I know it’s stupid, but it would be a struggle for me to buy a book like that. I would hate to proclaim my stupidity to the world. Last time I was on vacation in Switzerland, I wanted to buy a general purpose Swiss history book to brush up on Swiss history, and the guy in the bookstore recommended a “Swiss History for Dummies” book (L’Histoire de la Suisse pour les nuls)! Seeing as how I graduated from the college only a couple of blocks away, my feelings were hurt, and instead I got another, more scholarly book, that has an intelligent analysis of Swiss history, but for what I was interested in at the time (events, dates, rulers, battles, etc.) the dummies book would probably have been better.
Would you be able to buy a “for dummies” book and walk out of the bookstore with your head held high? I would be hiding the book in a brown bag and slinking away. If someone I knew saw me, I would have to lie and say the book was for “a friend”.
It’s just a quirky title. They are usually written by highly qualified individuals and for some entry level topics they approach or even surpass the quality of some textbooks that you would be assigned to read for 100-level college courses.
With the huge number of them written and the huge number of authors, the quality of course probably varies.
I remember a long time ago buying a “Complete Idiot’s Guide to Calculus” book for a nephew, and he said that it explained basic entry level calculus not only better than his textbook but better than the TA that taught his section.
I don’t really think I own one of the books myself, but I’m nowhere near vain enough to not buy an instructional book just because of a quirky title.
I bought “Economics For Dummies,” and someday I’ll actually finish reading it. I feel no shame about reading pretty much anything - I figure reading “Economics For Dummies” is better than remaining ignorant about anything to do with economics.
Sure. I have a few on my shelf, in fact; mostly involving history.
I find that they provide a good general overview to a topic, without getting into too much detail. This allows me to use a Dummies or Complete Idiot’s book almost like an index–it’s easy to find dates and people and events in such books, and I can use that information to dig deeper in more detailed references.
I’ve bought Dummies books in the past, but never any of the Idiot’s Guide. Maybe I haven’t checked enough, but the former always seemed better written.
I’ve been a fan of the …For Dummies series for quite a while. I liked and miss the quirky humour they had in the mid-1990s, though. Dan Gookin could make a C programming book entertaining.
Scratch one of the “I would feel bad about it” votes. I clicked the wrong thing by mistake. I have bought several “Dummies” books and the past, and would do so again. I have found them useful.
This. For the most part, they’re pretty good resources that distill a topic down to its essentials for people who have little or no prior familiarity with it and lay it out in an organized fashion. They should retitle the series “For Smart People who Like to Save Time and Learn About Topics in an Organized and Straightforward Fashion”, but I guess that’s just not as catchy.
Really, the damned things are so common now, does anyone in the world take the titles seriously?
Having said that, the books in those series are of extremely varied quality. Some are very useful introductions to their subjects; some should probably have been subjected to a few readings of Coherent Editing Of Books For Dummies. So be careful what you buy.
No problem at all with them. They’re like the quick start manuals you find in some electronic products - they get you up and started in a no-nonsense fashion. The title is just a gimmick.
Yep, I own guitar for dummies, which people keep borrowing and failing to give back, and have used one of the granddaddies of them all, Programming for dummies. Found both very useful.
There are plenty of subjects I’m a dummy or idiot about. I’m guessing that’s true for everyone. No shame in admitting that. And if you can’t admit that, seems there might be some insecurities there.
Open one up some time - they’re extremely informative. I have a friend who’s an editor for “An Idiot’s Guide…” and they have an amazingly creative staff. People who take a book like that as an affront to their intelligence need a bit more perspective.
I feel no shame about reading pretty much anything - I figure reading “Economics For Dummies” is better than remaining ignorant about anything to do with economics.