There has been some debate in the last year over whether the Newbery Medal-winning children's books of the last decade are really that great. They're just so...not fun. Do they scare kids off reading? Are they written more for adults than children? Perhpas. My solution is to break out the guaranteed laughs. So here are some of my favorite funny books for kids 8-12:
Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing by Judy Blume
Sideways Stories from Wayside School by Louis Sachar
Bunnicula by Deborah and James Howe
Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney
Whales on Stilts by M.T. Anderson
Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle by Betty MacDonald
A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket
Harriet the Spy by Louise Fitzhugh
...and any book by Daniel Pinkwater or Roald Dahl (that pretty much goes for all of these authors, acutally).
You want a recommendation for an un-fun YA book? Bog Child, set in Northern Ireland in the 80s. Really good but so bleak.
ReplyDeleteI could make you a list of un-fun books to counter this list (well, I should call it "books for youth about serious social issues" or something).