The Big Joke Game

by Scott Corbett

A young boy who loves practical jokes and games finds himself in the strange land of Limbo where the only way out is to play a complicated game.

Genres: Fiction, Fantasy, Childrens

111 pages, Hardcover

First published April 1, 1972

About the author

Scott Corbett (July 27, 1913 – March 6, 2006) was an American novelist and educator. He wrote five adult novels, the first published in 1950, and then began writing books for children. He retired from teaching in 1965 to write full-time. His best known book is The Lemonade Trick, a children's novel.

Reviews

[Random Scholar · Rating 3 out of 5]

The language of this book is very dated. This was evident with words like "queer" to describe something strange, and "gay" to describe someone who was happy. The whole premise of the story was that Ozzy kept cracking jokes at others expense until he fell and hit his head, causing him to go into Limbo with a guardian devil. The guardian devil had Ozzy play a big joke game in order to come back to life.

I loved the moral of this story because there are too many people who act just like Ozzy, even to this day. I know this book was published in 1972, but it's 2019 and I still know people of all ages who act just as rude as Ozzy did. At the same time, I couldn't help but like Ozzy's character. The book was written in a way that made readers empathize with him, especially in regards to his thoughts.

Since it's becoming increasingly trendy to become offended by anything remotely controversial these days, I wouldn't bring this book into a classroom. Too many people would erupt into an argument over the idea of being in Limbo or having a guardian Devil. You would also have too many people trying to censor the words "queer" or "gay" as they were used in the story. As a lesbian myself, I was not offended at all because I know the historical context of these words. Despite all that, you would still have some people who would be in an uproar over the language. This is a common theme with a lot of older books, and I suspect that is one of the reasons why many of these stories don't make their way into classrooms these days.

[Carrie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was one of my favorite books as a kid, and Scott Corbett was my favorite author. It's dated, for sure (the main character is obsessed with jokes and games--and that's board games, not videogames), but still a great page-turner for the grammar school set.

[Kiz V. J. Moncrieff · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this in the course of one day. It is a children's book little over a hundred pages and as an adult, I have to admit it is a damn good book.

The story follows a boy how doesn't take other people's feelings into account when he makes jokes and it causes problems with his life. When he is thrown into a living game where the aim is go make jokes and be funny... While his confidence in making limericks increases, hearing other people speak in jokes and joke about him his views change.

Even as an adult I feel like I've learnt something or simply reminded myself of just how selective jokes need to be.

This is definitely a book I recommend children to read and although it is an old one, I definitely feel the meaning of the story is something everyone should learn.

[Ginny Kaczmarek · Rating 4 out of 5]

After years of trying to remember the title of this book—I remembered the plot from when I was a kid but that was it—I finally got my hands on a copy. It did not disappoint. It’s such an odd story. Sure it has a lesson and cringey bits, but the jokes and that sense of going for a ride with a master storyteller reminds me of why I wanted to be a writer in the first place. Pretty sure this book was it.

[Steph · Rating 5 out of 5]

loved this book when i was a kid & borrowed it from the library again & again. as an adult, found a hardcover copy & reread it again and again to this day. on booksleuth bb on the abebooks.com site, many people remember this book so it must've really struck a chord with lots of young people. very imaginative.

[Leela4 · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this when I was eleven or so and loved it. For years I said I would read it again, but somehow never got to it.

[Steven · Rating 5 out of 5]

Favorite book of fourth grade.

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book as a kid. Read for nostalgia as an adult and still holds up as a fun and solid story with a small lesson for kids.

[Kathy O’Neal · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my FAVORITE childhood reads. I checked this out from the library almost weekly.

[STACEY SMALLWOOD · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book when I read it in 3rd grade. I re-read it as an adult and while juvenile in nature (as it's meant to be) I still got a kick out of it.

[Ashley Lambert-Maberly · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was one of my favourite books as a kid (as others have written in their review!), the kind I'd read over and over again (despite not owning it: once a season I'd take it out of the library and tear through it again).

Mr. Corbett sure knew how to write fun. Whether it was his "Trick" series, or this spectacular one-off, his plots moved from exciting moment to exciting moment swiftly, and they were interesting and clever and amusing and delightful, all at once. He was rarely scary, rarely too emotional, but when he needed those elements they too could be deftly introduced.

In this book, which is sort of like The Phantom Tollbooth's rowdy cousin, our protagonist is plunged into a world which is a giant game, and (despite the dangers) it just seems like the most marvellous place to spend time in. If I can't go there myself, the next best thing is reading about it.

Impossible for me to imagine someone not enjoying this, unless they're a cranky curmudgeon who only reads te'bly te'bly serious book-club books.

(Note: 5 stars = amazing, wonderful, 4 = very good book, 3 = decent read, 2 = disappointing, 1 = awful, just awful. )

[Shawn Thrasher · Rating 2 out of 5]

A not very successful ape of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland & Through the Looking-Glass and The Phantom Tollbooth. Ozzie, the main character, isn't as well drawn out as needed to be to survive and live among characters like Alice and Milo.

This was a childhood favorite, and I enjoyed reading it for nostalgia's sake, but there is definitely a reason it's out of print.

[Hawthorn Mineart · Rating 5 out of 5]

A childhood favorite that I hunted down a copy of. Scott Corbett wrote a number of books I loved as a kid. This was a particular favorite as I used to enjoy fantasizing about jumping into board games and playing as a playing piece.

[Lisa (Hearnsberger) Hale · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another one of my ALL-TIME faves as a kid & adult!

[Kathleen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun read, for those who like old games (or old stories!)