Guys Read: Funny Business

This is a collection of stories by various children's authors, such as Adam Rex, Eoin Colfer, David Lubar, etc. While there were a couple of stories that were just so-so for me, most of them were freaking hilarious. I was laughing out loud through most of the book and ended up reading a couple of stories to my daughters because they just had to know what I was laughing about. I especially liked David Yoo's story of the boy being ousted from his family by a macho turkey and Sciezka and DiCamillo's collaborative story that parodies the book Dear Mr. Henshaw. The only think I didn't like about the book was that Jeff Kinney's story was left out of this advanced review copy . . . but you better believe I will be getting the final show more version.

Though the recommended age range for the book is 8-12, I felt like some of the stories were more for older kids. I think this would be a perfect book for middle-schoolers -- boys and girls! show less

Guys Read: Funny Business is the first installment in the promised Guys Read Library, a ten book series of themed, short stories edited by Scieszka.

The Funny Business stories are a mixed bag of humor. Christopher Paul Curtis' contribution, "What? You Think You've Got it Rough?" is the sort of tale that families love to share. Every family has a story that's told and re-told. This is the story of Papa Red, who is "straight-up nuts," and the day that - well, no, you'll have to read it yourself. "Your Question for Author Here" by Kate DiCamillo (the only female writer in the gang) and Jon Scieszka will be a favorite, and begins with Joe Jones' school assignment, a letter to an author,

"Dear Mrs. O'Toole,
We are reading this book in school show more where a kid writes to an author. So we have to write to an author. We are also studying "Parts of a Friendly Letter." So this is also a Friendly Letter. ... Please send a bunch of author stuff so we can get this over with.
Closing,
Joe Jones"

Eoin Colfer's "Artemis Begins" is another family story. In this case, the author's own family. Fans of Artemis Fowl will surely be interested in the real-life inspiration for the fictional criminal mastermind - Colfer's own brother, Donal! David Yoo offers humorous horror in "Fistful of Feathers," a tale of a turkey gone horribly bad,

"I felt feverish. The turkey stood at the edge of the room, its face silhouetted, its wings slightly askew. It stared at the bed, at me. My voice was caught in my throat. I held fistfuls of green sheets. I finally managed to whisper, "What do you want?" "DIE," the turkey said."

"Best of Friends" by Mac Barnett is a crisply written story of fourth grade humor and misery, building up to a last line, punch line. Adam Rex contributes "Will," a sci-fi, superhero spoof. David Lubar's "Kid Appeal" is a laugh-out-loud funny tale of the stupid things that a kid will do, especially when the parents haven't a clue,

"Dwight picked up the remote and switched channels. "Hey, look. Martians with chain saws. Cool. They have four arms. "Whoa," I said as the scene got violent. "Make that three arms." "This is great. I can't believe your parents don't block this channel." "They don't know how." Like with the thermostat, my parents were clueless about technology. If they ever figured out how to use any of the electronics in our house, my life wouldn't be anywhere as nice."

The reader won't see it coming at first, but Paul Feig's "My Parents Give My Bedroom to a Biker" is another sci-fi tale, and yes, they really do give the room to a biker. And, as if the boys in "Kid Appeal" aren't crazy enough, they've got nothing on the boy in Jack Gantos' "Bloody Souvenir!" Finally, there is Jeff Kinney, author of the Wimpy Kid series, whose contribution is missing in the advance edition because (according to Editor Jon Scieszka),

"Jeff had most of it written, but then he got a cough, and his dog started chewing on it, and he forgot to set his alarm, and it was written in washable ink and the ink washed off."

It's sure to be funny. This is a great lineup of authors who are guaranteed to crack kids up, particularly boys - after all, it's written expressly for them. Teachers should make note of this collection and think about adding short story assignments to their lesson plans. It's a great way to attract the reluctant reader, offer a quicker sense of accomplishment, and open the door to new authors and genres. Guys Read: Funny Business is a winner.
(Advance Reader Copy provided by publisher. Due out Fall 2010)
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I'm not a huge fan of short stories, so it took me a while to read this book even though I'd received a free ARC from the publisher (and I also thought I'd given it away to my young cousin, but turned out it was sitting on my shelf! oops.). But It was definitely worth reading! I think this collection has something for everyone--a little sci/fi, a little superhero action, a little sentimental reflection, and a little bit of gross-out humor as well (and who doesn't love that?). There were a few stories I loved and a few that I...didn't, but all in all a great collection!

I surprised myself by enjoying the majority of these stories. Even the ones I didn't like weren't all that bad, either.

My favorites:
"Will" by Adam Rex was super good. I didn't want that one to end, and would love to read a full-blown novel version.

"Artemis Begins" by Eoin Colfer was also really good, and not just because I'm an Artemis Fowl fan.

"Your Question for Author Here" by Kate DiCamillo and Jon Scieszka. LOVED this one. I'm a sucker for letter stories, but this one was really well done.

"A Fistful of Feathers" by David Yoo genuinely scared me. Very disturbing.

Like I said, the rest of the stories weren't bad. I would recommend the anthology not just to boys, but girls too.

I am familiar with Jon Scieszka's Guys Read promotion, but not so much with this website as a reader's advisory resource. I think it's incredibly important to keep boys reading when as the website mentions, there are so many reasons they stop. The subject headings are exactly what I can imagine boys actually ask for. For example, "books about space, without aliens" is great way to describe some sci-fi plots. This is a great resource for reluctant readers in general, regardless of gender, and that is this resource's true strength.

Perfect for most 9-12 year-old boys, also pretty darn funny even for a mom. Dramatic, crude, stupid - and laugh-out-loud funny. I am thankful that one story was about a boy who wasn't as macho as the others.

children's short stories/humor. Finally, something to satisfy reluctant readers (both boys and girls). Though some of the stories were definitely better than others, I look forward to seeing more of these compilations.