Puffy, Xena, Quentin, Uma: And 10000 Other Names for Your New Millennium Baby

I must have looked at every single baby name book in the big downtown Seattle library. Though I was initially turned off by the name of the book, I am glad I did not judge this book by its cover. Great names, great descriptions. I even found the name for my baby in this book. And one year later, I still like my baby's name and think I'll keep it!

I'm an amateur writer, and I LOVE Puffy, Xena, Quentin, Uma! This is an excellent book that will help you come up with great, contemporary and hip names for modern characters. No more, should your contemporary characters be stuck with names like Justin, Lance, and Alex. Instead, your characters could be called: Gage, Ozmon, and Lizbet! Each chapter header comes complete with famous 'real people' who are using the names in question. I love it.My only peeve with this book, is the low quality paper it is printed on. This paper is a very low grade, and seems only a few grades above toilet paper. Don't let this deter you, however. This is a great book. A must buy.

I was sitting down thumbing through the pages of another book and getting NOWHERE. I was having about as much fun as one has trying to BBQ in a rainstrom.I needed a book that would work for me. I saw the title of this book a decided that it might be worth a good chuckle to atleast look at. This is the book!!! I love the way she has organized it. The little "Crib Notes" are a great eye-opener and a good chuckle. It saves you time, thought and the ever-so-friendly opinions from family and friends when you might be considering naming your child Elvira or Shaq. Having grown up during the same time as her audience, Joal is in tune with the reader. She doesn't bother listing some names that haven't been used in 100 years just so she can have a book of 25,000+ names. She is smart and gives names that you might actually consider naming your child. If you are looking to enjoy naming your baby, I highly recommend this book. If you are just looking for a name (like for the pet goldfish) then the book on the checkout stand (you know, the one by the National Enquirer) will work just fine.

That's what my wife and I did while trying to pick a name for our fourth and final child. We had a huge list of more traditional-style names, but had no luck choosing a name we both could agree on. So we threw the list away, got this book, and let our imagination run wild. Two days later, Zoe Piper was born! This book is fun to read and will bring back lots of memories for those of us in the 30-35 age range. Oh, the joys of feeling like a kid again! Joal, thanks for making a difficult task fun.

First off, in case you see this, Mom, there's no need to get excited. With that out of the way, I have to say that for a baby-name book, Puffy, Xena, Quentin, Uma is a great read: It's hip, sarcastic, snappy, and fun. Much more than a list of names and meanings, Joal Ryan weaves together pop culture references and Generation X sensibilities to highlight the plusses and minuses of traditional and more ... interesting names. It's by no means an encyclopedic reference, but it does a fine job of highlighting well-worn standards, up-and-coming trendy names, and timeless classics.