Look Back in Laughter
One librarian's picks for the funniest books of the '90s
By Steven Engelfried -- School Library Journal, 2/1/2000
There's
something special about a truly funny book. There are mystery lovers,
fantasy fanatics, and adventure enthusiasts, but almost everyone loves a
book that can make them laugh. Humorous children's titles don't win many
awards, but they circulate like crazy. Even funny authors who do win
awards usually receive them for works with more serious themes (Lois
Lowry, Phyllis Reynolds Naylor, and Louis Sachar, to name a few). I like
an amusing story, and I enjoy a title that makes me smile, but I reserve
special respect for a book that can make me laugh out loud. A book
that's so funny I just have to read excerpts aloud to my wife, or kids,
or anyone else I can waylay. Here are my picks for the absolute funniest
novels for children from the '90s.
PAULSEN
, Gary. Harris and Me: A Summer Remembered. Harcourt. 1993. Tr $13.95. ISBN 0-15-292877-4; pap. $4.99. ISBN 0-440-40994-2.Gr 5-8
-Paulsen can be very funny when he wants to be. In this novel, he has created a character that youngsters will love to read about, but would hate to be anywhere near in real life. Harris is a crude, rude, scheming troublemaker, but he has a sense of fun and excitement that makes readers want to know what he'll do next. Like his literary predecessors Soup and The Great Brain, Harris causes most of the trouble while the less mischievous narrator gets a good part of the blame (and often the pain). Half of the laughs come about as a result of Harris's crazy ideas, like attaching a washing-machine motor to a bicycle. Equally amusing, though, is Paulsen's tongue-in-cheek first-person narration.PG-13 Award:
In the spirit of exaggerated realism, there's plenty in this book to offend some adults, including French postcards, plenty of damns and hells, and more than one serious injury to Harris's "business."
SCIESZKA
, Jon. Summer Reading Is Killing Me! illus. by Lane Smith. (The Time Warp Trio Series). Viking. 1998. RTE $13.99. ISBN 0-670-88041-8.Gr 3-5
-This talented author/illustrator team has produced some great picture books, but the "Time Warp Trio" chapter-book series is just as funny. This installment offers nonstop literary humor, as Joe, Sam, and Fred get mixed up with characters from every book on their summer reading list. Well-read kids will enjoy seeing characters they recognize in this bizarre setting, as the trio is captured by a crew of villains and rogues from children's literature. Subtle pokes at series fiction, boy books vs. girl books, and teddy bear stories add to the fun. "The Girl," whose identity is a mixture of female heroines from Little Women, Anne of Green Gables, and several other titles that the three heroes would never be caught dead reading, bores the villains to sleep with her plot summaries.Booktalk Through Humor Award:
The Summer Reading List at the end is actually quite a good one. Kids will recognize some old favorites and maybe try new ones.
McKAY
, Hilary. The Exiles. S & S/Margaret K. McElderry Bks. 1992. RTE $17.99. ISBN 0-689-50555-8; pap. $3.99. ISBN 0-689-80592-6.Gr 5-8
-The four Conroy sisters are the most original bunch of siblings to come along since Helen Cresswell's Bagthorpes. They share common traits of impulsive, imaginative, and often imprudent behavior, but each one has a purely original and distinct personality. Then there's Big Grandma, their summer caretaker, who is at once frustrated, entertained, and bewildered by the bizarre antics of her young relations.Anti-Summer Reading Award:
Big Grandma hides most of her library away from her four book-crazy grandchildren, leaving them "stuck" with The Annotated Shakespeare and "a heap of cookery books."
PILKEY
, Dav. The Adventures of Captain Underpants: An Epic Novel. illus. by author. Scholastic/Blue Sky. 1997. RTE $16.95. ISBN 0-590-84627-2; pap. $3.99. ISBN 0-590-84628-0.Gr 2-5
-Pilkey packs an amazing amount of humor into what could have been a one-gag novel. Besides turning their principal into a silly superhero, George and Harold play tricks on just about everyone. They pepper pom-poms, put bubble bath in tubas, and fill a football with helium. Pilkey's illustrations are half the fun, and that magical moment when the hypnotized Principal Krupp dons his Captain Underpants uniform and sings "Tra-La-Laaaaaaaa" is priceless. Krupp is a worthy successor to Lamar J. Spurgle, the nemesis of "the Cut-Ups" in James Marshall's great picture books. The "kneel here" sign in front of his desk says it all.Kid Appeal Award:
Superheroes are always fascinating to kids. And children of a certain age will laugh at anything that has to do with underpants. Combining the two was a stroke of comic genius.
LOWRY
, Lois. Attaboy, Sam! illus. by Diane deGroat. Houghton. 1992. Tr $16.00. ISBN 0-395-61588-7; pap. $3.99. ISBN 0-440-40816-4.Gr 3-5
-Lowry has justifiably won Newbery Medals for two of her more serious works, but I say that the creation of Sam Krupnik is one of her highest achievements. In this second book in the series, the precocious preschooler creates homemade perfume for his mother's birthday. When his research reveals that she loves the smells of pipe tobacco, clean hair, and babies, he logically adds tobacco leaves, his own hair, and baby diaper droppings to his creation. Lowry perfectly captures the inside of a four-year-old's mind in a way that adds depth and insight.Logic As Humor Award:
Sam does nothing without a good reason. He's a thinker and follows through on his plans. The fact that his logical thought process results in such outrageous outcomes is the genius of the book.
DICKINSON
, Peter. Chuck and Danielle. illus. by Kees de Kiefte. Delacorte. 1996. Tr 0-385-32188-0, o.p.; pap. $3.99. ISBN 0-440-41087-8.Gr 4-6
-A comic story about a dog and her girl. Chuck is a whippet who is convinced that "everything is coming to get her," including paper bags, pigeons, supermarket carts, and a teddy bear named Podge. The story shifts neatly from her amusingly terrified worldview to the more straightforward descriptions of the human world. Danielle trains Chuck for an agility competition, and the dog handles the jumps and planks and seesaws just fine. The tunnel is another story, as Chuck is convinced that it's a "horrible monstrous, whippet-chomping creepy crawly from outer space. Or somewhere." Danielle's mum puts up with Chuck's antics and Danielle's indulgence of them. Her kind but sensible adult viewpoint contrasts neatly with her daughter's imagination and the dog's utter whippet-ness.Amazing Plot-Twist Award:
Chuck seems to be the least likely creature on Earth to save the universe, but a cranky stepfather and a too-noisy neighbor benefit from Chuck, and Danielle herself finally learns about her own father, thanks to the "powers" of the dog.
NAPOLI
, Donna Jo. The Prince of the Pond: Otherwise Known as De Fawg Pin. illus. by Judith Byron Schachner. Dutton. 1992. Tr $15.99. ISBN 0-525-44976-0; pap. $4.99. ISBN 0-14-037151-6.Gr 3-6
-This retold fairy tale has its poignant moments, but it's also hilarious at times. Most of the funny bits come when the prince who's been turned into a frog tries to communicate. He can't pronounce words so well because he doesn't know how to roll up his tongue (hence the subtitle), so it makes a great read-aloud. Pin bravely taunts a dangerous spiked turtle with mangled insults like "you one dumb tuh-tuh," hops to safety, then spits a rock at him. A female frog makes earnest attempts to understand the extraordinary title character. She's a smart little amphibian, but readers know exactly why Pin is such a puzzle to her, which makes her efforts to figure him out all the more humorous.Science Is Fun Award:
Readers will enjoy this funny fairy tale, but they will also learn about what makes frogs different from toads, why they have two vocal sacs, and how the whole mating thing works.
ERICKSON
, John R. Moonlight Madness. (Hank the Cowdog Series). Gulf. 1994. Tr $11.95. ISBN 0-87719-252-9; pap. $6.95. ISBN 0-87719-251-0.Gr 3-7
-The first "Hank the Cowdog" book appeared in 1983 ( Hank the Cowdog), but he's still going strong, and unlike many series, the quality continues to score consistently high. In this title, Hank has his hands full with a pet raccoon that tricks the Head of Ranch Security into setting him free with tales about a phony elevator and some singing cookies. Hank's own narration is the funniest part of the book and the series. He does his best to portray himself as brave and intelligent, but can't help letting readers know the truth about his escapades. The way he tries to put a good face on his disastrous efforts is still funny after more than 30 books.Chapter Title Award:
A few priceless examples are "Freedom for the Cookies"; "A Happy Ending Except That Slim Got Caught Up a Tree"; and my personal favorite, "This Is Pretty Weird, So Hang On."
CURTIS
, Christopher Paul. The Watsons Go to Birmingham--1963. Delacorte. 1995. Tr $15.95. ISBN 0-385-32175-9; pap. $2.99. ISBN 0-440-22836-0.Gr 5-8
-In the only Newbery Honor book to make my list, the weighty issues and historical perspectives don't get in the way of a very funny family. Byron plays some awful tricks on his younger brother Kenny, but readers can't help but laugh at some of his less harmful teasing. He tells a convincing story to little sister Joey about how garbage trucks scoop up frozen Southern folks who don't dress warmly enough, and half-fools Kenny with his tall tale. While the boys supply many of the laughs, it's clear that they get their sense of humor from their dad. His gentle teasing and tongue-in-cheek exaggerations can be hilarious.Laughter and Tears Award:
More than any other book on my list, the humor in The Watsons shifts to near tragedy and many thought-provoking developments. The serious stuff succeeds in part because readers grow so close to this family through the humor that comes earlier in the book.
Steven Engelfried is children's librarian at the Deschutes Public Library in Bend, OR.
