Tag: humor

Picture Book Round Up: LOLs

~ rachelbenzine ~ Leave a comment

Today’s post features some of my favorite funny picture books. Yes, these are intended for small kiddos – but they’re also ones that I pick up when I want to smile.

Who Wet My Pants?
by Bob Shea, Illustrated by Zachariah OHora

A bear who is a part of a scout group is surprised to find that someone wet his pants. He goes around, asking all of his friends which one of them wet his pants. If you have the humor of an eight-year-old boy like I do, you’ll think this is hilarious.

Find Who Wet My Pants at a library near you on WorldCat!

The Panda Problem
by Deborah Underwood, Illustrated by Hannah Marks

Every main character in a story has a problem, right? A panda is the main character in this story, but the panda doesn’t seem to have a problem… until the panda becomes the problem. I really love picture books that break the fourth wall, and the interaction that the panda has with the narrator in this picture book is just too fun.

Find The Panda Problem at a library near you on WorldCat!

Pokko and the Drum
by Matthew Forsythe

Pokko’s parents made a huge mistake… they gave her a drum. This silly picture book follows Pokko as she unintentionally leads a parade through the forest. The storyline is funny, but the illustrations here are really make this a stand-out book. Shoutout to Matthew Forsythe for both writing and illustrating this – I feel like it’s so impressive when people can do both!

Find Pokko and the Drum at a library near you on WorldCat!

Attack of the Underwear Dragon
by Scott Rothman, Illustrated by Pete Oswald

Cole has always wanted to be a knight, and his wish has now come true! Sort of – he’s serving as an Assistant Knight to Sir Percival. Surely his training will go well… unless an underwear dragon shows up. Fingers crossed that Cole will be able to use his knight skills to fight the dragon off!

Find Attack of the Underwear Dragon at a library near you on WorldCat!

And yes, the first book in this round up features someone wetting their pants, and the last book in this round up features underwear. I don’t care how old you are – that stuff is always funny. Have fun with these picture books, and let me know in the comments if you know of any great laugh out loud picture books I should check out.

Welcome to Unicorn School

~ rachelbenzine ~ 1 Comment

Plot:

Mira is so pumped for her first time at Unicorn School. Her older sister has gone for the last two summers, and it’s finally Mira’s turn! She’ll get paired with her own unicorn, and they’ll go on magical quests and earn medals and probably be best friends. This is going to be great! But then, on her first day, she gets paired with Dave. Dave is small, and rotund, and falls asleep in class, and doesn’t seem anything like the unicorn best friend that Mira has dreamed of. Welcome to Unicorn School is full of unicorns, glitter, and fart jokes… what more could you ask for? This is absolutely going to be a hit with all of the kids I know. 

What I loved most:

There’s such awesome diversity in this book. Mira is a person of color, as is her new friend, Raheem. Her other friend, Darcy, uses a wheelchair, and her inclusion in all of their activities is natural and presented as the norm. I love when books exhibit diversity as something to be expected, especially in stories for younger kids. 

Read this book if you like:

Like I said above… unicorns, glitter, and fart jokes (so basically the trifecta for elementary kids). Also read if you like laughing, adventures, summer camps, and donuts. 

Book details:

King of the Mole People

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Review:

Doug is trying super hard to be a normal kid. He moved to a new school for seventh grade, and he’s trying to join clubs and make friends and eat normal things for lunch and wear non-muddy clothes and not have grubs or mushrooms all over him. But as hard as he tries to be normal, weirdness seems to be attracted to him… which is probably why he was crowned King of the Mole People a couple of weeks ago. So now in addition to trying to fit in with the other kids in his grade, he has to figure out how to rule the Mole Kingdom, and maybe save the world from being destroyed by Mega Worms.

Honestly, I saw the cover of this book and decided I needed to read it before I even found out what the plot was. Paul Gilligan both wrote and illustrated King of the Mole People, and his illustrations were so hilariously on point. It’s perfect for kids in late elementary school, and will hit shelves just in time for back-to-school. Look for it on August 27th!

Favorite Passage:

20190810_083119“‘The crown must be worn at all times while in the Mole world,’ said Ploogoo.
‘But look at it, it’s ridiculous! Why is it so tall when you all live in low-ceilinged tunnels? It keeps getting knocked off my head by stalactites!'”
– 3 : Underground
[This passage was quoted from an ARC; as such, it may change before final publication.]

What I Loved Most:

This book was funny enough to make me laugh out loud more than once, but it also addresses serious issues. Doug is trying to figure out his identity. He wants so badly to fit in, but can’t quite seem to achieve the level of normality that he wants. King of the Mole People is a great book exploring the social-emotional learning pillar of self-awareness, but does so in a way that doesn’t hit kids over the head with the message of accepting who you are. It’s funny enough to keep kids interested, while also low-key encouraging them to embrace their own brand of weirdness.

Read this book if you like:

Heavily-illustrated books, super weird storylines, being okay with who you truly are

Book Details: