The Funny Thing Is...

Written by:
Ellen Degeneres
Narrated by:
Ellen Degeneres

Unabridged Audiobook

Ratings
Book
238
Narrator
6
Release Date
October 2003
Duration
3 hours 11 minutes
Summary
An indispensable reference for anyone who knows how to read—or wants to fool people into thinking they do—The Funny Thing Is... is sure to make you laugh.

Ellen DeGeneres published her first book of comic essays, the #1 bestselling My Point...And I Do Have One, way back in 1996. Not one to rest on her laurels, the witty star of stage and screen has since dedicated her life to writing a hilarious new book. That book is this book.

After years of painstaking, round-the-clock research, surviving on a mere twenty minutes of sleep a night, and collaborating with lexicographers, plumbers, and mathematicians, DeGeneres has crafted a work that is both easy to use and very funny. Along with her trademark ramblings, The Funny Thing Is... contains hundreds of succinct insights into her psyche and offers innovative features including:

-More than 50,000 simple, short words arranged in sentences that form paragraphs.
-Thousands of observations on everyday life—from terrible fashion trends to how to handle seating arrangements for a Sunday brunch with Paula Abdul, Diane Sawyer, and Eminem.
-All twenty-six letters of the alphabet.
Reviews
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Becky B.

Ellen is amazing! She can take the most common thing and make it funny. The is audio keeps you smiling and laughing from beginning to end.

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Anonymous

Don't know why a lot of reviews of this book are bad - I loved it and lisened to it twice!!!

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Anonymous

I should have read the reviews before I ordered this. Ellen is funny but this audio lacked a lot in the humor department. Half way through the second CD I gave up on hoping that this would get better. Oh well.....

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Lindsay Bledsoe

Not good. I didn't even make it through the first cd before I sent this back. I love Ellen, but man this was boring. Her quirkyness just doesn't work for this type of media I don't think, it came off as childish and a bit ridiculous. I read the reviews and rented this anyway, just to see if the naysayers were right....and they were. To reiterate, don't bother with this one.

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Regan Waller

The funny thing is this book is not funny. I hated it and would strongly recommend against wasting hours of your life listening to it.

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Susan

Ok, sorry to say this...don't bother. Perhaps it was my mood but I was NOT entertained by this book at all. I kept fast-forwarding. I kept waiting for it to get interesting...never did.

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Katrina S.

Ellen is funny

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Amanda K K.

love listening to Ellen she's very funny and reminds me of me!! Big fan. Thank you Ellen.

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Hayley Park

Fun, easy listening with a few decent life tips thrown in for good measure.

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Anonymous

I wish I would have read the reviews before checking this one out. I forced myself to listen to the first CD in the hopes it would get better. It was simply a compilation of random 'not funny' thoughts and humorless segues by the author. Actually a segue is a smooth transition and hers were far from it--more like choppy and irrational. Don't punish yourself. In fact Simply Audiobooks could do us all a favor and remove it from their shelves.

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n8rlvr

I love Ellen & expected greater things from this book. I have seen her do much better work. There are some very funny parts, but mostly, she just rambles.

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Anonymous

Love Ellen!!! Loved this audiobook!! I laughed out loud through much of the book. Made my commuting fun for a change.

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Anonymous

I love Ellen, but this book on tape was actually very boring. I smiled, but I didn't laugh.

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Thomas Stempson

I found this audio book to be very boring. It was good for about 20 minutes then her silliness just became too much. I had hoped for more of an autobiographical writing, but I was very disappointed. The book made little sense and was not enjoyable.

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Anonymous

Cute...purely Ellen! If you like Ellen, you'll probably like this. It is laugh-out-loud funny in parts, but then in others she goes off on tangents. I liked it and was worth a listen. It makes it much better that she reads it herslef.

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Commuter1

I am a Degeneres fan, but this had nothing fresh or entertaining. I might have smiled twice, laughed once through the whole book. Even taking into consideration that sponteneity is lost in reading, Degeneres really fell flat reading her own material. Even she sounded bored with it all. It was slow and dragged out. If I were reading the book I would have skipped whole chapters or just tossed it. But I plodded on, hoping it would improve, and it just got more and more tedious. I was not entertained, I was bored and actually frustrated. This isn't to say other die-hard Degeneres fans won't enjoy it, but I really hoped for more from her.

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Tina

As much as I admire Ellen and enjoy her brand of comedy, this one was more rambling than most. It was everything I could do to listen all the way to the end.

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Nanette

I like most of Ellen's comedy but found this book just okay. It was funny is some parts but overall it wasn't what I had expected.

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Angela Jones

Very Funny!Typical Ellen, ranting and raving about nothing with a point. I enjoyed hearing her read the book with her own inflections. If you like Ellen You will love the book.

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Lisa

Loved it, I laughed until I cried!!!! Recommended it to a co-worker and she also found it histerical.

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Anonymous

I laughed out loud at many of her stories. Excellent distraction while driving to work in bumper-to-bumper traffic.

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Ricardo Fagundes

I thought the book was pretty good. There were some slow portions but I did get a kick out of the way she would describe her views so matter-of-factly. Some of the pieces did make me laugh out loud.

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Anonymous

Loved some chapters, could have skipped others. Funny thing is the best chapters were those that were about the fact it is an audiobook, something you would not have read in the book.

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Diana Nunn

I liked it, but I did not laugh out loud. Ellen is witty and insightful. I love her voice.

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Allison Scobie-Lloyd

Ellen is a big ol' dork with a great sense of comic timing. She is often corny- but her lighthearted approach to her subject matter is refreshing. I laughed out loud a lot. FUN.

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Bev

I LOVE Ellen Degeneres, but I found this book boring, not even funny. Actually, only listened to the first tape and it really turned me off so I sent it back. I just couldn't listen any more... Wouldn't even give it 1 star

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Anonymous

If you like Ellen Degeneres, you'll like this book. It's funny .... not hilarious... but you'll smile. It didn't always hold my interest, and I would occasionally find my mind wandering. But it's a good book - a pleasant listen.

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Anonymous

I like Ellen - her show and standup. This audio book -- not so much. Disk one was disappointing, but I'm glad I stuck with it because disk two made me laugh out loud. Disk three was ok, disk four very disappointing. I suggest listening to disk two and skipping the rest.

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Magic Ryan

I found it very odd that an audio book could cause me to laugh out loud sitting in traffic. People must of looked over at me and said what the hell is he laughing at! If you like Ellen's style of humour you will like this book.

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Beth Paquette

I generally like Ellen but this didn't spark my interest. If you like her stand-up this might dissappoint.

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Anonymous

I wish I'd read the other reviews. Pathetic, dull, simple-minded, just plan bad, bad, bad. What a waste.

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Gem Spector

I enjoy Ellen, but this is bad. How long do you think someone can talk about flossing their teeth? Well you're wrong, She can go on much longer than you can imagine. Want a truly funny read? Try John Kennedy Toole's "Confederacy of Dunces."

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Anonymous

This book is pure Ellen. Her wry take on life is what makes this book great. She is also a very good reader. I'd love to see more books by her!

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D G

I must say I love Ellen however this B.O.T. was not good at all. It was very boring!!! I laughed here and there but nothing major. I was looking for something else but all I got was a disappointment.

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Anonymous

A book for the writer to pass time writing; not much of the stand up Ellen here.

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Anonymous

While I love Ellen's Talk Show and think she's hysterical, this audiobook was not funny. While I didn't hate it -- it kept me mildly entertained while driving, I did find myself tuning out frequently, as it just didn't grab my attention. It certainly didn't make me laugh -- I think I had maybe 2 out loud chuckes, and countless thoughts running through my head asking how can Ellen be so unfunny? Or, where is she going with this? Or, just WHY???? Ellen, Please stick to stand up and talk shows!!

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Anonymous

Ellen is just not funny, seems like she is trying too hard.

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Anonymous

If you enjoy Ellen's style of humor, "Funny thing is..." is typical Ellen. She tends to ramble and lose track of her conversation and then get back on topic. Very funny. People on the street may wonder why you're smiling or laughing to yourself. This book will do that.

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Anonymous

I like Ellen on TV and she is just a good on CD. She narrates the book herself... it wouldn't be as funny if someone else did it. I like her style, a little kookie, a little wry, and very funny. She's good! Recommend it if you like her style.

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Nancy Smithson

I enjoy this comic's stand up, her writing and narration leave a lot to be desired. Thank God I didn't buy it. Not only were her observations NOT funny, but the book was read as though it were written for a 2 year old.

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Anonymous

Guess her comedy is better appreciated in person or on TV.

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Anonymous

I like Ellen's standup. She's very funny. But this book is sadly not funny. It sort of rambles through her interesting observations and off-beat comments without much of a focus. She's obviously clever and witty, but I think she may have needed a bit more direction with this book.

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Aaron Wilson-Ahlstrom

I enjoyed her stand-up routine on video, and generally like Ellen, but the book is just not that funny.

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Anonymous

Silly me - I assumed, based on the author making a living as a stand up comedian, that this would be funny. Not! Couldn't even finish the first CD in the set. Bleh.

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Donna

I like Ellen Degeneres. I tried to like her book, but just couldn't do it. I think so much of Ellen's dry humor is enhanced by her facial expressions and delivery which were totally missing.

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Echo

Funny, never saw her show or know much about her but this was good. Not hilarious but very good throughout.

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Dominic

The book is funny but the delivery makes it less so. It just sounds like she's reading instead of telling jokes. I think she's a great comedian but I was kinda bored listening to this audiobook...

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Anonymous

Ellen has great wit! I enjoyed smiling as I commuted to and from work. She has some unique perspectives!

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Anonymous

This was a very hilarious book and I had a good time listening to it . Would highly recommend it to anyone in need of few laughs.

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Cristian Marrero

This cd read by the writer herself keeps you laughing every continuous minute. A good listen to enlighten your mood and laugh at the things we think of and do every day in our lives.

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Patience Pitman

Very funny - although I am a big fan of the author and may be a bit prejudice. Of course, who could not laugh at the voice of Dori?

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Anonymous

this is not that funny. A bunch of random thoughts that don't really go anywhere and are not funny. Too bad because I like Ellen.

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Anonymous

Then again, we feel the same way about Ellen in general! It's basically standup comedy, rambling here and there. Some of it is really funny, some of it isn't. Overall, probably worth listening to if you like Ellen.

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Anonymous

Very enjoyable...some hilarious insights and observations.

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Anonymous

Shockingly bad.

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Kathy

We love Ellen's stand-up and her show, but this was sleep-inducing. We listened to it on a long drive and literally had to turn it off because we were falling asleep. I got the feeling she was under pressure to write a book so she just wrote down whatever came into her head regardless of whether it was funny or not. The observations were not original or fresh in any way, not particularly insightful and neither the writing nor the delivery was at all clever.

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Anonymous

I'm a fan of Ellen's, but this book is so bad it's embarrassing. The book is not funny. Oh, wait, I did crack a smile. Once.

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Sanjay Singhal

I didn't like her show, and I never thought she was particularly funny live, but oh my god this was a funny CD. I've listened to almost all the comedy titles, and this was definitely the best.

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