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Find out moreFull of the funniest new books, this section has laugh-out-loud fiction, joke books and stories to make you smile. Most of our featured books have expert reviews and the first chapter to download to help you choose your next read.
Two books in one in this bumper book about a magical creature and the unusual things that happen when it is around. In The Great Expanding Guinea Pig Ruby Morgan introduces Thing, her special and very unusual friend who can do magic and often does so with very unpredictable results! Thing is also at the heart of Beware of the Snow Blobs. In both, Ruby’s chirpy first person storytelling brings both the everyday and the unexpectedly vividly to life. ~ Julia Eccleshare
This is the fifth and final fantastical adventure from the phenomenon that is Pseudonymous Bosch, author of the hilarious bestseller The Name of This Book is Secret. You'll just have to read this! Bursting with inventive characters and laugh-out-loud moments, readers will be instantly hooked by the stylish, tongue-in-cheek story-telling of Pseudonymous Bosch. Do NOT click here for the Pseudonymous Bosch website -https://www.keepthesecret.co.uk/
This is the fifth and final fantastical adventure from the phenomenon that is Pseudonymous Bosch, author of the hilarious bestseller The Name of This Book is Secret. You'll just have to read this! Bursting with inventive characters and laugh-out-loud moments, readers will be instantly hooked by the stylish, tongue-in-cheek story-telling of Pseudonymous Bosch. Do NOT click here for the Pseudonymous Bosch website -https://www.keepthesecret.co.uk/
If you’re planning a holiday or a staycation, this book is an absolute must, packed as it is with invaluable if unusual advice. Of course you shouldn’t take an elephant on holiday, he’d only eat all the ice cream; but what if you’re thinking about vacationing with a cheetah, an ostrich, or an orangutan? Just don’t, says Patricia Cleveland-Peck, and she has perfectly valid reasons… Author and illustrator have a track record in creating brilliantly funny, deliciously zany picture books, delighting in exploring preposterous situations and You Can't Take an Elephant on Holiday is a wonderful addition to their series about places NOT to take an elephant. Cleveland-Peck’s rhyming text is a delight to read aloud and will have children speechless with laughter, David Tazzyman’s illustrations bringing a controlled anarchy that adds even more to the fun. Essential summer reading!
Part of the brilliantly silly series that includes You Can't Take an Elephant on the Bus, You Can't Let an Elephant Drive a Digger, You Can't Call an Elephant in an Emergency and You Can't Take an Elephant on Holiday, You Can't Let an Elephant Drive a Racing Car is a fabulous addition to Patrice Cleveland-Peck and David Tazzyman’s riotously engaging picture book partnership. “You Can't Let an Elephant Drive a Racing Car” – his vehicle will fall apart before he even makes it to the start! But this book isn’t only about the misguided elephant. Each spread features a fresh animal engaging in an activity that isn’t entirely appropriate. How about a walrus wonkily attempting to ride a bike? Or an excitable octopus playing table tennis? And what do you think would happen if a hippo tried to pole-vault? And so this delightful dance of absurdity continues, with a denouement that reminds readers that taking part and trying your best matters more than winning medals. With illustrations that’ll prompt laughter and discussion (“what are those silly monkeys doing? Look at the puma stuck on the diving board!”) and rhyming text that begs to be chanted aloud, this is one of those marvellous “again, again!” kind of books.
Of course you shouldn’t call an elephant in an emergency, he’ll just tangle the fire hoses and cause a flood. Don’t let lemmings fly the rescue helicopter either, or rely on an anteater for a cave rescue (he’ll disgrace himself). These are just some of the ridiculous scenarios dreamed up by Patricia Cleveland-Peck in the latest in this hilarious picture book series, illustrations by David Tazzyman, his scribbly detail catching all the chaos and possibilities of the action. It’s great to read aloud and the action builds to a perfect, and perfectly funny conclusion. Peck and Tazzyman are the consummate picture book partnerships and each double-page is an brilliant adventure in its own right.
October 2018 Book of the Month | | The Nothing to See Here Hotel offers a 5 star reading experience for youngsters, hilarious but still exciting adventures, a fabulous setting and a cast of totally eccentric but utterly lovable characters. The hotel you see is not for humans, but magical creatures – a scenario offering all sorts of possibilities, exploited brilliantly by writer Steven Butler and illustrator Steven Lenton. In this second book, preparations for the annual Trogmanay celebrations are threatened, first by the arrival of a family of yetis (in magical snowstorm), then by something that seems a lot less friendly. Can Frankie, son of the owners and our hero, sort things out before the Trollidays are ruined? No matter how much snow and ice the yetis bring, reading this provides a real sense of warmth, and everyone will want to be part of the hotel’s community.
The laugh-out-loud Tom Gates is back in another brilliant instalment of Liz Pichon's bestselling illustrated series. Sometimes making up my mind isn't easy to do. Especially when my grumpy sister Delia is LOOMING over me. Mum's on a mission to TIDY UP the whole house. She says if I can't decide what to get rid of, she'll do it for me. Which would be a DISASTER! Lucky for me, The FOSSILS come to my rescue (more than once!)
Rehearsals are under way for the big production of Hey Diddle Diddle, but poor Cow has the collywobbles and does not believe she could possibly jump over the moon and indeed there are spectacular failures! Rikin Parekh’s witty and lively illustrations will have young readers rolling in the aisles. He captures expressions of frustration, irritation, fear and embarrassment so perfectly. But this is not a story played just for laughs, it has a lovely message. Cow needs the support and encouragement of the troupe to give her the bravery to carry on trying. We will all be rooting for her too and the joy of succeeding at last will be felt by all. It is perhaps one of the most important life lessons for any child to learn. That it is OK to fail because life is a learning curve, but you should not be discouraged from trying again. A model example to use to discuss resilience and how we learn, but a genuinely heart-warming and funny story too.
September 2021 Book of the Month | The opening poem in Joshua Seigal’s sparkling new collection invites readers to ‘fill the world with words’, and he does a very good job of doing just that in poems that represent his audience’s world perfectly. Here are poems about classrooms, playtime, grandparents, chocolate biscuits – all just right to read aloud and deliciously easy to remember. There are poems that deliver jokes, poems that play with sense and their shape, poems that sneak in deeper meanings too as they describe familiar emotions. One thing is for certain, everyone will find a favourite in this collection, a poem they’ll want to read to someone else. It ends with a selection of Seigal’s tips for children on writing poetry and I think lots of readers will be inspired to add their own poems to the world as a result.
February 2015 Book of the Month A touching and funny story about thirteen year old Stanley wrestling with his insecurities and his place in his family. Stanley is adopted and, although he knows his parents love him very much, he is also aware that he doesn’t have the superstar status of some sons. So, when Stanley’s real mother suddenly gets in touch, Stanley decides to send someone in his place to meet her. Stanley learns the hard way that he is just as worthwhile as anyone else out there!
Not since Adrian Mole opened his diary have the thoughts and innermost feelings of an adolescent boy been examined so precisely or with such heart. Stan is twelve, shy and a worrier, so the thought of a holiday in Italy with his friend Felix and Felix’s family freaks him out. He’s going though: we meet him at the airport drawing up a ‘duck-it’ list of things he hopes he’ll never have to do. Little does he know that he’ll tick off six out of ten of them on his holiday, and enjoy it too. The first-person narrative lets us in on all Stan’s thoughts, but he’s a good observer of others so we learn loads about the others in the holiday party too, kids and grown-ups. There are laugh-out-loud scenes and moments of pure agony, and through it all Stan is learning loads about himself and life in general. Honest, revealing, compassionate and so entertaining, this is a must read for all the Stans out there – adults, give yourselves a treat and read it too.
