Rules of Thumb

by Tom Parker

More than one thousand pieces of wisdom and advice from farmers, financiers, philosophers, teachers, salesmen, and people in all walks of life are illustrated by numerous line drawings

Genres: Reference, Nonfiction, Science, Psychology, Trivia, Self Help, Humor

136 pages, Paperback

First published November 14, 1983

About the author

Tom Parker is an author and illustrator who lives in Ithaca, N.Y., and works for Cornell University. He has written and illustrated Rules of Thumb volumes 1 and 2, In One Day, Never Trust a Calm Dog, and Le Livre du Bon Sens, a French translation which even he can't understand. Trained as a biologist (Earlham College) Parker spent fifteen years as the cover editor and a contributing writer for American Demographics Magazine. His writing and illustrations have appeared in text books, children's books and a long list of other publications including The Wall Street Journal, Audubon, National Wildlife, Glamour Magazine, and The Whole Earth Catalog/CoEvolutionQuarterly. Parker and his books have appeared on Late Night with David Letterman, The Tonight Show, The Today Show and on the CBS Evening News. When he is not collecting rules of thumb, Parker is a flight instructor and flies a 1956 Cessna 180 bush plane. He is currently a contributing writer for MAKE Magazine.
source: Amazon.com


Librarian note:
There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.

Reviews

[L.A. Starks · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book literally comprises 896 rules of thumb. Moreover, it is well-indexed. However, since the copy I read was published in 1983, it is primarily of historical interest. Here, for example, one will come across a submission from West Berlin--a place that more than two decades ago combined with East Berlin.

Many items are dated, although some still certainly apply. Readers will get a sense of real, capable (mainly-American) DIY culture in, for example, entries about running a dairy farm, digging a well by hand, casting metal, building steps, or making maple syrup. Authors who want to tap into this mainly pre-personal-computer (but very active) environment for their settings should take a look at Rules of Thumb.

The entries about computer programming, stock buying, and finances don't survive well, although the rule of 72 still applies, as does advice about having an emergency fund.

Readers who like "near-history" of the late 1970s and early 1980s (e.g. Ready Player One) may enjoy this book.

[sparrowhawk dualcast · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun read which you can actually use in real life. Most of the principles are true; "To determine if a fish is fresh, check its eyes; they should be bulging, shiny and bright."
It does have some errors like this one; "To cook rice, rest the tip of your index finger on top of the rice and add enough water to reach the first joint. This works for any size pot." The amount of water needed to cook different types of rice vary and this might misled people.
Some are quite vague like; "If you really need something done, ask a busy person." I know a lot of people who won't help you, coz they're busy being lazy.
While some are great advices which we can follow: "Before you eat, ask yourself how hungry you are on a scale from 1 to 10, with 1 being an empty stomach and 10 the stuffed, bloated, after-Thanksgiving-dinner feeling. Eat only when you rate your hunger a 1 or 2. Then stop when you reach 5." A very nice tip if you want to lose weight.
I highly recommend this book for everyone.

[Tom Schulte · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed perusing a page or two now and then until re-reading this quirky compendium of rules sent in by postcards and other correspondence. Images of the postcards include a hand-decorated one by Robert Crumb. This selection of rules gives a sense of the flavor and gamut:

I like this snarky attitude

806. THE COLD RULE OF TWO If your doctor treats your cold, it will go away in two weeks. If you leave it alone, it will go away in fourteen days.
Gloria Silverstein, trivia maven, Ithaca, New York

This is the type of thing that is practical and feels like wisdom distilled from experience.

807. GETTING A CONSULTING JOB Personal contacts are best for getting consulting jobs. Twenty leads should produce one assignment.
Dr. Jeffrey L. Lant, Jeffrey Lant Associates, Inc., Cambridge, Massachusetts

Also distilled from experience?

808. SMOKING HASHISH Good hashish should make you cough on the first hit.
Anonymous hashish smoker, Poplar Ridge, New York

Similar vibe and feels like passing along a life lesson.

809. PROOFREADING STATISTICS Always expect to find at least one error when you proofread your own statistics. If you don't, you are probably making the same mistake twice.
Cheryl Russell, demographer

I dubious of the ones tied to closely to monetary figures.

810. BUYING A HOUSE Don't pay more than twice your average annual income for a house.
Scott Parker, Beaumont, Texas

Anything that rhymes is great

811. IDENTIFYING A SEDGE Sedges have edges (round rushes have none).
Scott M. Kruse, Yosemite National Park, California

There is one I keep coming back to as it I see it realized in software development projects. When estimating time to deliver a project, double the time and move up to the next unit. So, "three days" means "six weeks", etc.

[Andrew · Rating 3 out of 5]

I can't prove any of the rules wrong

[Bookthreat · Rating 5 out of 5]

"I’m a sucker for information I can’t use." Read our conversation about the book at https://bookthreat.com/2017/07/19/fil...

[J · Rating 2 out of 5]

Some rules are interesting, some are dumb, some are wrong, and most are irrelevant. An interesting and short read, though I don't think it really helped me that much, just some observations.

overall, eh.

[Zoe McKey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun read. Favorite: choose the barber with the worse haircut, they cut each other's hair.

[YRivera · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like this book, though is really light reading and you have to remember not all rule of thumb is right.

[Stephen Curran · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great little book on all sorts of curios facts. Perfect toilet time book

[Paul Denis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun, but feels outdated most of the time. Great book for entertainment during bathroom moments.

[Sarah Shook · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some of the stuff is a little outdated, but I will still re read it in the future as most of info still applicable.

[Fernando Gargollo · Rating 2 out of 5]

Good for flicking through in a waiting room but impossible to find "wisdom" in its current format of everything about everything.

[Deryck Hart · Rating 1 out of 5]

80% outdated and useless tidbits. Not worth the read to find a trifling piece of info at the expense of exposing your mind to all the other morsels of deluded wisdom

[Word Muncher · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a brilliant book. So many things I didn't know and so many handy and practical tips. Thank you. Everyone has to read this.

[MisterFweem · Rating 2 out of 5]

UPDATE: Just saw this review and thought, "Hell, this guy's pretty rough on the book and pretty stuck on himself besides." Then I clicked "Edit review. . . "

I probably should clarify a few things:

1. I, myself, am a hack writer.
2. I have now read this book more than once.
3. My characters may not spout trivial nonsense, but they do spout nonsense.

I think I'll shut up now.

***ORIGINAL REVIEW***

This is the kind of book you see on hack writers' shelves, well thumbed, when their work is full of characters who spout trivial nonsense and little else. It's an okay book, not one to read in one sitting as the "rules" and folk wisdom get tedious in big gulps. I've read worse.

[Jay · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a really fun and hopefully informative read for me. I already subscribe to this blog, so when I stumbled on the book I figured it would be good. Basically it's lots of 'rules' submitted by readers of the blog (apparently they do go through an approval process, so the odds of them being flat out wrong are largely reduced) and by an advisory panel from the site itself. Topics were very wide ranging, which I think is good bc there's info for everyone and you can kind of skip around without losing momentum. It'll be interesting to see how the advice pans out in the real world!

[Stephy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some immediately useful examples:

Clear Ideas;
"If your data has fewer than twenty pieces of information, a graphic presentation is not needed."
- Edward R. Tufte


To Keep A Home Purrfectly Comfortable:
"If cats aren't sleeping on the radiators, turn down the heat."
- Rob Shapiro

Christmas Tree Rule Of Three:
To fins out how many old fashioned lights your Christmas tree needs, multiply the tree height time the tree width times three."
-Michael Spencer, lawyer.

[Matthew · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoy books like this. In fact, when I was a child I kept my own notebook that I'd fill with trivia I found interesting, things like, "Bees have hair on their eyes."

Some of these rules of thumb are immediately practical, many are fascinating but useless (to me), and the remainder are a little funny. I picked up this book at my local thrift store and it was a great read for the price I paid (10 cents), but I'm sure visiting the Rules of Thumb blog would give a similar experience.

[Brittany · Rating 2 out of 5]

There were quite a few rules that I don't think I would ever need in my life time. Although there were quite a few rules that I highlighted as being useful. It was a fun pocket-size book to carry in my purse and a good read when I was waiting in lines or in waiting rooms.

[Melissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I picked this up on a whim at a Borders closing and I am totally glad I did. Some of the rules are just common sense, but others are so obvious that it's really a wonder I never thought of them before. Super Funny!!

[Dustin Tatman · Rating 2 out of 5]

The problem with this book is that when you run into a rule of thumb that you know doesn't work, it kind of taints all of the others that once seemed like good advice.

[Paul]

Mentioned in "Nudge"

[Mike · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just a fun read. Pick it up and thumb through it (pardon the pun) and smile.

[Paul Berg · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good, quick read. It's got a useful index. I'll keep my copy as a reference.

[Ben B · Rating 4 out of 5]

A remarkably fun read. If you have a broad interest in ... well, just knowing stuff, this book is or you.

[Valley Cottage Library · Rating 4 out of 5]

SUMMER READING REVIEW: "Fun book filled with facts, guestimates, shortcuts and a few shot in the dark anecdotes." -Deborah Cracovia

[Cat. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh, fun, a sound-bite book of lists! Some interesting factoids here, some funny stuff, and some stuff I can actually use. This was a Christmas gift.

[Don Gubler · Rating 3 out of 5]

Funk, yes. Helpful, less so.

[Mantvydas Juozapavicius · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nice collection of rules for life. Mostly for residents of the USA, but non-resintents will also find useful advises.

[Hal]

Recommended in "Nudge"