Archive for Humor

Hooray for Amanda & Her Alligator! By Mo Willems

Hooray for Amanda & Her AlligatorAmanda, a sweet little girl, and Alligator, a sweet little stuffed animal, are best friends. Alligator always has a hard time waiting for Amanda when she is not home. These friends like to share surprises with each other such as books and tickles and a great big “boo”. One day Alligator discovers he has a price tag with a cost of only 7 cents and he is disappointed to know he was in the sale bin because no one seemed to want him. Amanda quickly reassures him, “No one wanted to buy you because they knew you were meant to be my best friend.”

After a day at the zoo, Amanda brings home a new surprise – a fluffy stuffed panda. Alligator does not like this surprise. Panda quickly learns that quite a bit of time is spent waiting around for Amanda. Panda does not like all this waiting. Hmm, two bored stuffed animals discover that a new friendship can be the most delightful surprise of all!

Posted by: Wendy

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Naked Mole Rat Gets Dressed by Mo Willems

Naked Mole Rat Gets DressedIf you were a naked mole rat why would you ever want to get dressed? I mean, based on the name of your species you should prefer to be naked shouldn’t you? Well, not all naked mole rats are alike and Wilbur really enjoys wearing clothes. He likes to dress fancy or funny or sometimes even in a cool outfit. All the other naked mole rats think he is a bit strange and when they sarcastically suggest that he open a clothing store, he thinks it’s a great idea! But the other naked mole rats aren’t happy with Wilbur because as they say “NAKED MOLE RATS DON”T WEAR CLOTHES!”

Wilbur’s buddies decide that he needs to visit the very oldest and wisest naked mole rat, Grand-pah, who will certainly set him straight on his choice to get dressed. They explain to Grand-pah how Wilbur enjoys wearing clothes in spite of the fact that he is a naked mole rat. When Grand-pah asks Wilbur “why” he likes to wear clothes, Wilbur responds “why not?”

Sometimes life is as simple as that. . .”why not?”

This is another delightful book by Mo Willems and I highly recommend it.

(And for those of you in the Chicago area, the Lifeline Theatre will be performing an adaptation of the book next spring: check it out!)

Posted by: Wendy

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Children Make Terrible Pets by Peter Brown

Children Make Terrible PetsAs any good mother knows, it’s true, children do make terrible pets – they do ruin furniture, they are impossible to potty train, and they have even been known to throw food from time to time. This story is about a bear named Lucy who finds the cutest little critter in the whole forest, a boy, who Lucy promptly names “Squeaker” because that is all he says. Of course Lucy wants to keep him for a pet, and she takes him home to ask her mom. Although her mom has some reservations, knowing how hard it is to care for a pet, she reluctantly says okay. Well, it all starts out just fine – but then Squeaker becomes unruly and makes messes everywhere and things just keep getting WORSE! One day Squeaker disappears, and Lucy follows his scent all the way back to his home, where she realizes he really belongs. This juxtaposition of owner and pet is quite clever, and the illustrations make the story even more enjoyable and funny. This would be great for a read-aloud for kids ages 4 and up, and grown-ups would like the humor too!

Posted by: Mary

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Joey Fly Private Eye 2 in Big Hairy Drama by Aaron Reynolds and Neil Numberman

Joey Fly Private Eye 2 in Big Hairy DramaOne might think that elementary-aged kids wouldn’t understand the humor of noirish detectives like Sam Spade or books like The Maltese Falcon and The Big Sleep. When you stop to think about it, though, those books are full of clever wordplay and dangerous adventures, two things that are very appealing to young readers. What could make such a book more exciting to kids? Add humor. And also bugs.

The first Joey Fly: Private Eye book was published in 2009, and kids have been laughing uproariously about it ever since–now there’s a sequel to keep them laughing even longer. Joey Fly is a detective in Bug City, a squalor-filled metropolis that is paradise for bugs. In this latest adventure, Joey (and his hilariously annoying sidekick Sammy the Scorpion) have been hired by an enormous tarantula (and theater director) to find a kidnapped butterfly–a famous actress. Joey and Sammy find themselves confused, befuddled, and ultimately in danger, but without ever missing an opportunity for a deadpan quip. Who stole The Painted Lady? You’ll have to read the book to find out.

Posted by: Sarah

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Frankie Pickle and the Closet of Doom by Eric Wight

Frankie Pickle and the Closet of DoomIt can be hard to find a beginning chapter book that is also a great story, but Frankie Pickle manages to be both. Frankie Pickle is part chapter book, part comic book, with chapters alternating between traditional text and comic style illustrations.

The Closet of Doom begins with Frankie being “incarcerated” in his room by “The Warden” (a.k.a. his mother) until his room is clean. Frankie’s overactive imagination allows us to see him sitting in his room/prison cell, doomed for a life behind bars counting the minutes until he will be free. But soon, Frankie discovers an evil robot lurking under his dirty laundry, waiting to attack. He drops his prison confines and switches to superhero mode, fighting the evil robot to protect the Metropolitan Metropolis of Metro City. Frankie’s imagination takes him through several other adventurous scenarios until finally, he faces the Closet of Doom head on and gets his room clean.

The humor is spot on for younger elementary aged children as is the fast-paced, adventurous nature of this book. Fans of Captain Underpants and Baby Mouse alike will find things to love about the wholesome, yet hilarious, Frankie Pickle.

Posted by: Kelly

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Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle by Betty MacDonald

Mrs. Piggle-WiggleCould anything be more delightful than Mrs. Piggle Wiggle? A cozy little old woman with a cat and a dog who loves nothing more than to let children play in her (upsidedown!) house, garden, kitchen, attic and wardrobe, and occasionally helps them learn how to behave, through practical or magical cures.

I first read the Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle stories when I was very young, and was absolutely enchanted. I wanted a parrot that could answer back, or a pig that taught table manners, or magic anti-tattle drops, and I REALLY wanted someone to come plant radish seeds in my little sister’s grubby skin. None of these things, alas, ever happened.

But it hardly mattered–there were (and are) four full books of Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle’s adventures with naughty and hilarious children to read over and over, laughing each time someone learns from Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle’s tricks. (And if you’ve ever wanted to stay up all night long, just READING The Never-Want-to-Go-to-Bedders Cure will change your mind!)

Posted by: Sarah

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Frankly Frannie by AJ Stern

Frankly FrannieFrannie Miller is a spunky little girl who can’t wait to be grown up and have an amazing job. She uses grown up words such as “actually” and “certainly” as often as possible in order to impress on everyone that she is mature beyond her years. She puts together a resume and business cards and assembles important “adult” things, such as glasses missing their lenses, in her dad’s old briefcase. Look out world! Well, look out local radio station, where her class is slated to visit for a field trip on the mayoral Election Day in her city.

Frannie’s plan is to wow the DJ, her classmate’s father, while her class is at his radio station and thus secure a job for herself right then and there. She starts off by scattering her business cards and resume on various desks at the station. But, then she finds herself presented with the perfect opportunity to prove that she, too, can answer questions during the “on air” caller segment of the radio program. After all, she thinks she is filling in during what she perceives as an emergency! Needless to say, things don’t go quite as Frannie had planned and more than one disaster takes place.

This humorous book will have readers of all ages laughing out loud. Even the use of some of Frannie’s made-up words such as “machillion” and “oftenly” is somewhat endearing. Not only are there other books about Frannie, but there is also a fun interactive Frankly Frannie website www.franklyfrannie.com

Posted by: Wendy

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Let’s Count Goats by Mem Fox

Let's Count GoatsMem Fox is an amazing picture book author whose titles are always lyrical and fun to read aloud. Her titles span a wide spectrum from the sweet, soothing bedtime stories like Time for Bed to the absurd, like Where is the Green Sheep? Her latest is Let’s Count Goats and definitely falls in the absurd category. Paired with Jan Thomas’ zany illustrations, this title had me laughing with every turn of the page.

Rather than write a story that enumerates each goat, the author asks the reader to count goats in a variety of unlikely circumstances. Every page features goats in silly situations like at the seaside, at the airport “looking for her cases”, “careening round in cars”, and making sand castles. I think that kids will really enjoy pouring over the hilarious illustrations and relish the details such as the funny facial expressions on the goats, the trumpet playing goats with trumpets on top of their heads and backwards in their mouths and, of course, goats chewing on just about anything on the page. If you are looking for a unique way to practice counting, or just a laugh, this book is for you!

Posted by: Kelly

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Benjamin Franklinstein Lives! by Matthew McElligott

Benjamin Franklinstein LivesEveryone knows the story about Ben Franklin, the key and the lightning bolt. But, do you know the one where Ben Franklin, dead for hundreds of years, is buried in a Philadelphia brownstone’s basement and is re-animated—more or less successfully–by yet another lightning bolt? That’s exactly what happens in Benjamin Franklinstein Lives!

When budding scientist, Victor Godwin, discovers a long hidden laboratory in his basement he gets sucked into a wild adventure that will leave kids laughing and maybe learning a something they didn’t expect.

Beginning with the goofy cover art of Franklin as a zombie, the story mixes fantasy, fact, mystery and mayhem as Victor and Ben race through Philadelphia trying to discover the whereabouts of the Modern Order of Prometheans. Wait a sec, the Modern Order of what?
If you can spare an hour or two to have some real –and a little unreal–fun read Ben Franklinstein Lives! to find out.

Oh, BTW, did I mention the volcano?

Posted by: Eileen

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Regarding the Fountain by Kate Klise

Regarding the FountainWho knew that something as simple as replacing a broken water fountain would cause such trouble for the principal of Dry Creek Elementary School and some corrupt members of the town? When the drinking fountain outside of Mr. Sam N’s fifth-grade classroom starts to leak, the principal contacts an exotic designer to submit a quote for the replacement. So begins the book, told entirely in letters, postcards, drawings, newspaper clippings and even advertisements, and the fun starts from there. The designer of the fountain, Ms. Florence Waters, is a rather creative type, not bound by deadlines or functionality. She asks the students in Sam N.’s class to tell her what kind of fountain they want and they talk of live fish and milkshakes and every odd item you could name.

In the meantime, some cryptic memos appear in defense of the broken fountain and alluding to it being very important and all the while the principal of the school just wants a price quote for this new fountain. It all seems to be leading nowhere until Sam N.’s class starts their research project on the history of Dry Creek and discovers a scandal brewing just beneath the surface of the fountain.

This highly-illustrated comical tale is sure to please older readers of all levels, but it would work well especially for a child who claims not to like to read. The letters are all short and written in fun fonts and the story progresses at a quick pace.

Posted by: Cindy

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