There is nothing or anyone that's off limits in Joan Rivers' new book, "I Hate Everyone...Starting With Me."  In it, she unleashes hateful humor that is at times uncomfortable to read. The 79-year-old showbiz veteran comedian and mogul is known for her caustic humor and she has used it to create a lucrative career for herself weather it be on her show where she makes fun of celebrity fashion to her many bestselling memoirs. But some are saying that this time around, she has gone too far.

The fact that no one is exempt from her jokes is part of the issue.  In her new book, Rivers makes fun of recently passed Whitney Houston and long passed luminaries such as Ghandi, Jesus and Ann Frank who are held in the most esteemed light and who perhaps until now have never been the subjects of such public teasing. Taking it further, Rivers also goes on the attack with cancer survivors and 9/11 victims.

One example of a joke that many people have taken issue with is what she writes of Whitney Houston saying, "I hate Houston. It's crawling with bugs. ...Oh, wait, that's Whitney Houston; I'm sorry, my bad. (Can I just mention that Whitney looked fabulous at the Grammys? She was in mahogany from head to toe.) 

A Huffington Post blog asked whether Rivers had gone too far with her joke about Whitney Houston and the nearly 400 comments showed that people are generally split down the middle. Some thought that it was extremely uncouth and too soon for Rivers to joke about Houston. While others said that she is doing exactly what a comedian does and should do so that we can laugh and get over life's tragedies.  

Yes, the book is chock-full of jokes that might offend but it also has its moments of innocuous humor.  For example: "I hate women who date much younger men. I don't ever want to wake up in the morning and wonder, Is this my date or did I give birth last night?" and "If God wanted me to cook, my hands would be made of aluminum." 

Brooke Lefferts of the Associate Press writes in a review that Rivers' unrelenting hatred of everyone ceases to be funny because she doesn't give the reader any respite by offering some heartfelt reflections as she had done in previous books. "Defenders may say she stays true to her art by pushing buttons. What's missing here is balance. In previous works, Rivers combined her caustic approach to life with honesty and vulnerability. We know she's as tough as her gel-manicured nails, but she's written about her painful struggles as a pioneer comedian, working mother and widow after her husband's suicide. Her human side inspires and empowers fans to survive challenges through laughter. "I Hate Everyone" lacks that compassion."

Meanwhile, Michael Musto of the Village Voice is encouraging his readers to buy the book and has promoted the book more than once in the last couple of days.  He ends a post about her jokes about the hit show Glee with this postscript: "PS: This will be my last blog promoting the book because I don't want to give too much away. Buy the fucker already!"