Humor & Comedy

You know a book's funny if you're reading it alone and laughing hysterically. Of course, the really great comic masterpieces are also deep reflections on humanity and life and death (like Huckleberry Finn or All Creatures Great and Small or Calvin & Hobbes). Frequently, though, you just need to guffaw, and the literary quality of the piece isn't quite as important as the laugh-factor.

Not that you want to read swill. Cheap laughs might be funny on the surface, but the jokes that actually say something are generally funnier than the ones that simply point and snicker. It's easy to think we're superior because we get the joke, but in reality a lot of modern comedy is no more than the absence of reverence. Real comedy is simply an incongruous presentation of a familiar idea that amuses with its absurdity while offering a new view.

Before you dismiss the need for humor on religious grounds (suggesting that Jesus is the Man of Sorrows, and so must we be in order to be like Him), remember that the "laughter is good medicine" image comes from the Bible (Proverbs 17:22), and that as the Creator of everything God invented laughter. He invented jokes. As the perfect man, Jesus probably told the best jokes ever.

We have a few of them—a rich person will enter heaven as easily as a camel getting through the eye of a needle, or the one about the Pharisee and the plebe who go into the temple at the same time to pray. Jesus clearly saw the absurdity of life (in both of the cases mentioned, the absurdity of human pride), and used it to direct people to the Author of Meaning.

Basically, laughter is really good and you should try it sometime. If you're a little rusty and need a boost, read a funny book: maybe the heartwarming but hysterical adventures of the Gilbreth clan in Cheaper by the Dozen, or the pure zaniness of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, or the heartwarming zaniness of Jeeves and Wooster. Whatever you do, smile more, frown less, and for goodness' sake take laughter seriously.

Review by C. Hollis Crossman
C. Hollis Crossman used to be a child. Now he's a husband and father who loves church, good food, and weird stuff. He might be a mythical creature, but he's definitely not a centaur. Read more of his reviews here.
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Adventures of Charlie the Ranch Dog
An I Can Read Book Level 1
by Ree Drummond and Diane De Groat
from Barnes & Noble
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in I Can Read Books (Location: EAR-ICR)
Adventures of Charlie the Ranch Dog
by Ree Drummond and Diane De Groat
from Scholastic Inc.
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day
by Judith Viorst
from Atheneum
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Betsy and the Boys
by Carolyn Haywood
from Harcourt, Brace & World
for 2nd-5th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Betsy's Play School
by Carolyn Haywood, illustrated by James Griffin
from William Morrow & Company
for 2nd-5th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$15.00 (1 in stock)
Betsy's Winterhouse
by Carolyn Haywood
7th printing, 1969 from Harcourt, Brace & World
for 2nd-5th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Book With No Pictures
by B. J. Novak
from Penguin Random House
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.99
Case of the Cat's Meow
An I Can Read Book Level 2
by Crosby Bonsall
from Weekly Reader
Mystery/Suspense for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in I Can Read Books (Location: EAR-ICR)
Charlie and the New Baby
by Ree Drummond and Diane De Groat
from Scholastic Inc.
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Charlie at the Zoo
by Marcus Pfister
from North-South Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Oversized Picture Books (Location: PIC-OVER)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Classic Tales of Brer Rabbit
by Don Daily, Joel Chandler Harris
from Running Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Oversized Picture Books (Location: PIC-OVER)
Clementine
by Sara Pennypacker & Marla Frazee
from Hyperion Books for Children
for 2nd-4th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Complete Tales of Winnie-the-Pooh
by A. A. Milne
from Dutton Children's Books
Animal Fantasy for Kindergarten-4th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
Cranberry Valentine
by Wende & Harry Devlin
from Purple House Press
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$19.95
Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!
by Mo Willems
from Hyperion Press
for Preschool-3rd grade
2004 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Eddie and his Big Deals
by Carolyn Haywood
10th printing, 1968 from William Morrow & Company
Realistic Fiction for 1st-5th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Eddie and Louella
by Carolyn Haywood
7th printing, 1968 from William Morrow & Company
Realistic Fiction for 1st-5th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Eddie's Green Thumb
by Carolyn Haywood
from William Morrow & Company
for 2nd-5th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Eddie's Menagerie
by Carolyn Haywood
1st edition from Troll Associates
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Eddie's Pay Dirt
by Carolyn Haywood
11th printing from William Morrow & Company
for 2nd-5th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Edward Lear's Nonsense Books
by Edward Lear
from Grosset & Dunlap
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
in Poetry for Children (Location: POET-CHIL)
Fly Went By
by Mike McClintock
from Random House
Rhyming Books for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Beginner Books (Location: EAR-BB)
$9.99 $5.00 (1 in stock)
Fly Went By
by Mike McClintock, illustrated by Fritz Siebel
from Random House
Rhyming Books for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Beginner Books (Location: EAR-BB)
$4.50 (1 in stock)
Foot Book
Bright & Early Books
by Dr. Seuss
from Random House
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Beginner Books (Location: EAR-BB)
$9.99
Foot Book
Bright & Early Books
by Dr. Seuss
from Random House
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Beginner Books (Location: EAR-BB)
$3.00 (4 in stock)
Frog and Toad Are Friends
An I Can Read Book Level 2
by Arnold Lobel
from HarperCollins
Animal Fantasy for 1st-3rd grade
1971 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$11.89 (1 in stock)
Giant John
by Arnold Lobel
Weekly Reader Book Club Ed. from Harper & Row
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.50 (1 in stock)
Gift of the Magi
by O. Henry
from Picture Book Studio
Realistic Fiction for Nursery-2nd grade
in Oversized Picture Books (Location: PIC-OVER)
Golly Sisters Go West
by Betsy Byars
1st edition from HarperCollins
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$3.50 (1 in stock)
Great Gracie Chase
by Cynthia Rylant
from Blue Sky press
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Gullywasher
by Joyce Rossi
from Luna Rising
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$9.00 (1 in stock)
Harry the Dirty Dog
by Gene Zion, illustrated by Margaret Bloy Graham
from Harper & Row
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
in Vintage Picture Books (Location: VIN-PIC)
$7.00 (1 in stock)
Henry's Quest
by Graham Oakley
from Atheneum
for 1st-4th grade
in Vintage Picture Books (Location: VIN-PIC)
$60.00 (1 in stock)
Hetty and Harriet
by Graham Oakley
from Atheneum
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Vintage Picture Books (Location: VIN-PIC)
$38.00 (1 in stock)
Hippo Lemonade
by Mike Thaler
WRBC from HarperCollins
for 2nd-4th grade
in I Can Read Books (Location: EAR-ICR)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Hooper Humperdink...? Not Him!
by Dr. Seuss writing as Theo LeSieg, illustrated by Scott Nash
from Random House
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Beginner Books (Location: EAR-BB)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
House at Pooh Corner
by A. A. Milne
from Dutton Children's Books
Animal Fantasy for Kindergarten-4th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$19.99
How to Speak Politely and Why
by Munro Leaf
from Universe Publishing
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Hush Up!
by Jim Aylesworth, illustrated by Glen Rounds
from Holt, Rinehart and Winston
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.00 (1 in stock)
I Am NOT Going to Get Up Today!
by Dr. Seuss
from Random House Books for Young Readers
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Beginner Books (Location: EAR-BB)
$9.99
I Want to Be Somebody New!
by Robert Lopshire
1St Edition from Random House Books for Young Readers
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Beginner Books (Location: EAR-BB)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
I Wish That I Had Duck Feet
by Theo. LeSieg
from Random House Books for Young Readers
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
in Beginner Books (Location: EAR-BB)
$4.50 (1 in stock)
If You Give a Moose a Muffin
by Laura Numeroff
from HarperCollins
Animal Fantasy for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$19.99 $9.00 (1 in stock)
If You Give a Mouse a Cookie
by Laura Numeroff
from HarperCollins
Animal Fantasy for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.99
If You Give a Pig a Pancake
by Laura Numeroff
from HarperCollins
Animal Fantasy for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$19.99
If You Made a Million
by David M. Schwartz, illustrated by Steven Kellogg
from HarperCollins
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Journey Cake, Ho!
by Ruth Sawyer, illustrated by Robert McCloskey
from Viking Press
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
1954 Caldecott Honor Book
in Vintage Picture Books (Location: VIN-PIC)
$8.00 (3 in stock)
Junket
by Anne H. White
First Edition from Scholastic Press
for 2nd-5th grade
in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)
Junket
by Anne H. White, illustrated by Robert McCloskey
2nd printing from Viking Press
for 2nd-5th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$14.00 (1 in stock)
Kenny & the Dragon
by Tony DiTerlizzi
First Edition from Simon and Schuster
for 1st-4th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$17.99
King Bidgood's in the Bathtub
by Audrey & Don Wood
1st edition from HMH Books for Young Readers
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.50 (2 in stock)
King with Six Friends
by Jay Williams, illustrated by Imero Gobbato
from Purple House Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$18.95
King's Stilts
by Dr. Seuss
from Random House
Humor for 1st-3rd
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$16.99
Love from Paddington
from HarperCollins
for Preschool-7th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$9.99
Make Way for McCloskey
by Robert McCloskey
from Viking Press
for Kindergarten-4th grade
in Picture Book Treasuries (Location: PIC-TRE)
$28.99
Man Who Lost His Head
by Claire Huchet Bishop & Robert McCloskey
from New York Review of Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.95
McBroom the Rainmaker
by Sid Fleischman
from Grosset & Dunlap
for 2nd-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
Merry Christmas from Betsy
by Carolyn Haywood
from Harcourt, Brace & World
for 2nd-5th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Milly-Molly-Mandy Storybook
by Joyce Lankester Brisley
from Kingfisher
for 2nd-3rd grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Milly-Molly-Mandy Storybook
by Joyce Lankester Brisley
from Kingfisher
for 2nd-3rd grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
Miss Pickerell and the Geiger Counter
by Ellen MacGregor
for 2nd-5th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Miss Pickerell Goes to Mars
by Ellen MacGregor
from Whittlesey House
for 2nd-5th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Miss Twiggley's Tree
by Dorothea Fox
from Purple House Press
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$19.95
Mouse Cookies & More: A Treasury - Book & CD
by Laura Numeroff
HAR/COM from HarperCollins
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Mr. Putter and Tabby Spin the Yarn
by Cynthia Rylant
from HMH Books for Young Readers
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
No Mouse for Me
by Robert Quackenbush
from Franklin Watts
for 2nd-4th grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Once a Mouse
by Marcia Brown
from Atheneum
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for Kindergarten-3rd grade
1962 Caldecott Medal Winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Oscar Otter
by Nathaniel Benchley
from Harper & Row
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in I Can Read Books (Location: EAR-ICR)
Oscar, Cat-About-Town
by James Herriot, illustrated by Ruth Brown
from St. Martin's Press
for Kindergarten-5th grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Owls in the Family
by Farley Mowat, illustrated by Robert Frankenberg
from Little, Brown & Company
Realistic Animal Stories for 2nd-6th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Piglet Named Mercy
Mercy Watson #0
by Kate DiCamillo, illustrated by Chris Van Dusen
from Candlewick Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
Pinkerton, Behave!
by Steven Kellogg
from Dial Books for Young Readers
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
in Clearance: Picture Books (Location: ZCLE-PIC)
Pippi Goes on Board
Pippi Longstocking #2
by Astrid Lindgren
from Viking Press
Humor for 2nd-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$10.00 (1 in stock)
Poke in the I
by Paul Janeczko
1st edition from Candlewick Press
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Poetry for Children (Location: POET-CHIL)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
Real Pretend
by Joan Donaldson, illustrated by Tasha Tudor
from Checkerboard Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Rocket Book
by Peter Newell
from Tuttle Publishing
for Preschool-4th grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Slant Book
by Peter Newell
from Tuttle Publishing
Humorous Rhyming Books for 2nd-6th grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Sneetches and Other Stories
by Dr. Seuss
1St Edition from Random House Books for Young Readers
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$16.99
Snow
by Philip.D. Eastman, Roy Mc Kie
from Random House Books for Young Readers
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Beginner Books (Location: EAR-BB)
$3.50 (1 in stock)
Snowbound with Betsy
by Carolyn Haywood
6th printing, 1969 from Yearling
for 2nd-5th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$125.00 (1 in stock)
Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales
by Jon Scieszka
1st edition from Viking Press
for Kindergarten-4th grade
1993 Caldecott Honor Book
in Humor & Comedy (Location: FIC-COM)
Story of Zachary Zween
by Mabel Watts, Marylin Hafner (Illustrator)
from Parents Magazine Press
Word Books for Preschool-2nd grade
in Vintage Picture Books (Location: VIN-PIC)
$4.50 (1 in stock)
Summer
by Alice Low
from Random House Books for Young Readers
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Beginner Books (Location: EAR-BB)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Three Little Horses / Veronica
by Piet Worm, Roger Duvoisin
from Random House
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Tikki Tikki Tembo
by Arlene Mosel
from Henry Holt and Company
Humorous Folk Tale for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Tintin 3-in-1 Complete Collection
by Herge
from Little, Brown & Company
Comic Book for 2nd-6th grade
in Adventures of Tintin (Location: COM-TIN)
$156.73
Two Bad Ants
by Chris Van Allsburg
from Houghton Mifflin
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Oversized Picture Books (Location: PIC-OVER)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
You Read to Me, I'll Read to You
by Mary Ann Hoberman
1st edition from Little, Brown & Company
for 1st-2nd grade
in Picture Book Treasuries (Location: PIC-TRE)
$5.50 (1 in stock)