This is the book that I wrote. It is published by Walkers Books and it is available from Nice Bookshops.
It is about the HISTORY OF THE EARTH.
The history of the earth looks like this:
educative.
And Now!
a play for voices written by a famous playwrite on the day my book was published:
Hey Kids!
——Hey Will!
——How You Doing!
——-We’re doing Fine ,thanks Will!
——-Great! What are you doing today, Kids?
——-We’re going to the shops Will.
——-Oh really? but you are always saying how the shops are rubbish.
——-Not today Will. Today the shops are unsurpassed in their excellence, because today is the day that WRONGBOY’S HISTORY OF EARTH is in the shops!
——-Wowee! I forgot! Are you going to buy a copy?
——-Yes. We are going to buy 8,000 copies.
And Now! Aphids!
-
- Here is a link to a pdf version of the first chapter of the book that I wrote, that Walker Books kindly published 8,000 copies of.It is no substitute for owning a copy and buying several for your friends.
- Click here: first chapter
Wrongboy’s History of Earth. It is a fair and balanced scientific primer for executive mammals, and it tastes delicious. It is £4.99.
Later…
…at the shops.
——–Hey Shopkeeper!
——–I’m not a shop keeper, I just happen to work in a bookshop.
——–Hey bookshop employee!
——–Hey Kids! …How You Doing?
——–We’re fine thanks. We would like to buy a book please.
——–Okay. What’s the title?
——–it’s WRONGBOY”S HISTORY OF EARTH!
——–Pardon?
——–it’s WRONGBOY”S HISTORY OF EARTH!
——–Wrangleby’s book of what?
——–it’s WRONGBOY”S HISTORY OF EARTH!
——–Double U…AR…OH…EN….?
——–it’s WRONGBOY”S HISTORY OF EARTH!
——–Okay…I’ll look it up on the computer……..No it’s not here, do you have an ISBN number?
——–Yes. It’s ISBN 0744586445
——–Oh yes, here it is, under children’s books.
——–It’s NOT a children’s book. It’s a Very Important scientific primer for Executive Mammals.
——–oh.
——–And we’d like to buy 8,000 copies please.
——–oh… ok.
To buy copies of Wrongboy’s History of Earth you can also go to Walkers Books page and follow their instructions, or go to Amazon. It’s all very easy, unless you are having trouble with your internet provider, in which case god help you. Finding it in a dusty bookshop is better, just because handling the book is nice.
If you are the owner of a dusty bookshop, please contact me at wrongboy1975@gmail.com
Thank you for your kind attention.
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contents,
Your book, is my favourite of any ive ever read! used your book in one of my projects at Glasgow School of Art in graphics and everyone wants a copy, but i dont want anyone else to have one. is that entirely selfish?
I was trying to reference you in my dissertation but I cant find any more information about you and your work on the internet. Any help would be muchos helpfull!
Thanks,
Becci
Dear Will
I went to Tate Modern today. I was early for lunch (which is why I was there), so went to the shop. I bought a book with mice in for my god-daughter (good drawings: The House That Jill Built), and I saw THOUSANDS of copies of your book PILED HIGH at the till. I picked it up, and saw a hamster, so I bought it. The man who took my money said something VERY strange: “for every one of those I sell, I give one away free”.
Anyway, I went up to the restaurant. My chum was late, so I read your book. I laughed openly and with no shame, and told the woman on the table next to me to go and buy it. She moved tables. David came, so I gave him my copy, and he sat and read it. I drank wine. He put the book in his pocket.
On the way out, I went back to the shop and bought two more copies of your book. I didn’t get the second one free, mind you, so I’m taking the man to court.
Please tell Walkers to make sure you make many more books. I will buy at least ten of them. I promise.
With love.
xx
hi wrongboy. i can only agree with non-workingmoney… i was standing in the shop of tate modern and looking at this book and laughing for at least 20 minutes. of course i also bought it afterwards. and i will buy more copies of it if i can, because when leaving london that evening i had to leave it to my friend, who loves tapirs and hamsters and elephants and also loved your book… but there are so many people i’d like to offer this book to, and who i wish to laugh just as loud as me when reading the “but might be a tapir” conversation.
i will keep checking on your blog from time to time just in case you publish more.
thank you for inventing this great great thing. : )
k.
from http://speedysnail.com/2006/07/looking_in_the_wrong_place.html
Looking in the Wrong Place
Because of my interest in comedy and cartooning I always check out the Humour shelves in a bookstore, just to see what new gems might be lurking amongst the dozens of gimmick books. You know the kind—those throwaways designed to be purchased as gifts but never actually read. I’ve come up with a few ideas for them myself over the years, only to have them rejected by publishers and then appear in uncannily similar form in the shops a year or two later. But am I bitter? Nooooo. I’m just saving up these experiences for my Little Bitty Book of Bitter Rejections. (It’s been done, actually, and more than once. When it comes to gimmicky books there are few original ideas, which is the more likely reason my proposals never got anywhere.)
I’ve been looking closely at those shelves lately, because I’ve wanted to see how well the best humour book I’ve read in years is doing. After Jane gave it to me and I fell in love with it I expected to see dozens of copies in Waterstone’s, with a big display touting it as the funniest book ever (which it probably isn’t, but that’s what you have to say to sell books). But no, there was nada, zilch, bupkis. (©1983 The Crazy Book of American Slang.)
The book in question is Wrongboy’s History of Earth by William Bishop-Stephens, subtitled An Inaccurate History of Evolution—a brilliantly skew-wiff view of science and nature told through the medium of sloppily typewritten pages and goofy cartoons drawn in biro. Even as a physical object, the book is wonderful: it reminds me of the home-made books I used to create as a kid using Nan’s old typewriter and a biro of my own. The contents are even better, full of dinosaurs, tapirs, newts, elephants, mice, and a qualified scientist. The style is, I suppose, what some would call Pythonesque or Goonish, but belongs to a long tradition of English eccentricity in comedy prose. It struck me more as a cross between 1066 and All That and How to Be Topp, two of my favourite books as a kid.
Which might explain why I couldn’t find it in the Humour section. I should have remembered that Walker Books publish only children’s books, which is what this is. No doubt the extreme wrongness of Wrongboy’s history will scandalise some parents and educators, but Nigel Molesworth never did my speling any harm, and the half-right history in 1066 and All That probably did more to fuel my interest in real history than anything at school. Who knows how many great scientists Wrongboy will spawn? (Now there’s an interesting thesis: comic wrongness as a spur to learning. There’s a paper in that.)
Bishop-Stephens has a blog that doesn’t really indicate what the book is like (although it looks good in its own right), but if you’re keen to sample the book itself, the publisher’s site does have a sample chapter. It’s not the same as holding it in your hands, though, so get down to the Children’s Books section—n.b., not the Humour section—and drop a fiver on the real thing.
speedy snail- much improved blog now. I hope anyway.
Becci never got back to me. I would have helped
Non Working Monkey- delighted, thank you. I was in Tate Modern this weekend and it is , alas, no longer there.
Or rather, they say at the desk they have one copy left, but I couldn’t find it. It may have been nicked. They won’t re-order until it gets sold, so I might sink to putting one back in the shop myself. Desperate? quite desperate.
I am a blind tirophile (cheese enthusiast) and I was wondering whether your book is available in brielle?
Hi there Will. Dropped in to see how your blog’s going and I see that someone posted my review of your book here. Ah well, a bit of extra publicity never did anyone any harm.
So, any plans for a sequel?
Hello Rory SpeedySnail.
Plenty of Plans. The very very nice editor from Walker Books, Paul Harrison, retired to have a baby and write his own children’s books, but I would like to do Wrongboy’s Book of the Future, or similar. If any publishers are interested, please come and say hello.
HI Will!!! We found you!!!! Remember us??? we know people you know….. if that makes any sense….
we love your book… it’s totally coooooool and we bought several copies for our friends, without being told to. ha.
i (being jaz) gave one to my friend, and she loved it to!!!
we like your mouse sculpture that
you gave to your friends that we know to!!!
it’s funny.
Lisa was especially happy to see the bees again on your very impressive executive interweb thingy, cuz she remembers them from real life and now she thinks she knows someone famous enough to have a website (jaz ses anyone can have a website, but you remember what a spoilsport she always was, we are now having an argument as we type….. she will be taller than me soon so this will have to stop then. oh well fun while it lasts)
HOW VERY DARE SHE…. i’m not a spoilsport….
i liked the flickbook in your book… it’s funny….
i think we have some of your old easton drawings somewhere, so keep it up will, so we can make our millions on ebay soon!! love to you and those you love xx
jAz again we /i would like to c u soon.. so get those people you and we know to contact us next time your visiting them….. lot’s of love… us
Hi Lisa, Hi Jasmine,
Sorry for long delay in reply. Hopes yous wells, I’m well thanks.
I might be down next week maybe. If so will get in touch…
YAy!