The Darwin Awards - Wendy Northcutt

Have you heard the one about the Israeli bombers who forgot to set the clocks back, or the people who drowned trying to rescue a chicken from a well? Needless to say the chicken was the only survivor! Bizarre and freaky tales of early demises? It can only be the Darwin Awards! If you haven’t heard of them, they are given to individuals who spectacularly remove themselves from the human gene pool and by Lordy, they do it in some spectacular ways! Started at Stanford University, it grew to a e-mail newlsetter and grew to the hugely popular www.DarwinAwards.com. The newsletter, website and this book are the work of Wendy Northcutt for whom it is now ...  Read the complete review

I'd like to tell you a couple of little stories. They are all about some remarkable human beings and the amazing lengths some people will go to to get a mention in a book! The first story is about three friends in Cambodia. Now years of armed conflict have left this country littered with unexploded munitions and ordinance. Authorities in the country regularly issue warnings to citizens reminding them not to tamper with the devices. The three friends had spent an evening sharing drinks and exchanging insults at a local cafe in the southeastern province of Svay Rieng. Their bickering has continued for many hours, until finally one of the men ...  Read the complete review

I was given The Darwin Awards as a Christmas present last year by someone who thought that I would chuckle at strange and unforunate stories of death...and I did...all the way through the book. The Darwin Awards, written by Wendy Northcutt, was published in 2001 following the success of the website (www.darwinawards.com). The premise of the website and stories amalgamated within the book is described as: "A Chronicle of Enterprising Demises. Honoring those who improve the species...by accidentally removing themselves from it!" Throughout the 286 pages of The Darwin Awards, we are entertained by over 180 "bizarre true stories of how ...  Read the complete review

"Its safe, I know what Im doing..." The Darwin Awards ------------------ This is a unusual book, which covers some of the winners (and some honourable mentions) of the Darwin Award. A few years ago, I heard about the Darwin awards, but I never went to investigate, thinking it would be just another award like the Oscars, or golden globes. How wrong I was, they are unlike any award I have ever come across. The Darwin award celebrate folks who have killed themselves in really stupid ways, this may sound odd, it at first glance may even sound morbid and cruel, but hopefully as you read on you will realise that is not their ...  Read the complete review

As we are all members of that exclusive club known as 'the human race', we appear to be drawn to reading about death and the weird and wacky ways that people find of getting there. The book that I'm reviewing here is the second volume of Wendy Northcutt's DARWIN AWARDS - True stories of how humans have 'met their maker'. It is just as funny as the first and can be highly recommended. The awards commemorate and "salute the improvement of the human genome by honouring those who accidentally kill themselves in really stupid ways" There are ten chapters in this current book and each one targets and highlights ...  Read the complete review