Awful Library Books

Poodle Pompadours

March 28, 2022 Holly Critters 11 comments

Know How To Clip A Poodle
The Pet Library LTD
Miller
1962

Submitter: This little bit of fluff crossed my desk because of its condition. It was split right down the middle as you can see in picture #2 / the spread. We won’t be sending this one off to the binder and instead be tossing it in the dog pound, I mean recycling bin.

Holly: My husband’s grandma has a standard poodle. I’ll have to send her the link to this post to get her opinion.

I don’t understand the Royal Dutch Clip. Basically, just shave the dog bald around its middle and down to the poofed tail? But…whyyyy?

creative recreation for the mentally retarded

Creative Recreation for Everyone

March 22, 2022 Mary Kelly Parent/Teacher Collection 15 comments

Creative Recreation for the Mentally Retarded
Amary
1975

I pulled this book from an academic library. The library in question had a large education program and this type of material would be appropriate from an academic perspective. Obviously, the use of “retarded” is inappropriate for a modern publication. Academic collections have different criteria since the use is primarily for scholarship and not for actual consumption. Different use requires different standards for weeding.

Special education students were largely ignored by most public schools until 1975 with the passage of Education for All Handicapped Children Act. The 1970s and 1980s saw huge changes in the laws and education of special needs children. In a public library setting in 2022, the title is disrespectful and smacks of “otherness.”

Brace yourselves for Dairy

March 7, 2022 Holly You Ate What? 16 comments

300 Tasty, Healthful Dairy Dishes
Culinary Arts Institute
1940

Submitter: Hold onto your stomachs for this one. Just when you think you have found everyone of these items for the series, another mystery stained volume appears like a zombie crawling out of a hefty bag. I hope this won’t spoil anyone’s lunch!

Holly: Instant recognition after the an egg cookbook. Dairy is so 1940.

Mary: Thank God this is in black and white. I think if we saw the Green Pea Ring recipe all decked out in a pea color, it could cause some kind of trauma.

No! Knot Again!

March 3, 2022 Mary Kelly Craptastic Crafts and Hobbies 6 comments

Macrame
Bogen
1974

Time to take another ride in the way back machine to the early 1970s for some more groovy macrame. There are some nice choices in accessories for both home and to wear. Note the collar necklace. I am trying to think of an occasion that would call for such a necklace, but I am fresh out of ideas. Maybe you should pair it with the “skirt” featured in the next picture. (I think it goes without saying that you will need some kind of legging under the skirt.)

In the final picture there is a “vest” to wear, which I thought was a tote bag. Of course I have to wonder what one would wear underneath. Next to the vest there is some kind of costume. Maybe it is for a Halloween party where you are dressed up as a macrame wall hanging.

Old Timey Health Info

March 1, 2022 Mary Kelly Health and Safety 16 comments

Consumer Health
Byer
1971

I snagged this little book from a public library and it is still in circulation as of this writing. It covers basics of medical services, treatment costs, and some basic consumer information about hospitals and insurance. It doesn’t look like a textbook, but it sure reads like one. Also the cover is less than interesting, which adds to the textbook feel. There are many passages about costs and treatments that no longer apply.

This book was probably one of the projects out of the consumer activism of the 1960s and 1970s. Ralph Nader was one of the big players during this time with his book Unsafe at any speed which targeted auto safety.

DIY Bazooka

February 28, 2022 Holly Health and Safety 19 comments

Bazooka : How to Build Your Own
Lewis
1993

Submitter: This explosive title came in a box of donations. “Simple Follow this procedure step by step, and before you know it you’ll be blasting away like Rambo on a good day” I think this is the same imagination that has been taking place in our bathrooms lately. Easy to say this went to recycling bin.

Holly: The good news is that WorldCat doesn’t show any library holdings for this book. The better news is that its subject heading:

Bazookas — Design and construction — Amateurs’ manuals

only matches this one title in WorldCat. Apparently no one else cashed in on the lucrative publishing industry of DIY bazooka manuals.

I know we’re Awful “Library” Books, but indulge me in this one anyway. It’s too good to pass up. And by good I mean awful.

70s TV for the youngsters

February 24, 2022 Mary Kelly Entertainment 23 comments

TV Album
Herz
1978

If you are under the age of 50 or so, you might not recognize some of these programs unless you got lucky in re-runs. This little paperback is made up of what looks like publicity stills and script summaries. It’s pretty much a “meh” choice in the late 1970s.

We have featured a bunch of these nonfiction tv profiles for kids. Check it out here, here, and here. They are basically all the same book. The author, Peggy Herz has written a bunch of books about television shows for the juvenile audience for Scholastic.

Toys against God

February 22, 2022 Mary Kelly Department of God, Vice Patrol 28 comments

Turmoil in the Toybox
Phillips
1986

Did you know that Barbie, GI Joe, and Rainbow Brite are out to corrupt your children?

We have featured our guy Phil sharing his SHOCKING truth about Saturday cartoons that will corrupt and ruin your children. He also has a thing against dinosaurs. This stuff is the equivalent of Christian click bait. This time our guy Phil wants to talk about the cult influences of the toys. If you were a kid in the late 1970s and early 1980s, all of your favorite toys have been outed as evil influence by Mr. Phillips. Right now, you could be walking around with all this evil inside of you and NOT EVEN KNOW IT!