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8-12yrs

This Book is Funny!

Funny books for children

Holiday Ha Ha Ha! Funny Story Collection

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Holiday Ha Ha Ha! cover.indd

A bunch of funny stories for the summer? YES PLEASE!

Summer is almost here, and what could be better than eight funny stories bundled together in this great book? Containing tales by top, prize-winning authors David Solomons, Joanna Nadin, Candy Harper, Jonathan Meres, Steven Butler, Jeremy Strong, Steve Cole and William Butler, it’s a terrific holiday read.

This Book is Funny! is lucky enough to be the first stop on the Holiday Ha Ha Ha! blog tour, and to get things going, we have a great holiday memory by Steven Butler (@sbutlerbooks on Twitter).

So you know, Steven is the author of the bestselling The Diary Of Dennis The Menace and The Wrong Pong fiction series. His first novel, The Wrong Pong, was shortlisted for the prestigious Roald Dahl Funny Prize in 2009. Steven is also a successful performer and voice artist.

Take it away Steven!

…

When I was a little boy, my family had terrifically bad luck with summer holidays.

We kept having fires!! I know what you’re thinking. One fire is bad enough. It’s terrifying and dangerous and hot. Well… in the space of three holidays, we had three fires. See what I mean? TERRIFICALLY BAD LUCK!

Butler Family Fire No. 1: This one happened when I was about 6, and my family went camping in France. We were staying at a campground in the middle of a huge pine forest on the side of a mountain, and it was BEAUTIFUL. But… it quickly lost its beauty when there was a massive forest-fire. Mum and Dad threw us into the car, and we had to abandon our tents, driving as far away as we could get. We ended up staying in a hotel, miles away from our slowly cooking clothes and belongings.

BUMMER!

Butler Family Fire No.2: The next year mum and Dad decided we were going to give camping in France another go. This time however, we stayed well away from pine forests on mountains, and booked into a sprawling horse ranch.

On the third day of our trip, my brother, my sister and myself were playing outside our tent, when we noticed an enormous cloud of black smoke rising into the air not very far away. Dad went off to investigate, but quickly came sprinting back screaming “GET IN THE CAR!”

[Read more…]

Ellie May Would Like To Be Taken Seriously For A Change

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elliemayEllie May Would Like to be Taken Seriously For a Change is the first in a hilarious series by Marianne Levy, with gorgeous illustrations by Ali Pye.

Ellie an incredibly famous film star. She leads a life of luxury, shopping, eating fudge cake and being nominated for the ‘Seriously And Unbelievably Stunningly Amazingest Girl Ever’ award – otherwise known as SAUSAGE. But then people start making all sorts of comments that get Ellie May thinking – no-one is taking her seriously.

So Ellie May decides to help save a nature reserve, to show just how serious she can be. Unfortunately her attempts to help don’t always work out as planned.

If you liked this, then try one of the other Ellie May stories, or check out the fabulous Louie Lets Loose by Rachel Hamilton.

Published by Egmont. RRP £5.99.

 

 

Perijee and Me

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Perijee and Me coverWouldn’t you love to have your very own little alien friend? Well, that’s exactly what Caitlin gets in Perijee & Me by Ross Montgomery.

Caitlin doesn’t have any friends, and she hates living out in the middle of nowhere on a remote island with a Mum who ignores her and a Dad who’s never there. And then she meets Perijee…

Perijee makes life fun. He tries to eat books, punches a hole in the guestroom door, and he even moulds himself into the shape of a human but gets his mouth in the wrong place. Things become tricky when it turns out Caitlin’s little alien friend doesn’t stay little – he just keeps growing! When Perijee eventually gets discovered by the rest of the world, he’s taken away from her and grows into a terrifying monster! Caitlin’s the only one who knows he’s good, so she must travel across the country to save him.

Can Caitlin get Perijee back home, wherever his home is, and can she make any human friends?

Perijee & Me is both wonderfully funny AND a strange fantastical adventure.

If you like this, try Demolition Dad by Phil Earle or Cakes in Space by Philip Reeve and Sarah McIntyre.

Published by Faber & Faber. RRP £6.99.

Hamish and the World Stoppers

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hamishIt’s quite easy to be wary when celebrities and ‘adult’ fiction authors getting involved in the world of children’s books. But it’s pretty clear that Danny Wallace’s heart was fully into this project. The proof is in the writing and the wonderfully energetic story, and when I asked him why he wrote a children’s book it was for the best of reasons – he wanted to write something for his own children.

So what would you do if the world stopped about you, and you could get up to all sorts of mischief? And what would you do if you then found the reason time was freezing was because of the World Stoppers and an army of horrible monsters that wanted to take over the world?

Hamish and the World Stoppers, and its sequel Hamish and the Never People are epic adventures with a team of children who end up having to save the world. They’re funny, and silly, and best of all they’re exciting – and rammed with magnificent illustrations by Jamie Littler. I’d say this was a dream team, and the two books have so much going for them. Children will love them.

If you’re lucky enough to live near to one of Danny and Jamie’s festival events, they’re an awesome team on stage – you have to go!

If you like these, try The Unlikely Adventures of Mabel Jones by Will Mabbitt, illustrated by Ross Collins.

Published by Simon and Schuster. RRP £6.99.

 

Dinkin Dings and the Frightening Things

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dinkingDinkin is afraid of everything. EVERYTHING! Not just normal scary things but everything (including doors, chores, dinosaurs – especially ones that live indoors – to name just a few). When his new neighbours move in it’s obvious to Dinkin that they are flesh-eating alien space zombies in disguise so he has to come up with a plan to stop them taking over the world… with the help from the monsters that live under the bed!

Guy Bass is a master of the funny and Dinkin Dings and the Frightening Things (illustrated by Pete Williamson) deservedly won the Blue Peter award. For fans of proper silliness.

This is the first in a series, so if you like this there are plenty more stories by Guy Bass to choose from. Or you could check out hilarious Scream Street Books by Tommy Donbavand!

The Unlikely Adventures of Mabel Jones

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Mabel JonesThe Unlikely Adventures of Mabel Jones by Will Mabbitt is a super exciting, occasionally digusting (BOGEY EATING! EURGH!), heavily illustrated tale of derring-do on the high seas. And it’s quite unlike any other pirate book out there.

Starting with Mabel’s kidnap by a gnarled old pirate Loris (I told you it was unusual, or maybe ‘unlikely’) the story concerns the adventures of a pirate ship manned by crazy animals. The plot goes places you’d never expect – including a spot of time-travel – and that’s what makes it so appealing.

A big mention must go to Ross Collins, who’s done a terrific job of bringing all the animal shipmates of The Feroshus Maggot to life. And the design is equally great, with words blown up big and bouncing around the page like the characters themselves.

I love this type of book, for this age of reader. It’s the sort of book that can stand up and compete against computer games and cartoons, and for that reason alone we should be celebrating it. And the great news is that the sequel, Mabel Jones and the Forbidden City is now available too!

If you like this, try Hamish and the Neverpeople, by Danny Wallace and Jamie Littler.

Published by Puffin. RRP £6.99

 

Galactic Hot Dogs: Cosmoe’s Wiener Getaway

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Galactic Hot Dogs Cosmoe’s Wiener Getaway CoverFinally, we get a book about an Earth boy, billions of lights years away from home, cruising round space, cooking galactic hot dogs. Written by Max Brallier, who also wrote The Last Kids on Earth, this book will definitely rock the world of a young reader looking for thrills.

Fans of Star Wars will love this epic intergalactic adventure. As mad as the title suggests, Cosmoe’s Wiener Getaway is a slick hybrid of gut-busting funny text and eye popping drawings – and hotdogs. Sumptuously illustrated by Rachel Maguire and Nichole Kelley, it needs to be seen to be believed.

So, join young Cosmoe and his crew as they battle mutant worm monsters, zombie space pirates, protect the galaxy from the Ultimate Evil!

If you like this, try Star Cat by James Turner.

Published by Simon and Schuster. RRP £6.99

The Bolds

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The Bolds by Julian Clary and David Roberts CoverAt first glance the Bolds look like a normal family. Mr and Mrs Bold and their two children Betty and Bobby live in a semi detached house, in an ordinary suburban street. 41 Fairfield Road in Teddington to be exact. Yep everything seems pretty normal… until I tell you… the Bolds are in fact hyenas dressed in human clothes.

This hilarious story was written by the comedian and life-long animal lover Julian Clary. His words have been brought to life brilliantly by David Roberts, with each character lovingly drawn in great detail, often with extra funny jokes hidden in the background.

It’s now been longlisted for the 2016 Kate Greenaway prize, and rightly so.

If you like this, try Dinkin Dings and the Frightening Things by Guy Bass.

Published by Andersen Press. RRP £6.99

Danger is Everywhere

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Danger is Everywhere CoverThis is a very silly book, which is why it’s so brilliant. A kind of instructional, self-help guide to keep you safe at all times, Danger is Everywhere by David O’Doherty and Chris Judge, will teach you to be wary of EVERYTHING, even things that are entirely made up (i’m now always on the look-out for supermarket leopards hiding under over-ripe bananas!) And quite right too.

Fully illustrated by the super-talented Chris Judge (do you own the Lonely Beast? You really should), this book gives you all of Docter Noel Zone’s bonkers wisdom and then some.
For ages 8+, though I think many adults would enjoy it equally.
If you like this, then there’s also a sequel Danger is Still Everywhere, and you’d definitely like the Mr Gum books by Andy Stanton, or even The Pirates, in an Adventure with Scientists, by Gideon Defoe.
Published by Puffin. RRP £7.99

The Unbelievable Top Secret Diary of Pig

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pigWe love pigs a lot at This Book is Funny, and The Unbelievable Top Secret Diary of a Pig by Emer Stamp is terrific fun.

Pig loves yummy slops and back scratches and the nice Farmer. He does NOT like the Evil Chickens. But when his friend Duck reveals Farmer’s true intentions, Pig decides to take the Evil Chickens up on an unexpected offer.

Written by Pig in his wonderfully engaging style, this diary is full of silly fun and packed with pictures that make it a pleasure to read. Hurray for Pig!

There’s a cracking interview with Emer here, if you’re interested and, of course, this is part of series so go check out all of Emer Stamp’s other Pig books!

If you like this, try My Hamster is a Detective by Dave Lowe!

Published by Scholastic. RRP £8.99

 

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