Though there may be a lot of competition, there's a belief among many aficionados that the world's best bad writer was Amanda McKittrick Ros, author of such unforgettable works as Fumes of Formation; Donald Dudley, the Bastard Critic; and St. Scandalbags. (Actually it would be interesting to see what HBO or Showtime could do with that last one as a title.)

How to Good-bye Depression
Mocking non-natives for their English-speaking (or writing) abilities is poor sport. In this case, though, the idiosyncratic syntax of author Hiroyuki Nishigaki reflects the… unique … approach to health care that he espouses. The gist is in the subtitle: If You Constrict Anus 100 Times Everyday. Malarkey? or Effective Way? The author is passionate that his technique is both effective and essential for mental and physical well-being. OK, then!

How to Get a Teen-Age Boy and What To Do With Him When You Get Him
Written by Ellen Peck in 1969, with timeless advice such as this, on flirting in class: "Glance at Greg. If he does catch your eye, smile slightly. Lower your eyelashes and turn away. This takes somewhere between two and four seconds… How often to use the sidelong glance? Four tries per class is the upper limit." Truly, in its way, a joy to read.