Let's laugh our way into the start of 2024 with some great books. Here is your first RTÉjr Book Club of the new year with thanks to our friends at Children's Books Ireland.
For grown-ups, the start of a new year tends to be no laughing matter; serious resolutions are set, well-meaning intentions are formed, and a general atmosphere of health and wellness is often enforced.
While this is by no means a bad thing, after the excitement of Christmas, young readers can often be left feeling deflated coming into the new year and less than enthused about new plans for eating more vegetables and getting out for exercise.
At Children's Books Ireland Headquarters, we propose a sillier start to the new year, namely approaching 2024 with a bit of a giggle. Life can be tough and serious, and 2023 brought many moments that were likely difficult for young people to process. Let's try and begin this year on a lighter note, with some great books to bring a smile to even the most serious of young faces.
Read on to find some of our favourite funny reads including fiction, graphic novels, poetry, and non-fiction, with plenty more to be found on our website.
Nibbles Shapes by Emma Yarlett, Little Tiger, 20pp ISBN 9781801044271
Fun for adults and children, this board book makes learning about shapes fun and is perfect for reading aloud. It has both enough humour to keep the reader entertained without being too much for the little one listening to take in. The rhyming scheme is playful without feeling forced or repetitive – which is not an easy feat. The colour scheme is striking but soft, and the page cut-outs mean that little fingers can feel the shapes they are learning about, giving a little one a whole sensory experience. The illustrations are clever, and they keep us turning the pages, wondering what Nibbles will get up to next even beyond this book and into his next adventure. (Age 0–2 years)
I Say Oh You Say No by John Kane, Templar Books, 48pp ISBN 9781800785120
A book destined to entertain and have reader and child laughing throughout. This is a fun and interactive call and response picturebook with verbal and visual cues to engage young children from beginning to end. A simple story but a fun one, about a bear with a bear bare butt. The bare butt prompts much laughter but also keeps the focus of the young reader. The book encourages contribution throughout, with the simple but effective illustrations proving equally entertaining, especially the dramatic reveal of the butt in question. This funny and clever picturebook from John Kane will work perfectly on a one-to-one read or in a group setting, helping to build literacy while having lots of fun! (Age 3–7 years)
Dog Man by Dav Pilkey and translated by Máirín Ní Mhárta, Futa Fata, 231pp, ISBN 9781910945889
Tá plean ag an gcoirpeach glic Páidí an Cat fáil réidh leis an mbagairt ó na póilíní. Ach tá lúb ar lár sa scéim cham seo agus d’ainneoin a iarrachtaí lofa, cruthaíonn sé an garda is fearr ar domhan – Dog Man! Le corp láidir an duine agus intinn éirimiúil an mhadra, caithfidh Páidí dána agus na coirpigh eile a bheith ar a n-airdeall agus Dog Man ar a dtóir san úrscéal grafach seo. Is oiriúnach atá na habairtí gonta i scéal a bhogann ar aghaidh ar luas lasrach ach chomh maith leis sin, is tréith é seo atá tábhachtach dóibh siúd nach mbíonn ag léamh an Ghaeilge go minic. Is mór an dúshlán é saothar greannmhar a aistriú ach tá sárobair déanta ag Máirín Ní Mhárta sa chás seo mar bhí sí in ann atmaisféar an bhunthéacs chomh maith le pearsantacht bhríomhar Dog Man a aistriú go Gaeilge shoiléir, spleodrach. Ardú croí atá sa leabhar gleoite, dalba seo. (Gaeilge, Age 7–10 years)
A Whale of a Time edited by Lou Peacock and illustrated by Matt Hunt, Nosy Crow, 352pp, ISBN 9781839942013
As you journey through the year in this collection of 366 funny poems, you’ll catch yourself laughing out loud one minute, smiling over sweet and tender poems the next. The colourful spreads are paired with vibrant illustrations, with textures evoking scribbled crayons and markers bringing the punchlines to life. This collection is a thing of beauty, aimed at children but guaranteed to be enjoyed by adults who will recognise many poems from their own childhood. An excellent gift, a staple for the bookshelf, and an important reminder that poetry is for everyone. (Poetry, Age 7–10 years)
The Wild Life of Animals by Mark Barfield and Paula Bossio, Buster Books, 200pp, ISBN 9781780558196
The Wild Life of Animals tells the stories of all sorts of critters. It features some common favourites, like giant pandas, and some uncommon new ones – have you ever heard, for instance, of a bulldog bat or a paradoxical frog? The book is filled with cheeky characters, and we learn genuinely interesting and unusual facts; did you know that wombat poops are cube-shaped, or that cave fish poo out of their heads? It also ties ecology in nicely, telling us gently that we need to keep the planet cool because mountain pikas get very uncomfortable in warm temperatures, and that black howler monkeys have no food to eat if we cut down the trees they munch on. Children are encouraged to see animals as something to care for, not just to gawk at. The glossary is a lovely touch, explaining terms in ways that young readers can grasp and retain. (Non-fiction, Age 8–10 years)
Pizza Pete and the Perilous Potions by Carrie Sellon and illustrated by Sarah Horne, Guppy Books, 203pp, ISBN 9781913101954
Pete has a secret. Since an embarrassing and stressful public panic attack, he hasn’t left the house. But when his dad’s beloved pizza shop comes into financial trouble, he knows he must face his fears to save his home. In this laugh-out-loud adventure, Pete tries to save his dad’s pizza shop by creating magic pizzas with potions he found in his attic. Pete and his best friend Anna, along with their furry friend, Useless, get into all sorts of trouble in this page-turner featuring everything from exploding head teachers to cartwheeling grannies. The characters in this story are vivid and endearing, with their antics brought to life by Sarah Horne’s charming and quirky illustrations. While this story will appeal to readers who enjoy comedy and adventure, it also deals with important topics such as school, anxiety, and grief. (Age 10–12 years)
Ruth Concannon provided these great reading recommendations. She is the Publications Officer for Children’s Books Ireland, the national charity and arts organisation that champions every child’s right to develop a love of reading.
Their mission is to inspire a love of reading in children and young people in Ireland, to share their expertise and enthusiasm with the adults who guide and influence them, to champion every child’s right to excellent books and live literature events and support the artists who make that goal possible across the island of Ireland.
See www.childrensbooksireland.ie for more.
