Oh, the Things I Know!: A Guide to Success, or, Failing That, Happiness

by Al Franken

The classic New York Times bestseller by Senator Al Franken, author of Giant of the Senate

Senator Al Franken, or Dr. Al Franken, as he prefers to be called, has written the first truly indispensable book of the new millennium. Filled with wisdom, observations, and practical tips you can put to work right away, Oh, the Things I Know! is a cradle-to-grave guide to living, an easy-to-follow user's manual for human existence.

What does a megasuccess like Al Franken--bestselling author, Emmy-award winning television star, sitting U.S. Senator, and honorary Ph.D.--have to say to ordinary people like you? Well, as Dr. Al himself says, There's no point in getting advice from hopeless failures.

Join Mr. Franken--sorry, Dr. Franken--on a journey that will take you from your first job (Oh, Are You Going to Hate Your First Job!), through the perils and pitfalls of your twenties and thirties (Oh, the Person of Your Dreams vs. the Person You Can Actually Attract!), into the joys of marriage and parenthood (Oh, Just Looking at Your Spouse Will Make Your Skin Crawl!), all the way to the golden years of senior citizenship (Oh, the Nursing Home You'll Wind Up In!). Don't travel life's lonesome highway by yourself. Take Al Franken along, if not as an infallible guide, then at least as a friend who will make you laugh.

Genres: Humor, Nonfiction, Politics, Comedy, Self Help, Essays, Audiobook

159 pages, Paperback

First published February 22, 2002

About the author

Alan Stuart "Al" Franken is an Emmy Award–winning American comedian, writer, progressive political commentator, and, recently, politician. He gained fame as a writer and a performer for Saturday Night Live, eventually writing and appearing in several films. Since then, Franken has become more known for his political commentary, writing numerous bestselling books and hosting a nationally-syndicated radio show on Air America Radio.

He is currently the United States Senator from Minnesota.

On February 14, 2007, Franken announced his candidacy for the 2008 United States Senate election in Minnesota as a member of the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party, and was nominated by that party on June 7, 2008. He won the Democratic Party primary on September 9, 2008, defeating his closest opponent 65% to 29%. He was elected to the Senate, narrowly defeating Republican incumbent Norm Coleman. In 2014 he was reelected to a second term.

Reviews

[Joe · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is self-evident that the author of Lies: And the Lying Liars Who Tell Them and The Truth (with jokes) would be acutely concerned with veracity. And in Oh, the Things I Know, Franken's satirical take on self-improvement, he gets a chance to make play of honesty and leave his audience pondering his sincerity while they chuckle at his jokes.

And this is a skillfully humorous book. Whether he's mocking bromides, sending-up political or self-help icons or drifting into absurdity, Franken's writing is sharp and distinctive. Not every bit is funny (and some are intentionally awkward) but others are hilarious.

But it is Franken's shifting veracity that gives this book an edge. Some of the situations described are clearly preposterous (such as a hilariously ill-fated commencement speech and a conversation with Bernie Madoff over some investments) but other times Franken may be giving us a portal into his real life and real flaws. When Franken describes his jealousy over Rush Limbaugh's outsized commercial success, or when he details arrangements he's made with his wife that allow him to shirk household duties, I came to wonder just how close to the truth he was skirting. The emotions described feel just real enough and the arrangements recounted just plausible enough to make you wonder if the even-tempered, intellectual comic is letting us see his dark side, however mild.

[Steve Lee Sr · Rating 4 out of 5]

Now that he's a Senator, I wonder if Franken would have written this book, which covers a wide range of topics, including a number of topics in regards to sex and human relations. It is irreverent to say the least.

I love Al Franken and have ever since he was on SNL. I remember the Al Franken Decade and the decade which followed, the decade of his son. Both announcements were very funny bits on SNL. I like his sense of humor. I have contributed to his election campaign at least once and probably will again, finances permitting.

I say this to qualify my review. I'm a longtime fan. I have read other books by Franken and I like the serious work he is doing in Washington. This book made me laugh a lot and that's why I bought it.

This book is less political than the other books by Franken that I've read previously. The book is narrated by Franken, which added to my enjoyment.

[Kaethe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Franken does know many things, but mostly his send-up of other people's advice is just plain funny.

2002, January 1

[Sarah Sammis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Before Al Franken was the elected Senator from Minnesota he wrote a few humorous books on a variety of topics. Oh, The Things I Know! is in the vein of a graduation keynote address with a few nods to Dr. Seuss's Oh the Places You'll Go.

This short book of advice in essay form has twenty-nine chapters, an introduction and an afterword. The advice is aimaed at different parts of a person's life starting with graduation and going through the end life (Oh, the Nursing Home You'll Wind Up In!)

Some of the advice is practical on how to have a happy but realistic marriage and how to not be taken in by investment scams. And some of it is off the wall, like where to hide when your coworker goes postal. Near the end there's a chapter of just long distance telephone codes (Oh, the Places You'll Call) which is useful and off the wall.

Oh, the Things I Know! is perfect bathroom reading. The short chapters are easy to read and the book is small enough to slip into a magazine rack.

[Don Incognito · Rating 2 out of 5]

Having recently read a very strange conversation between Franken and journalist Bernard Goldberg (in Goldberg's book 100 People Who Are Screwing Up America") I read this book, trying to understand Al Franken's humor style. I don't care about his political activities, but I basically wanted to know whether he's funny, and if so, why.

The book is occasionally funny at best, and often tasteless. There are no belly laughs here, but quite a few chuckles, and some serious giggles in Chapter 26, which contains a list of diseases caused by certain people or things as you get older. (No spoilers here.)
His jokes are is often tasteless, and occasionally, utterly disgusting for no good reason. There are occasional jokes on [...:], which were all completely unfunny; one really stupid joke in Chapter 26 about a man with an extra male organ growing out of his forehead, and frequent gratuitous profanity and obscenity. (The only one of those in the entire book that made me laugh was: "'But I don't have enough time to give to my own kids, much less someone else,' they might say. Well, numbnuts, have you ever thought of giving something back with *your* children?") This is entirely an adult humor book; I wouldn't expect a kid to read it, but if you see one pick it randomly off a shelf and open it, don't let them keep reading it.

This book suggested to me that Al Franken is a mildly amusing second-rate comedian who wouldn't be so popular if not for his political activities. He can't resist injecting a *little* politics into this book, but generally, he does a good job of keeping it apolitical, so if you're either annoyed by political tangents or don't share Franken's ideology, Oh, The Things I Know won't annoy you much.

[Riana Elizabeth · Rating 1 out of 5]

Wasted time that I could have spent on a book that either educated or entertained me; this book did neither. The flow was rough, at best. What the publisher touts as "tongue-in-cheek" just sounds snarky and bitter. And those "gems" of wisdom passed on are better relayed through the results of a self-help Google search.

[Shirin · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's pretty funny so far. He was doing something funny with Iranians...then it got a little too much -- just for the sake of being a jerk. Then he reminded us why he was doing it and I decided not to get offended and continued reading. And it's been *pretty* funny since.

[Lucas · Rating 4 out of 5]

The audiobook was great! :)

[Bassmh · Rating 1 out of 5]

I feel scammed. Where Oprah writes a book about life lesson you actually cherish , Al’s book is ridiculous.
It’s a joke.

Not a fan of “humorous” books. But nevertheless , this is just infuriating to read.

[Mark Slocum · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lighthearted and funny read. I picked it up on a daily special from BookBub.com. The entertainment value is well worth the reader's time.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hilarious, irreverent, explodes with wit, quips and self-confession, this book can prompt you to laugh out loud. Nothing is sacred in Franken's universe, including his long-suffering wife (who elicits a lot of appreciation in the end) and just about every politician in existence. Thank God that Franken is in the U. S. Senate. Not because of his politics or policies, but mostly because that collection of uptight pompous anal-retentives needs a heavy dose of this kind of humor. He offers some excellent advice about jobs, bosses, marriage, drug abuse, raising kids, dealing with the government and just about every mundane chore we face during the course of our lives. The excerpts from his college speeches are side-splitting. The book revealed his genuine affection for entertaining US troops. While plenty of congressional liberals have hopped on the anti-war bandwagon and stepped up the rhetoric, you have to admire someone like Franken who stands by his convictions yet still devotes a large amount of time to the USO and entertaining troops. Every conservative and tea party blowhard out there should tip their hat. A book for all, regardless of political persuasion.

[Cheryl · Rating 2 out of 5]

I came across this book in a stack of ones I was preparing for an upcoming festival and decided it would be a quick and interesting read. It caught my eye for two reasons -- 1) yesterday I saw a headline asking "Is Al Franken to blame for the rise of Donald Trump?" and my gut reaction was "no, because Al is likeable and actually forms coherent thoughts in a logical manner"; and 2) I recently read Maria Shriver's book based on a commencement address she gave and, ironically, this reminded me of that book, which was a quick and interesting read. I say "ironically" here because Franken spends the first part of the book slamming Shriver's book and a similar one by Anna Quindlen (an author I also enjoy reading) for not giving useful advice. I can't say that most of his advice was much more practical, unless in the "what not to do" category. If you like Franken's humor, it is a decent read. If you don't, you won't get very far in it. I have read a couple of his other books and this, in my opinion, was not as good as Rush Limbaugh is Big Fat Idiot.

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I agree: Definitely not as good as his political satires, though Al Franken does manage to get in a few jabs at Bush, Madonna, and even Oprah (I'm glad this was published before "the car episode," or there might've been many, many more references to her). The "advice" he gives is consistently amusing, while the summaries that follow each chapter get stranger as the pages turn.

My favorite chapter actually isn't even a chapter. I'm not sure when I started reading books' afterwords and acknowledgements, but I'm glad I didn't miss Franken's "Oh, the Acknowledgements" and even "Oh, About the Typeface!", as both had me laughing out loud.

This was an extremely easy read, and if I've learned nothing else from Franken, I've learned that we should all feel bad for his wife, Franni. That poor, poor woman.

[Philip · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is pre-Senator Al Franken speaking, so he's thankfully not yet concerned with political correctness. While not really laugh-out-loud funny, this is still great stuff with occasional flashes of genius, and even some legitimately good advise, (although I'm sure that wasn't Franken's intent). With chapters like "Oh, The Mistakes You'll Make!," "Oh, The Politicians Who'll Disappoint You!," "Oh, The Drugs You'll Take!," and even "Oh, About The Typeface!," this would make an excellent graduation gift - and a perfect bookend to Dr. Seuss' slightly more traditional Oh, The Places You'll Go.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

When I first started reading this book, I was almost offended that a senator would write so irreverently. He made fun of his wife, said he was only writing the book for money, etc. Toward the end of the book, though, I realized this was written before he became a senator, and then I was fine with it.
This reaction struck me as odd. Al Franken was originally a comedian. Doesn’t he have every right to write like a comedian, even if he is a senator now? Why do I expect a certain stateliness from our country’s senators?
Now I want to read Giant of the Senate to see if it’s written in the same way.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love this book. I've actually read it when it came out a decade or so ago. If this book doesn't make you learn something about yourself, then you weren't actually reading it.

To me - Al Franken is one of the funniest men on the planet.

A would also like to mention that I bought this for a friend's son for his high school graduation present and this is why I decided to re-read it / this time listened to it, (before I gave it to him). I'm glad I did, lol. It seems a bit racy to give a 17 year old, maybe more appropriate for a college graduate. 📖 🎧

[Jim · Rating 1 out of 5]

I loved Lying Liars... and was excited about this used book store discovery. I almost never quit reading a book before I'm finished, but 60% of the way through I was thoroughly unamused and I hadn't learned a thing. He's joking when he writes that he just put this book out for the money... maybe. There's none of the biting anger that made his jokes in LL so much fun. You can skip this one.

[Brigit Zelenak · Rating 4 out of 5]

Al Franken is a comedic genius. Well known for his political satire, Oh, The Things I Know! is often overlooked because it's not political nature.

In Oh, The Things I know!, Al tackles a wide array of topics: from jobs to eventual(and inevitable)failures, to relationships, to Madonna's bush, to death. All done with tongue firmly in cheek. It'll leaving you laughing for hours. I highly recommend it... especially the audio version(read by the author himself).

[Nancy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Al Franken is one of my favorite political humor writers - brilliant and devilishly funny. That said, in my opinion, this was not one of his best. Perhaps it's due to this being one of his pre-political writings; obviously he has much more material to pull from in his current position of Senator!

It's still a great and quick read - I finished it easily in a day. The layout was good; Franken expounds upon life from cradle to grave, and it IS funny. I'm happy to have it on my shelf!

[V. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this book up on a whim and ended up loving it. I bought another copy to give to my brother when he graduated from college. It's funny and light, but it's advice to clear away some of the graduation-day, "this is the beginning of the rest of your life" schmaltz and take a sober look at your life and your goals is right on.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

Faux-advice book from funny-man Al Franken. Written as a sort of post-college guide to life, it's easy reading and generally enjoyable. This being the first Franken book I've read, it took me a bit to catch on to the rhythm of his writing, but I eventually did. I'll be reading Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them at some point.

[Davis · Rating 3 out of 5]

My least favorite of Frankens work so far, yet I still liked it. That just goes to show how much I love Al Franken. He is a brilliant brilliant man. I think the reason I objected to the book so much is that it isn't overtly political, like some of his other ones. More of an SNL type of humor possibly? Still a good, quick read (I read it in about 2 hours). Any fans of Franken should pick it up.

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm generally an Al Franken fan, but this book is certainly one of his lesser efforts. It's a slim volume that is mainly about his humorous observations on love, marriage and family. In keeping with the Dr. Seuss take-off on the title, the book has chapters with titles like "Oh, the Advice you Should Ignore!" and "Oh, the Weight You Will Gain!" An amusing, if brief, read.

[Joe · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is not nearly as political as most of Franken's. It's just a really funny parody of all those "life-lessons" kind of books that well-known public people always write. It's very sarcastic and hilarious.

[Rick · Rating 3 out of 5]

Funny send up of the self-help book genre (in the Stephen Covey or Spencer Johnson mold). Not as relevant as "Rush Limbaugh is a Big Fat Idiot" or as biting as "Why Not Me?" but still classic Franken.

[Gwen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an "advice" book that is mildly funny most of the time. It's already a bit dated. Not a riveting read, and certainly not as good as Lying Liars. Readers who love Al Franken will probably like this book.

[Melanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this one in less than two days. It just sucks you in and gives you a lot to think about in a sarcastic and hilarious way. He did a great job of making it more like the anti-guide to life-- which inspires you to figure out for yourself.

[Brian · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rescued this from the 99 cent bin at Hastings. I remember reading it way back - pretty dated (remember when Rush Limbaugh was relevent? Ken Lay? Dominick Dunne?)- still pretty funny if you like (Senator) Al.

[Ben · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun light hearted book poking fun at 'self help' and 'inspiration' books. Entertaining/humorous for what it was, but not much more than that. Never been super big on Franken but the book is passable enough to enjoy.

[Tony Robledo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Laughed from beginning to end. Paraphrasing a memorable line in the book: Unless you are lucky enough to have died in an accident or killed yourself, you can look forward to living in a retirement home when you get old.