What does it mean to 'chew the fat'? Why do we put things in 'apple-pie order'? And what on earth is a 'hat trick'? Readers will learn all this and more in this fun and engaging new addition to the Complete Idiot's Guide® series, The Complete Idiot's Guide to Weird Word Origins. This humorous book provides entertaining insight on the often metaphorical, always taken-for-granted phrases and expressions used every day. In it, language expert Paul McFedries takes readers through the sometimes surprising, always amusing world of weird words and expressions, and the fascinating stories that surround them. Presented in a fun, easy-to-read style, this book takes readers on a journey through the bizarre and eccentric origins that make up our everyday speech.

Get ready to chew the fat. This engaging, humorous new book explains the not-so-common origins of such commonly used phrases as “apple-pie order,” “chew the fat,” and “hat trick.” Presented in a fun, easy-to-read style, it provides entertaining insight on metaphorical phrases, weird words, and strange expressions and takes readers on a journey through the bizarre and eccentric origins that make up our everyday speech. • Word books have gained in popularity not just with students and linguaphiles, but with a general population interested in the fascinating development of our language. • Contains back stories for 500 intriguing words and phrases. • Fun to flip through and also fun to read cover to cover.

Uncle John is back with the 36th annual Bathroom Reader, an all-new collection of entertaining articles that explore the weird and wonderful world we live in. In this 36th edition of Uncle John’s Bathroom Reader, longtime fans and new readers alike will be astounded by a treasure trove of wonderfully weird (and true!) stories that explore the realms of pop culture, history, sports, science, and everyday folks, including the always popular misadventures of dumb crooks. Uncle John and his team at the Bathroom Readers’ Institute have reached into all corners of the world to bring you this all-new collection of entertaining and informative articles that include short reads for a quick trip to the throne room as well as longer page-turners for when you take an extended visit. You’ll also find a plethora of amusing lists, odd factoids, quotes, and quizzes that will tickle every trivia enthusiast’s fancy.

The Complete Idiot's Guide to Drawing Superheroes and Villains, Illustratedis the series' fourth release in the step-by-step, how-to-draw arena, and the first to venture outside the realm of manga. But like the two manga books before it (The Complete Idiot's Guide to Manga- Fantasy Creatures andThe Complete Idiot's Guide to Manga- Shoujo), this guide follows the same 4-color format in which readers learn how to create a variety of characters with more than 400 illustrations that are broken up into six- to eight-step series. Colour is used in each sequential step to clarify how the new strokes add to the work in progress as the reader works toward each final full-colour character. In this book, readers learn to create original superheroes and villains that are patterned after the underlying traits associated with well-known characters, but without replicating what's already been done by the likes of Marvel and DC Comics. By drawing these unique figures and seeing how they are both similar to and different from the established superheroes and villains, readers gain inspiration for creating their own truly original characters.

A collection of strange-but-true crime tales featuring cops, lawyers, and some very unusual suspects . . . The fact-finding folks at Bathroom Readers’ Institute have rounded up the best cops-and-robber articles we’ve ever done, plus a rogues’ gallery of new offenders. You’ll read about dumb crooks and criminal masterminds, mafia henchmen and low-level goons, ancient warriors and Old West gunslingers, crazed cops and jovial judges, and even a few loony lawyers and crooked Wall Street types. Find out about . . . * New York City’s “Mad Bomber” * The Biddle Brothers and the Queen of the Jail * Law and Order: Special Pants Unit * Dopes who hide their dope in the strangest places * America’s first private eye * NASCAR’s bootlegging beginnings * The real pirates of the Caribbean * Why CSI makes the cops’ job even harder * Billy the Kid and other outlaws who died with their boots on * George Luger, Samuel Colt, and other fathers of guns * The greatest train robberies * Arrested for farting * And much more!

The twenty-fourth edition in the bestselling bathroom-reading series is jam-packed with over 500 pages of absorbing trivia material. The information miners at the Bathroom Readers’ Institute have unearthed a priceless collection of surprising, amazing, head-scratching, and hilarious articles. Divided by length for your sitting convenience, 24-Karat Gold is chock-full of little-known history, random origins, weird news, celebrity secrets, and urban legends. As always, you’ll find plenty of dumb criminals, clever wordplay, quirky quotations, and much, much more. Just open to any page—who knows what treasures await you? · Judges gone wild · The Barbie scandals · Canada’s underpants king · Helen Keller: vaudeville star · The double A-bomb survivors · The history of the umbrella · America's forbidden island · What the Hokey Pokey is really all about And much, much more