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Dilbert #6
It's Obvious You Won't Survive by Your Wits Alone
Dilbert is the Everyman in the down-sized, techno-centered workplace of the nineties. He's the corporately innocent engineer who experiences the absurdities and oddities of office life from his (sometimes shrinking) cubicle. Complemented by his sarcastic and power-hungry dog, Dogbert (aspiring Supreme Ruler of the Earth whose secret to happiness is "High expectations and your own bag of chips"), Dilbert provides humor on one of life's most insidious subjects: work. It's Obvious You Won't Survive by Your Wits Alone features nearly two years of Dilbert comic strips (including color Sunday cartoons!) that have never appeared in book form.
Dilbert, created by Scott Adams, appears in more than 550 newspapers worldwide and is the Internet's number one comic strip. "The Dilbert Zone" is featured on United Media's World Wide Web site, which generates more than three million hits every week.
Dilbert, created by Scott Adams, appears in more than 550 newspapers worldwide and is the Internet's number one comic strip. "The Dilbert Zone" is featured on United Media's World Wide Web site, which generates more than three million hits every week.
256 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1995
About the author
Scott Adams
199 books1,323 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
Scott Adams was a defining voice of the American white-collar experience who transitioned from a prominent cartoonist into a polarizing political commentator. After earning an MBA from UC Berkeley and spending years in management at Pacific Bell, Adams launched the comic strip Dilbert in 1989. The strip’s sharp satire of corporate bureaucracy and the "Dilbert Principle"—the idea that incompetent employees are promoted to management to minimize their damage—resonated globally, eventually appearing in 2,000 newspapers and winning the prestigious Reuben Award. Beyond the funny pages, Adams explored philosophy and persuasion in works like God's Debris and Win Bigly, the latter of which analyzed Donald Trump’s rhetorical strategies during the 2016 election. His career took a dramatic turn during the mid-2010s as he shifted focus to his daily "Real Coffee" livestream, where he combined his background in hypnosis and corporate strategy to comment on the "culture wars." This period of independent commentary culminated in 2023 when he reacted to a poll regarding racial tensions with a series of inflammatory remarks. Labeling Black Americans a "hate group" and advocating for racial segregation, Adams faced immediate and widespread repercussions; hundreds of newspapers dropped his strip, and his publisher canceled his upcoming projects. Undeterred, he moved his work to the subscription-based platform Locals, rebranding his comic as Dilbert Reborn. In his final years, he faced severe health challenges, including stage IV prostate cancer and vocal cord issues, yet he remained a prolific presence on social media. He eventually announced the end of his hand-drawn work due to focal dystonia but continued to direct the strip's vision. Adams’s legacy remains a complex study in the power of branding, the evolution of digital influence, and the volatile intersection of creative genius and political provocation in the modern era.
Scott Adams was a defining voice of the American white-collar experience who transitioned from a prominent cartoonist into a polarizing political commentator. After earning an MBA from UC Berkeley and spending years in management at Pacific Bell, Adams launched the comic strip Dilbert in 1989. The strip’s sharp satire of corporate bureaucracy and the "Dilbert Principle"—the idea that incompetent employees are promoted to management to minimize their damage—resonated globally, eventually appearing in 2,000 newspapers and winning the prestigious Reuben Award. Beyond the funny pages, Adams explored philosophy and persuasion in works like God's Debris and Win Bigly, the latter of which analyzed Donald Trump’s rhetorical strategies during the 2016 election. His career took a dramatic turn during the mid-2010s as he shifted focus to his daily "Real Coffee" livestream, where he combined his background in hypnosis and corporate strategy to comment on the "culture wars." This period of independent commentary culminated in 2023 when he reacted to a poll regarding racial tensions with a series of inflammatory remarks. Labeling Black Americans a "hate group" and advocating for racial segregation, Adams faced immediate and widespread repercussions; hundreds of newspapers dropped his strip, and his publisher canceled his upcoming projects. Undeterred, he moved his work to the subscription-based platform Locals, rebranding his comic as Dilbert Reborn. In his final years, he faced severe health challenges, including stage IV prostate cancer and vocal cord issues, yet he remained a prolific presence on social media. He eventually announced the end of his hand-drawn work due to focal dystonia but continued to direct the strip's vision. Adams’s legacy remains a complex study in the power of branding, the evolution of digital influence, and the volatile intersection of creative genius and political provocation in the modern era.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 49 reviews
May 31, 2017
Ha ha, first of all, love the title!
Wally and The Pointy Hair Boss slip into the cast quietly, without fanfare. This is classic early Dilbert
Wally and The Pointy Hair Boss slip into the cast quietly, without fanfare. This is classic early Dilbert
May 18, 2024
DISCLAIMER: I purchased this book at a library sale, so the author did not receive any money from me.
Some of these comics were good, but many of them went over my head, and I was disappointed to see one that made fun of the Christian faith. Fans of the daily funnies can do better.
Some of these comics were good, but many of them went over my head, and I was disappointed to see one that made fun of the Christian faith. Fans of the daily funnies can do better.
June 13, 2018
I got quite a few chuckles out of it.
June 23, 2018
There are several Dilbert comics that are genuinely funny. Most of these are pretty decent, but there's a general undercurrent of sexism and contempt that didn't land the same way they may have back when they were written. Add to that the fact that more than a few of these cartoons were recycled from another collection and you get the sense that there are better ways to spend your money than giving it to this author.
November 11, 2020
Le Quin coined the phrase "Ethically mean" and it fits, here. Whatever I may have thought about it on first read, a goodly while ago now, it doesn't stand up to a reread. The humour is extraordinarily thin, and Scott Adams is no dispassionate eye on the rich vein of cubicle politics. His characters are depicted as stupid, cruel, and bigotted. New employees are made "fun" of for their stature, for their nerves. (and it is no fun for the reader) Even characters you might hope to have sympathy with - a dog, for example! - behave in uncaring and hostile manners towards others. A typical panel involves a woman who is pregnant pretending not to be pregnant so she can school any man foolish enough to comment. Even panels on being selected for the US Supreme Court - which at this time ought to resonate - are handled so bluntly as to fail to raise either a smile or a knowing nod.
If you want comic strips with heart, avoid. Try instead some Bloom County. It has all the failings, but does so without hating its characters. And heck, it's actually funny. Or Garfield, if you want a supercilious animal.
If you want comic strips with heart, avoid. Try instead some Bloom County. It has all the failings, but does so without hating its characters. And heck, it's actually funny. Or Garfield, if you want a supercilious animal.
February 18, 2024
I don’t remember where, when or why I came to the conclusion, but it seems that I have always felt that it was absurd to think that every piece of art that you loved was made by people you would also love.
And again, and again we have discovered that people who made much beloved art were actually probably not all that nice people - at least in some ways.
Which is to say that I don’t really care if Scott Adams is a right-wing douchebag. His comics are still hilarious to me.
I think this must be a very early book, maybe even the first. But it still gets me to laugh out loud.
“Intelligence has much less practical application than you’’d think.”
Not much to say except that I laughed. For a beginning effort it’s excellent.
I’ll give it 3 stars and then donate it back to the world.
And again, and again we have discovered that people who made much beloved art were actually probably not all that nice people - at least in some ways.
Which is to say that I don’t really care if Scott Adams is a right-wing douchebag. His comics are still hilarious to me.
I think this must be a very early book, maybe even the first. But it still gets me to laugh out loud.
“Intelligence has much less practical application than you’’d think.”
Not much to say except that I laughed. For a beginning effort it’s excellent.
I’ll give it 3 stars and then donate it back to the world.
April 21, 2026
Before "The Office," before "Office Space," there was Dilbert. And the Lord said "It is good."
Everyone I've ever known or worked with in offices around America recognized a painful amount of our world in squares and rectangles of those pages. "And it was good."
Even my kids, who had never seen a cubicle or an office cafeteria recognized the brilliance and loved every last character: Catbert, Dogbert and all.
Dilbert goes right up there with the all-time great comic strips -- "Peanuts," "Calvin and Hobbes," "The Far Side" -- and it is even better when you can read it all at once in these collected volumes.
Everyone I've ever known or worked with in offices around America recognized a painful amount of our world in squares and rectangles of those pages. "And it was good."
Even my kids, who had never seen a cubicle or an office cafeteria recognized the brilliance and loved every last character: Catbert, Dogbert and all.
Dilbert goes right up there with the all-time great comic strips -- "Peanuts," "Calvin and Hobbes," "The Far Side" -- and it is even better when you can read it all at once in these collected volumes.
October 19, 2022
One strip of Dilbert a day is amusing; a whole bookful is repetitive and mean-spirited. The same jokes about Dilbert not getting a date, being abused by his boss and his dog, and suffering all sorts of indignities are funny in small doses, but not in book form. I enjoy Dogbert and Ratbert, although they too, have their idiosyncracies that are repeated over and over again. Stick to the comics page.
October 30, 2026
Short and sweet: Dilbert #04: Na to, abyste přežili, nemáte dost pod čepicí is a quiet little gem with a few rough edges. What worked: gorgeous, simple writing and a main character who feels like somebody you know. What didn't: a lot of the middle is just people thinking about stuff. Recommend for anyone who likes slow, thoughtful reads, skip for readers who need to see something happen.
February 26, 2019
Classic early Dilbert...you can see Wally, Alice, and the Pointy Haired Boss coming into view. The artwork will improve much in the near future, but well worth the laughs...SA figuring out corporate America, dating, and so much more...
December 28, 2023
I have always been a big fan of Dilbert. Not all the comics hit home, but many hit my funny bone big time. I read this book a long time ago and am revisiting. One can't read this non-stop but need to absorb it in tiny bites. Much more effective that way. I love Dogbert!
July 2, 2017
Lots of laugh out loud moments
January 9, 2019
Less dogbert, more evil bosses.
May 24, 2019
great world bullding
March 29, 2020
Always a joy
May 10, 2020
The content of the comics stands up suprisingly well over time. Some make me laugh, some I don't love, but they are worth the read.
June 21, 2021
Another fun comic book by Scott Adams
Enjoyed this artwork and the antics of Dogbert in particular.
Enjoyed this artwork and the antics of Dogbert in particular.
September 20, 2021
This book made me laugh more than I expected.
October 18, 2024
Lots of stuff in here that make Adams seem prescient but not everything translates well into this century.
April 30, 2026
Cute but A LOT of Dilbert... I read sporadically in between other books.
October 10, 2026
It took me a really long time to finish this book because I only read this book when I can't sleep. It's hilarious. I laugh out loud. I'll probably keep it around to read again when I can't sleep.
November 17, 2014
The scary thing about Dilbert, I’ve just realized, is not so much that it resembles the company I work for so many times, but the fact that it must resemble more than just my company alone to account for its growing appeal. I guess in my heart of hearts I was hoping that if I ever moved to another company, I could leave the Dilbertisms behind–fat chance, it seems.
Dilbert is well on its way to becoming a classic comic strip. Like the ones canonized before it, it has been able to take a segment of our society (Doonesbury) or life (Calvin and Hobbes) and relieve our tension. Adams is the one writer who can actually answer the question, “Where do your ideas come from?” because he often receives what becomes next week’s strip from a reader email. As long as there are companies searching for answers in a changing marketplace, Adams will likely have material. Me, I’m just glad someone is enjoying the situation.
Dilbert is well on its way to becoming a classic comic strip. Like the ones canonized before it, it has been able to take a segment of our society (Doonesbury) or life (Calvin and Hobbes) and relieve our tension. Adams is the one writer who can actually answer the question, “Where do your ideas come from?” because he often receives what becomes next week’s strip from a reader email. As long as there are companies searching for answers in a changing marketplace, Adams will likely have material. Me, I’m just glad someone is enjoying the situation.
February 26, 2015
Another book my sons gave me for Christmas some years ago. I’ve always been a Dilbert fan, so when I ran across this one I was happy to reread it. The plight of an engineer just trying to do his job amidst the incompetence, inefficiency and arrogance of a bureaucratic system. Of course, his companions Dogbert and Ratbert, who act at times as consultants, evil HR personnel, autocrats and the like, as well as occasional trips to the fictional, snow-covered third world country of Elbonia, flesh out Dilbert’s environment, along, of course, with his clueless boss, Asok the Intern, and other burned out co-workers.
One of my favorites is a strip in which Dogbert whacks his knee, and exclaims, “AAK! Crime is society’s fault…raise taxes to feed the poor…stop nuclear research…save the…” whereupon Dilbert says, “Apparently you’re a knee-jerk liberal. You can live a normal life but you’ll be annoying at parties.”
Fun read. Recommended.
One of my favorites is a strip in which Dogbert whacks his knee, and exclaims, “AAK! Crime is society’s fault…raise taxes to feed the poor…stop nuclear research…save the…” whereupon Dilbert says, “Apparently you’re a knee-jerk liberal. You can live a normal life but you’ll be annoying at parties.”
Fun read. Recommended.
August 10, 2009
A collection of older Dilbert strips, so there are a lot more silly puns and plays on words than in Scott's later work (a prime example being the storyline where Dilbert kills an executive with an ear of corn). A lot of Dogbert's world domination, too, which is always fun. He's a funny little dog. But my favourite storyline may have been the one where Dilbert becomes CEO very briefly -- this book shows how he became CEO, which I'd never seen previously. Little surprises like that and the interesting perspective provided by Scott's earlier work make this book a worthwhile venture for Dilbert fans.
June 25, 2015
It's amazing how poorly I find these comics have aged. As I said, it may be that I've been reading such amazing comics recently that these pale in comparison. I mean, it's no secret that the art is horrible, something Scott Adams freely admits. At the same time, I don't find the jokes very funny either. They seem somewhat clumsy and awkward. However, these are early strips, and perhaps they get better as the series matures.
September 26, 2016
Good collection of early 90s's strips. Almost all of these are still applicable.
A bit of a transition period - old boss turning into the familiar pointy haired boss of today. Alice not existing yet. Wally not existing in a consistant form. This book is interesting from a historical perspective.
But what i really enjoyed was the raw fury on display - Adams at some of his most sarcastic/sardonic extremes.
A bit of a transition period - old boss turning into the familiar pointy haired boss of today. Alice not existing yet. Wally not existing in a consistant form. This book is interesting from a historical perspective.
But what i really enjoyed was the raw fury on display - Adams at some of his most sarcastic/sardonic extremes.
July 7, 2019
Moje první neútržkovité seznámení s Dilbertem. Překvapilo mě, nakolik samotný Dilbert se v knize vyskytuje méně než jeho pes Dogbert. Kvalitu kresby nelze hodnotit, protože Scott Adams snad ani neumí kreslit.
Samotné stripy na mě fungují asi v polovině případů. Útoky na levičáky a vegetariány, korporátní otročina a Dogbert mě baví, zbytek mě povětšinou míjí. Vzhledem k ceně si nemůžu stěžovat. Fomát a papír použitý CRWí je vynikající.
Samotné stripy na mě fungují asi v polovině případů. Útoky na levičáky a vegetariány, korporátní otročina a Dogbert mě baví, zbytek mě povětšinou míjí. Vzhledem k ceně si nemůžu stěžovat. Fomát a papír použitý CRWí je vynikající.
July 29, 2008
I got this book from my Mom's cousin Angeline when I was living in Massachusetts. I was 18 and really not familiar with Dilbert comics at the time.
It is probably not down my alley as far as comics go. However it turned out that I married a man who finds that sort of humor to be all too brilliant.
I have come to appreciate it more having him as my husband than I might otherwise have done.
It is probably not down my alley as far as comics go. However it turned out that I married a man who finds that sort of humor to be all too brilliant.
I have come to appreciate it more having him as my husband than I might otherwise have done.
May 9, 2011
Some good laughs. I understand Dilbert a lot more since I retired from the Navy.
Military people tend to think that the military has bad management, but when you get out into the corporate world, you realize that the military is much more effecient.
Military people tend to think that the military has bad management, but when you get out into the corporate world, you realize that the military is much more effecient.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 49 reviews