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humor in children's books
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From: Megan Schliesman <Schliesman>
Date: Wed, 06 May 1998 10:00:43 -0500
I'm glad Tana Elias mentioned Gregory Maguire's Seven Spiders Spinning and Six Haunted Hairdos, two books at the upper end of the age range of those we are discussing right now that jumped to my mind when I was thinking of funny books. I think the characters that inhabit Maguire's tiny town of Hamlet, Vermont, are gems--distinctive personalities and types, but not too outrageous. For me the outrageousness--and the humor--comes from the over-the-top situations that the author establishes and the way he describes the characters as they move through those situations. The plot elements--ghosts of mammoths and a baby elephant? prehistoric spiders?--would not make a funny book on their own, but the characters' responding to them do. Maguire describes one of the characters in the books, Pearl Hotchkiss, as "a rogue and a freethinker" in Six Haunted Hairdos. It makes me laugh every time I think of it--this 11-year-old who stands on her own convictions. But I am never laughing at her, just along with the author in sweet admiration of who Pearl is.
Another book for grades 3-6 that I find wonderfully funny is My Life Among the Aliens by Gail Gauthier. In it, two brothers discover aliens from other planets invading their neighborhood, usually in the guise of new kids on the block. I especially appreciated their descriptions of their own life at home, however, with two very interesting parents who define the rules of their world (but just don't get it about the aliens).
One of the books for younger readers that I loved from this past year is Queenie by Bob Graham, about a chicken who adopts a family. This is quieter humor, built again aroud an unusual situation and interesting characters--from the chicken to the unconventional parents of the toddler child in the story to Bruno the jealous dog.
Something that all of these books I just mentioned have in common, in addition to humor, is the sense of emotional fulfillment they bring along with the laughter. This is not true of every funny book, nor would I want it to be--I like humor that is edgy and irreverent as well--but these particular titles have for me a certain emotional tenor--a sense of comfort--that is also appealing. The worlds' their child characters inhabit are not perfect, but they are safe and loving, even as they inspire laughter.
Megan Schliesman (schliesman at mail.soemadison.wisc.edu) Cooperative Children's Book Center School of Education UW-Madison 600 N. Park St., Room 4290 Madison, WI 53706 608&2?03
Received on Wed 06 May 1998 10:00:43 AM CDT
Date: Wed, 06 May 1998 10:00:43 -0500
I'm glad Tana Elias mentioned Gregory Maguire's Seven Spiders Spinning and Six Haunted Hairdos, two books at the upper end of the age range of those we are discussing right now that jumped to my mind when I was thinking of funny books. I think the characters that inhabit Maguire's tiny town of Hamlet, Vermont, are gems--distinctive personalities and types, but not too outrageous. For me the outrageousness--and the humor--comes from the over-the-top situations that the author establishes and the way he describes the characters as they move through those situations. The plot elements--ghosts of mammoths and a baby elephant? prehistoric spiders?--would not make a funny book on their own, but the characters' responding to them do. Maguire describes one of the characters in the books, Pearl Hotchkiss, as "a rogue and a freethinker" in Six Haunted Hairdos. It makes me laugh every time I think of it--this 11-year-old who stands on her own convictions. But I am never laughing at her, just along with the author in sweet admiration of who Pearl is.
Another book for grades 3-6 that I find wonderfully funny is My Life Among the Aliens by Gail Gauthier. In it, two brothers discover aliens from other planets invading their neighborhood, usually in the guise of new kids on the block. I especially appreciated their descriptions of their own life at home, however, with two very interesting parents who define the rules of their world (but just don't get it about the aliens).
One of the books for younger readers that I loved from this past year is Queenie by Bob Graham, about a chicken who adopts a family. This is quieter humor, built again aroud an unusual situation and interesting characters--from the chicken to the unconventional parents of the toddler child in the story to Bruno the jealous dog.
Something that all of these books I just mentioned have in common, in addition to humor, is the sense of emotional fulfillment they bring along with the laughter. This is not true of every funny book, nor would I want it to be--I like humor that is edgy and irreverent as well--but these particular titles have for me a certain emotional tenor--a sense of comfort--that is also appealing. The worlds' their child characters inhabit are not perfect, but they are safe and loving, even as they inspire laughter.
Megan Schliesman (schliesman at mail.soemadison.wisc.edu) Cooperative Children's Book Center School of Education UW-Madison 600 N. Park St., Room 4290 Madison, WI 53706 608&2?03
Received on Wed 06 May 1998 10:00:43 AM CDT
