anyone come to know themselves better, whether they're the ones who are being annoyed or the ones who are annoying others.. It makes you reflect on how others may perceive you, and how you could be too judgmental as well.I'd recommend this book to anyone!

great read!!
Great book, super entertaining and funny, yet overall, very thoughtful. A must read for anyone who knows a "hyper-chondriac", let alone is one themselves.

This author is one brave man!
Between his honest and touching recollection of what life was like for him growing up and the vast range of therapies he experimented with in search for some solid self-help, he is not afraid to reveal his humanness and make fun of himself.I love books that involve a serious subject and yet are infused with so much humor that they reassure you that it is okay to be vulnerable, kind of like Dry by Augusten Burroughs.I have tried many alternative therapies myself but Brian Frazer's willingness to try unorthodox approaches was impressive and the outcomes were hysterical. This book was not only entertaining, but actually could be useful for people suffering from anxiety who seek alternatives to medication. ... Read more

Product Description
Feeling good? Are you sure? This hilarious guide -- a sequel to the best-selling Paranoid's Pocket Guide -- is guaranteed to make you wonder. With hundreds of symptoms to watch for and in-depth information on the latest germ mutations, this compendium offers compelling proof that there is always something to worry about, even if you seem to be in perfect shape. A must-have for today's health-conscious individual, it also reveals worrisome facts about doctors and insurance companies. It's packed with black-and-white photos documenting everyday items that can menace your health -- often seemingly "harmless" items such as a pencil or a water fountain. Fortunately, this book will make you laugh, which releases endorphins and promotes health -- for the moment. For soundness of body and mind, read the Hypochondriac's Handbook. Better safe than sorry! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Creates Fear, do not give to a real worrywart
If this is a gag gift, go for it, but if this is meant to go to a full blown hypochondriac, forget about it.It will worry them too much, instead of giving them fear stories, you should give them positive stories.The whole web and books are filled with ways to scare a person.Send them to [...] a site which promotes positive stories.

Cheers.

Random Facts
I am a big fan of random trivia, and this book is perfect for those who love random trivia, with a more medical perspective. While it might make you think twice about how often you wash your hands, its written in a simple but fun fact filled way, so you enjoy it thoroughly

Fun Factoids
This book is a fun little trivia book that you can breeze through in a couple of hours.It lists various unlikely things in the environment that can potentially cause illness.I would like to see something that fleshes the entries out a bit more though.A bit more about these odd dangers and what to do about them would be more interesting.

Silly. I was looking for a real solution.
We don't need to know how many dust mites are in our food or how many infectious bacteria entering the air every time someone sneezes. What I had hoped to get in this book is a story of how to help these people. My husband has a daughter who is a severe hypochondriac, and we worry about her. She is ill every week, and has been on more medication at age 17 that I am surprised she is alive. Hypochondria is a serious illness, and I hope I can find some book somewhere that can help me with this.

A funny gift or read for your favorite hypochondriac
I bought this as a gift for a good friend who always thinks she has some illness and worries about getting every illness.The book is hilarious and I found myself staying up to read it before I gave it to her.It hasassorted funny facts that will gross you out about bacteria on toilets,showers, etc. and allkinds of things you can worry about.My friend lovedit and i though it was so funny I bought another copy for myself.I reallyrecommend it, it is filled with facts, there are 2-3 on every page. ... Read more

Product Description
As a hypochondriac, you've had to satisfy your need for self-diagnosis with medical reference materials written for the masses until now. Dedicated entirely to your unique perspective on health, this revolutionary book outlines the world's worst maladies, conveniently organized according to your symptoms (real or imagined). You're going to die of something--why not choose an ailment that's rare and hard to pronounce? ... Read more

Customer Reviews (24)

it came on time
The book came on time and was approximately the condition that was stated on the selling listing.

Hilarious!
Got this as a gift for a friend of mine who is in nursing school.We were, ahem, dying laughing at the illnesses, and learned that we both must have African Sleeping Sickness.I love the fatality/contagiousness ratings for each disease and illness, too.

Fun for hypochondriacs!
If you're the kind of guy that buys this for hypochondriac in-laws, then buy this!

Great gift for the worried mother.
Give descriptions of common symptoms and what serious disease it could be a sign of. Great gift for the paranoid mother lol.

we all know someone who could use this
I bought this as a birthday gift for one of my friends, who is also a hypochondriac.The book provided us with hours of entertainment. ... Read more

Product Description
Univ. of Newcastle, Australia. Resource for psychiatrists, primary care physicians, clinical psychologists and students. Presents a balanced, indepth overview of hypochondriasis as a mental disorder with diverse manifestations. Examines diagnostic and nosologic issues, current views of etiology, and treatment approaches and guidelines. DNLM: Hypochondriasis. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (1)

Time for another printing!
It's a crying shame this book's out of print as it's the best therapy I know for hypochondria. It should be on every hypochondriac's shelf right between the Merck Manual and Gray's Anatomy. Every time I have an attack I flip it open to laugh, calm myself and occasionally remind myself of other important symptoms or illnesses I've been neglecting.

I only wish the insect-borne illness section were longer, as I'm currently suffering from an undiagnosed case of eastern equine encephalitis and could use some tips. Perhaps a new expanded edition is in order. After all it's been nearly a quarter of a century and we now have AIDS, West Nile, Ebola, Hanta and Flesh-Eating Disease to contend with. The whole landscape of hypochondria has changed if you think about it. ... Read more

Product Description
Health Anxiety gathers together original chapters by some of the world's experts on the clinical features and current theoretical understanding of health anxiety (with particular focus on hypochondriasis), assessment issues and approaches to treatment, and clinical and research features of conditions related to hyponchondriasis or that present with hypochondriacal features. A final section summarizes the main points of the previous sections and presents an agenda for future research. Key features of this important clinical text include:

• Accessible accounts of current theories about the nature of health anxiety

• Clinically based, empirically validated treatment approaches that reflect best practice

• Comprehensive and critical coverage of important issues and a vast research literature

• Up-to-date discussion of new developments and directions for future research

"Asmundson, Taylor and Cox have assembled a group of world class scientists and practitioners for this book. The chapters provide a wealth of information on the causes, assessment and treatment of health anxiety related disorders. I believe that their book is the most significant contribution to date to our understanding of health anxiety related disorders. Everyone working in the health field will find something of worth in this book." Ron Norton ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Health anxiety
This is to our knowledge the first comprehensive book on health anxiety, a subject rarely described before the 1980s. Gordon JG Asmundson, a psychologist and director of clinical research and development at the Regina Health District, Saskatchewan, Steven Taylor, a clinical psychologist and professor at the University of British Columbia Department of Psychiatry and Brian J Cox, a clinical psychologist and associate professor at the Department of Psychiatry, University of Manitoba, have together with 37 colleagues from Canada, United Kingdom and the United States compiled this textbook on hypochondriasis and related conditions.
The book is divided into four parts: Clinical features and theoretical perspectives, assessment and treatment, related conditions, conclusions and future directions with a total of 15 chapters.
Hypochondria as a term dates back more than 2000 years with a definition by Forbes Winslow in 1863 (Obscure diseases of the brain and mind) and today considered as "health related fears and beliefs, based on interpretations, or, perhaps more often, misinterpretations, of bodily signs and symptoms as being indicative of a serious illlness". The disorder occur in about 5% of the general population without gender preference and can begin at any age, but most common onset in early adulthood. Health anxiety can be quite devastating with intense fear and functional disability for the patient, they environment or relatives.
In recent years research has been done, but there is a need for further research in this disorder, effects of treatment and long term outcomes. This book will give you the current status in the field from an international perspective and will be helpful for clinical psychologists, psychiatrists, nurses, family physicians and therapists in mental health and general medicine.... ... Read more

Product Description
Johnny Jarvis is completely obsessed with germs, so obsessed that his friends call him Johnny Germ Head. Filled with laugh-out-loud scenes at school and summer camp, this offbeat comedy is perfect for even the most reluctant readers. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Bizarre, but engaging tale
Not your average children's book, this strange story of a hypochondriac who saves the day, is well-written and engaging.For anyone who has felt a little different from their peers, this story will strike home.The amusement park scenes are particularly humorous.

Excellent, antic book about hypochondriac boy
Johnny Germ Head is a rollicking, well-illustrated book.The author hasdone a fine job capturing the phobias and obsessions of children.Our herois forced to confront his fears when called upon by dangerouscircumstances.I look forward to more from this author. ... Read more

Product Description
The eleven essays collected in "The English Malady: Enabling and Disabling Fictions" adopt perspectives from a variety of disciplines - history, sociology, music, theater, and literary studies - in order to examine manifestations of and writing about hysteria in Europe during the long eighteenth century. The collection demonstrates not only that hysteria was an important cultural metaphor for the Enlightenment - a fact sometimes obscured by scholarly emphasis on the study of hysteria as a nineteenth and early twentieth-century phenomenon - but also that the period's writers sometimes considered hysteria a blessing as well as a curse. Implicit in the various arguments of this collection is the suggestion that hysteria might be considered an expression of early modern ambivalence about the emergence of modernity. ... Read more

Product Description
This important volume brings together a wide range of research, presenting new information on the nature of functional somatic symptoms and hypochondriasis. Kellner surveys historical and current views on these topics, explores their prevalence and associations, and explains similar symptoms and variants. Also included are a number of illustrative case histories that shed light on these important public health problems. ... Read more

Product Description

Charlie Asher is a pretty normal guy. A little hapless, somewhat neurotic, sort of a hypochondriac. He's what's known as a Beta Male: the kind of fellow who makes his way through life by being careful and constant -- you know, the one who's always there to pick up the pieces when the girl gets dumped by the bigger/taller/stronger Alpha Male.

But Charlie's been lucky. He owns a building in the heart of San Francisco, and runs a secondhand store with the help of a couple of loyal, if marginally insane, employees. He's married to a bright and pretty woman who actually loves him for his normalcy. And she, Rachel, is about to have their first child.

Yes, Charlie's doing okay for a Beta. That is, until the day his daughter, Sophie, is born. Just as Charlie -- exhausted from the birth -- turns to go home, he sees a strange man in mint-green golf wear at Rachel's hospital bedside, a man who claims that no one should be able to see him. But see him Charlie does, and from here on out, things get really weird. . . .

People start dropping dead around him, giant ravens perch on his building, and it seems that everywhere he goes, a dark presence whispers to him from under the streets. Strange names start appearing on his nightstand notepad, and before he knows it, those people end up dead, too. Yup, it seems that Charlie Asher has been recruited for a new job, an unpleasant but utterly necessary one: Death. It's a dirty job. But hey, somebody's gotta do it.

Christopher Moore, the man whose Lamb served up Jesus' "missing years" (with the funny parts left in), and whose Fluke found the deep humor in whale researchers' lives, now shines his comic light on the undiscovered country we all eventually explore -- death and dying -- and the results are hilarious, heartwarming, and a hell of a lot of fun.

Customer Reviews (276)

Crazy and funny.
As a long time resident of San Francisco this book really spoke to me.It helped me reconcile a lot strange things I've seen in the City over the years.I mean, I used to think I was imagining all the little demons, now it turns out they were part of the resurgence of the Underworld.Of course!..why didn't I think of that before?

Of course Moore does take off on a couple of pretty wild tangents that stretch his credibility. One huge plot hole occurs at a crucial juncture when his protagonist finds a parking place in the Haight: No San Franciscan is going to believe that he found a parking place in the Haight in the middle of the day, even if it was only 20 minute parking!

But if you're willing to suspend belief in some of the things you've learned about reality you'll love this book.Moore's hero is a nerdy paranoid who, while looking for love and single-parenting his daughter, tries to save the world from the forces of darkness.He's no John Wayne, more of a Charlie Chaplin/Buster Keaton type, and in a wild, crazy, and extremely funny way he gets the job done.

I have to recommend any book that made me scream out loud with laughter as often as this one did!

Loved it
I really loved this book. It was like a slightly naughty version of Good Omens (by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman.) I would definitely recommend it if you are a fan of that genre! However, be aware that there are swear words and bawdy scenes within, should you be purchasing it for someone who might not like that (like a six-year old or a very seriously nun.) If you, or the person you're buying this for, can take that then it might be a perfect fit.

Prepare to be tickled!
If you've walked around any bookstore in the US of A, you would've seen Moore's crazy book covers and titles just as I did, yet I never picked one up until recently when my good friend let me borrow A Dirty Job.. and now I can't thank her enough! For this reader's twisted sense of humor, A Dirty Job was not only a great pleasure to behold but is now one of my top 5 faves of all time (and I do some readin). If you enjoy the likes of Douglas Adams, David Sedaris, Gaiman's Good Omens... or even if you've never heard of these folks but enjoy the quirky irony that is Life, Death and all between and happen to Guffaw at the complications, do yourself a favor and pick up this book. It will tickle your humor bubble and give you warm fuzzies in embarrassing places. I am now collecting the rest of Moore's delights much to my pocketbook's dismay, but my excitement easily overruns my guilt. Thanks Mr Moore for adding to my reading enjoyment!

It's A Killer
The author must be channeling the soles of Timothy Leary, Kurt Vonnegut and Jim Henson. We're talking about, yet another, weird, funny adventure from the warped mind of Mr. Moore. He doesn't have a knack for creating individuals who seem uniquely their own. All of them are quick-witted and two steps away from acting like vaudeville characters. John Updike or Alice Munro he certainly is not. No matter. I read Mr. Moore for the laughs and wacky scenarios. He's a great choice when I need to decompress. You got to hand it to the author, he successfully pulls off a funny adventure pertaining to death. Unlike Mr. Moore's book, Lamb, religion is not the major item holding this book together. If anything, reincarnation is front and center. It would be quite the overly sensitive person to find the story offensive. If you've never read Mr. Moore, this is as good a place to start as any. Very fun.

Eh
This book was too silly.Not to mention that because everyone has the exact same sense of humor..a dry obvious wit I was always aware that I was reading a book written by one person rather than engaging in all the characters.I found the humor annoying and eye-rolling rather than smart and funny.Not to mention that the lead character is more neurotic that Woody Allen.b-o-r-i-n-g

I could see this being a cartoon. ... Read more