Press release of the day: Jordan's book makes you ugly!

Simon Brew

We wouldn't usually do this - but what a press release! Basically, read a celebrity book in public, and people think you're ugly! We'll stick to our Doctor Who annual, ta...

This from ReadItSwapIt.co.uk. We don't usually/ever print press releases, but this is quite brilliant...

"Survey reveals two-thirds of Brits perceive readers of celebrity autobiographies as physically unattractive. Results show 66% of adults make negative judgments about the appearance of a person they see reading Being Jordan or Beckham: My World in public.

Celebrity autobiographies such as Being Jordan or Beckham: My World are multi-million pound bestsellers, but read them in public at your peril, warns Britain's largest book exchange website, Readitswapit.co.uk.

A survey by the website reveals that the majority of Brits change their perceptions about people they see reading these books in public places. Two out of three Brits surveyed said they would perceive someone who read Jordan's and Beckham's biographies in public as 'unattractive'.

Readitswapit.co.uk co-founder Andrew Bathgate said: "Jordan and Beckham are two of the most image-conscious celebrities on the planet – so it's ironic that if you read their autobiographies in public, your own image will suffer.

Overall, 97% said that, if they were single, their perceptions about a member of the opposite sex could be affected by the types of books they saw that person reading in public."

Image-conscious Brits

It seems it's not just celebrity autobiographies which image-conscious Brits should avoid. Reading so-called 'chick lit' and 'lad lit' in public can also create negative perceptions along the gender divide.

For example, more than two out of five men (44%) said there is no way they would view a woman reading Chick Lit hit The Secret Dreamworld Of A Shopaholic as attractive, and in fact they would find it 'a real turn-off'.

Meanwhile, over a third of women said they would actually be physically repulsed by a man they saw reading The World According To Clarkson in public.

Books that make you look good

So what books should you read if you want to appear more attractive to a member of the opposite sex?

Overall, famous Victorian classics, such as Wuthering Heights and War And Peace, were rated the highest by both genders, with more than a quarter of men (27%) citing they be 'very attracted' to a woman they saw reading Tolstoy's classic on a bus, while nearly one in two women (45%) said they would be 'interested' in a man they saw publicly immersed in Bronte's classic love story."

So basically, if we read War and Peace on the train, people will fancy us? Blimey.

 

User's Comments

Re: Press release of the day: Jordan's book makes you ugly! Posted by Spidergirl on November 15, 2007 11:40:09 AM On the one hand, fuck anyone judging me by what I'm reading (I judge them by their MP3 player). On the other hand, what a way to encourage people to read real books. Awesome. Plus I love Wuthering Heights. I might have to go buy a new copy now.

Re: Press release of the day: Jordan's book makes you ugly! Posted by Matt on November 15, 2007 01:03:22 PM I read Frankenstein recently, which is the story of a scientist who uses science to build a person that turns out to be a hideous monster - a synopsis none too different from 'Being Jordan', if we're honest. The last book I noticed any reaction to reading in public was Lolita. The looks you get. It's not like I was reading it in a playground. I've blogged about this already, but I'm still a little staggered that people can't sepreate 'book about a paedophile' from 'book belonging to a paedophile'.

Re: Press release of the day: Jordan's book makes you ugly! Posted by cjlines on November 15, 2007 01:35:30 PM Read War and Peace on the tube and you will be deemed attractive. Well, for about a year, until the 12 months you've spent carting the book around with you in an effort to look good take their toll on your back and you become a hunchback.

Re: Press release of the day: Jordan's book makes you ugly! Posted by Spidergirl on November 15, 2007 02:00:12 PM Maybe lifting the book every day will result in some spectacular arm muscles?

Re: Press release of the day: Jordan's book makes you ugly! Posted by RonHogan on November 15, 2007 02:26:33 PM I had assumed some male reading Wuthering Heights on the train would be gay.

Re: Press release of the day: Jordan's book makes you ugly! Posted by TVDust1 on November 15, 2007 03:18:10 PM Er... I'm sorry, can we clarify what this 'reading' thing is? How do these people feel about watching people who watch Sapphire & Steel on their laptop? That's what I'm wondering...

Re: Press release of the day: Jordan's book makes you ugly! Posted by parker158 on December 6, 2007 01:21:01 PM this is just a test comment to test something. don't mind me.

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