Amusing Books?

[Perpetual Man]

It seems remiss not to mention the Discworld books by Terry Pratchett when we are talking about funny books; and in the same breath, perhaps one of the funniest books I have ever read would have to be Good Omens by Pratchett and Neil Gaiman.

 

[somnambulist]

william sutcliffe - are you experienced

 

[clovis-man]

In God We Trust, All Others Pay Cash by Jean Shepard was one that tickled me. It dealt with growing up in the Calumet region of Indiana where I also grew up. (Although he was some 20 or so years ahead of me. Several of the short stories in the book combined to provide the inspiration for the film A Christmas Story (1983).

The 2003 posthumous publication of Shepherd's book A Christmas Story goes into more detail than the movie and the chapter on the misadventures of the Bumphus clan (I can't find the book right now) practically had me in stitches. I was laughing so hard I could hardly breathe.

 

[billhafan]

One fine Day in the Middle of the Night - Christopher Brookmyre ... dark and hilarious in parts, with great characters.. like many of his books.

Porterhouse Blue - Tom Sharpe ... a wry look at Cambridge College life.

And of course, No1: Terry Pratchett - especially with Death, or the witches ... laugh out loud stuff in many of the Discworld books. try Carpe Jugulum.

 

[Abernovo]

Some of Christopher Brookmyre's books can be good. I'd go with A Big Boy did it and Ran Away. The opening of absurdist bank robbers, and the references to Waiting for Godot and the Sensational Alex Harvey Band throughout, did it for me.

I'm not a huge reader of 'humorous' novels, though. I tend to prefer humour dotted through a 'serious' book. So if it's amusement I'm looking for, it's often with short stories. I've been a fan of Saki for ages and Sredni Vashtar is my standard for dark humour in a short story.

There is one other book, although it's poetry, and originally intended for kids - Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats, by TS Eliot. Guaranteed to lighten my day.

 

[billhafan]

Yes, agree - another good Brookmyre Book - and whilst a little darker in parts, Be My Enemy stands out, too. Particularly the snooker room scene (without throwing a spoiler in ); If I need cheering up, re-reading that particular scene brings a smile to my face every time ... Page 260 ish.

Jack Parlabane's quip at the end of it is priceless - and great Scottish humour if ever there was!

 

[hitmouse]

Early Brookmyre was very funny. Seems to have gone off the boil a bit. That snooker room scene is a classic, if it is the one I remember: the books ahave rather run together in my memory.

Others:
Wodehouse. Practically anything he wrote. Best for reading out loud in a group. Pass the book on when laughter makes further reading impossible.

The first 3 Stainless Steel Rat novels have some very funny bits.

Agree on Tom Sharpe. The Throwback is particularly hilarious. Riotous Assembly and Indecent Exposure are two of the most savagely funny satires on apartheid South Africa. Really piss yourself funny.

Non fiction:
PJ O'Rourke
Redmond O'Hanlon

 

[Null_Zone]

Early Brookmyre was very funny. Seems to have gone off the boil a bit. That snooker room scene is a classic, if it is the one I remember: the books ahave rather run together in my memory.

Brookmyre seems to have gone on an anti-religion spree where the dumbest anthiest is still smarter than the brightest theologean. Though theology consists of people too dumb for Fox News.

I finished with his books when multiple characters commented on how the bible should be banned the Bible is the greatest force for murder in the world and how creationism is the only true christianity. It seems Calvin would be a home in the Daily Mail "What cures cancer today?" pages of wishful thinking.

I've got to agree with the rest of your books as well PJ O'Rourke especially.

 

[billhafan]

Early Brookmyre was very funny. Seems to have gone off the boil a bit. That snooker room scene is a classic, if it is the one I remember: the books ahave rather run together in my memory.

Others:
Wodehouse. Practically anything he wrote. Best for reading out loud in a group. Pass the book on when laughter makes further reading impossible.

The first 3 Stainless Steel Rat novels have some very funny bits.

Agree on Tom Sharpe. The Throwback is particularly hilarious. Riotous Assembly and Indecent Exposure are two of the most savagely funny satires on apartheid South Africa. Really piss yourself funny.

Non fiction:
PJ O'Rourke
Redmond O'Hanlon

Snooker room with the sword wielder ... if that jogs your memory

Wodehouse - of course! Brilliant.

and now you can maybe help me - which Tom Sharpe book was the one with the cinema in it, playing the blue-movie? Ring a bell? Was telling a friend about it, but couldn't remember which book it was.

 

[Galacticdefender]

The Forever War is a good read, I found it quite hilarious as well. But other than that, can't go wrong with anything by Douglas Adams.

 

[Nesacat]

Gervase Phinn definitely. I laughed myself sick and my stomach hurt so much. But the books are wonderful. I'd read them all over again.

Pratchett & Gaiman's good Omens certainly and some of the Discworld books. I always fall over laughing reading Equal Rites.

 

[Connavar]

Such a good topic this is, i adore reading humor books that is amusing because any kind of subtle,fun humor is hard to do. Alot of interesting recommendations.


I would recommend The Eyes of the Overworld by Jack Vance, that book is full of his witty,subtle humor and Cugel gets into some really darkly humor situations.

If you want more tall tales,larger than life humor im reading right now A Gent from Bear Creek novel by Robert E.Howard. If you want a regional accented humor and southern US humor from the POV of the dumb ass.

Thats quality of humor you can enjoy subtle humor and over the top in your face funny stuff.

 

[hitmouse]

Tom Sharpe blue movie theatre:
this one?

Would also recommend Carl Hiaasen. Really good valuer Picodor compendium of his first 3 Florida noir novels. Really laugh out loud in places.

 

[Triceratops]

Although I don't think it was meant to be, Joseph Wambauh's Black Marble was hilarious. I also saw the humor and irony in Benchley's The Island.

Oh, not to forget David Niven's The Moon's a Balloon and Bring on the Empty Horses.

 

[gully_foyle]

In the SF realm you cant get much past Douglas Adams, but ifyou did then you would find Sladek's The Reproductive System, Vonnegut's Breakfast of Champions and The Cyberiad by Stanislaw Lem. Rob Naylor and Doug Grant's Red Dwarf series were a lot of fun in their early days too.

Non SF, I wish I could remember them. Spike Milligan's war memoirs and the one about the IRA were pretty funny.

 

[Allegra]

The list can go on and on. I can't agree more with these names mentioned above:

Douglas Adams
Terry Pratchett
Kurt Vonnegut
Bill Bryson
Caal Hiaasen

Then there are Jasper Fford, Christophor Moore and not to forget the utterly amusing Alan Moore.