Rating: 6 · 218 pages

I can't really make this a long, detailed review, because 100% American was basically just a book of percentage statistics that were researched and written in the 1980s. It is written in the fun format beginning with 1% (for example, 1% of Americans speak Italian at home) and going all the way through the numbers to 100% (ending with "100% of Americans are, if nothing else, Americans.")

It was an amusing little book, mostly due to the time period in which it was published (1988). I had to keep remembering how the world was when I was 10 years old. A lot has changed since then, in many ways. Anyway, here are a few of the interesting statistics that I noticed:

1% of Americans are color-blind.

7% of American teenage girls own golf clubs.

14% of Americans snack all day.

26% of American husbands would agree to pay their wives a weekly salary.

33% of Americans think robots and automation will worsen the quality of life for people like themselves.

42% of American women think there will be a black president by the year 2000.

45% of American women weigh 140 pounds or more.

50% of Americans read books

73% of Americans prefer not to work around people who use foul language.

79% of American grits-eaters eat a cup or less at one sitting.

86% of Americans like mashed potatoes.

I like to read fun little reference books like this one every once in a while. They don't require a lot of thought, yet they provide some conversation starters and tidbits of knowledge that are always good to have laying around in your brain.

Labels: America, Reference, Reviews