Book Riot's Read Harder Challenge discussion

Use this space to discuss books you're reading or that might fit the 4th Read Harder task.

Forever, Erma
Live Right and Find Happiness (Although Beer is Much Faster): Life Lessons and Other Ravings from Dave Barry
Al Franken, Giant of the Senate

One that I can recommend from my own reading:

Seriously... I'm Kidding

I might wait for Ten Steps to Nanette to come out next summer!

Seriously Happy by Jenny Lawson!

I have Bossypants on my kindle but Im also considering Let's Pretend This Never Happened: A Mostly True Memoir because I had so much fun reading Furiously Happy: A Funny Book About Horrible Things this year

Christopher Moore writes humorous books. I really enjoyed Practical Demonkeeping, which was a rather lighthearted humor read, and my boyfriend has liked a lot of his other books. I also recommend John Dies at the End though warn that while humorous it is. . . a bit intense and freaky and such.

Oh, Nimona and Lumberjanes, Vol. 1: Beware the Kitten Holy are full of hilarity, and definitely enjoyable reads. They count for the comic by a LGBTQIA creator slot too. I read them this year.

I also found THIS list. Some of the books I'm already reading for other tasks like Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch qualify, but I'll probably read another Christopher Moore book or the second John Dies At the End book called This Book Is Full of Spiders.

The Life-Changing Magic of Not Giving a F*ck: How to Stop Spending Time You Don't Have with People You Don't Like Doing Things You Don't Want to Do
super funny and actually helpful

Collections of newspaper comic strips can work for this, too. Do you like The Far Side, Dilbert, FoxTrot, Peanuts, Calvin & Hobbes, Zits, etc.? If so, this is an easy one to complete.

Terry Pratchett's Discworld books, which can be read in almost any order (except for the very first two which are a pair) are hilarious and amazing. Also the BBC made movies out of a couple that are fun in their own way.

I'm considering The Color of Magic which I'm told is funny, Hi, this is Sylvia. I can't come to the phone right now, so when you hear the beep, please hang up. which I found in an Under 100 Reviews Gr list, or Practical Demonkeeping that I saw on someone's list, although I don't remember who or what.
Edit: I read Practical Demonkeeping and didn't laugh a single time so I won't count it for this category. In fact, I wish I had those hours back.

I'm planning to listen to Hi Bob! for a different challenge, so that should work for this one, too.

Any fiction suggestions for this category? Funny books are not my normal fare, but I enjoyed Eleanor Oliphant so I'm thinking a novel would be easier for me.

Shannon wrote: "Any fiction suggestions for this category? Funny books are not my normal fare, but I enjoyed Eleanor Oliphant so I'm thinking a novel would be easier for me."

I'm doing something by Edgar Cantero I read Meddling Kids this year and while it had humor in it wasn't the main driving point of the book. It was a little weird, but still an entertaining book. I'm doing another of his books This Body's Not Big Enough for Both of Us.

For this one I'm pretty sure I'll go with David Sedaris, maybe his Theft Diaries... He's the most hilarious writer I know!

Jordan wrote: "Terry Pratchett's Discworld books, which can be read in almost any order (except for the very first two which are a pair) are hilarious and amazing. Also the BBC made movies out of a ..."
I'm so glad to hear that the Discworld books can be read out of order... I've been wanting to read them but was feeling a bit intimidated by the numbering system!

Shannon wrote: "Any fiction suggestions for this category? Funny books are not my normal fare, but I enjoyed Eleanor Oliphant so I'm thinking a novel would be easier for me."

If you like genre fiction, I've picked To Say Nothing of the Dog (and it's title namesake, Three Men in a Boat, is also funny). Alternatively, I thought Where'd You Go, Bernadette was hilarious although I'm not sure it was intended.

Would “The Only Pirate at the Party” by Lindsey Stirling qualify?

I’ve heard “The Humans” by Matt Haig is supposed to be funny, but genre-wise it’s more Sci-Fi. How exactly is “a humorous book” being defined for this challenge?

I would not use this guideline in a restrictive way, but if a bookstore would place it on the Humor shelf, then that's a very safe bet.

I'm looking forward to reading this Book Love by Debbie Tung - comics about book nerds, what could be better?!
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...

Erin wrote: "I’ve heard “The Humans” by Matt Haig is supposed to be funny, but genre-wise it’s more Sci-Fi. How exactly is “a humorous book” being defined for this challenge?"

I've noticed that too. Either the prompts are vague--a humor book--or very restrictive.

Lindsay wrote: "Would “The Only Pirate at the Party” by Lindsey Stirling qualify?"

I Read Only Pirate at the Party last year and although I think it's worth a read, I wouldn't say it's humorous.

Can anyone recommend something by a woman that isn't a celebrity memoir? Preferably something by a woman of color and/or queer woman? All the humor shelves I've glanced at are dominated by white men.

rae, I would highly recommend checking out Samantha Irby. "We Are Never Meeting in Real Life" is a hilarious collection of essays.

I've had a copy of I Killed: True Stories of the Road from America's Top Comics kicking around the house forever that I will finally tackle for this one - but - I also want to recommend a few titles for any fans of comedy:

Sleepwalk With Me and Other Painfully True Stories by Mike Birbiglia
Food: A Love Story by Jim Gaffigan
Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris
The Book of Vice: Very Naughty Things by Peter Sagal
The Year of Living Biblically or My Life as an Experiment by A.J. Jacobs
Bossypants by Tina Fey

Yes, Please by Amy Poehler
Tiny Ladies in Shiny Pants by Jill Soloway

Can’t seem to makes those cool links with the book titles?!

I just borrowed My Sister, the Serial Killer from the library and it seems to fit as dark humor/satire.

this is a novel about stand-up comedy, though I don't know whether it will fit the challenge category. A Horse Walks into a Bar

I loved reading Food: A Love Story, Matt! That is an excellent suggestion.

Tanya, if you are posting from a mobile device you won't be able to link book titles etc. That feature is only available on desktops or similar devices.

I will recommend “Killing Monika” - Candace Bushnell.. really funny from the beginning till the end i love it.

Tracy wrote: "I have Bossypants on my kindle but Im also considering Let's Pretend This Never Happened: A Mostly True Memoir because I had so much fun reading Furiously Happy..."</i>

I'm reading [book:Let's Pretend This Never Happened: A Mostly True Memoir because of how much I loved Furiously happy too!

Tanya wrote: "Yes, Please by Amy Poehler
Tiny Ladies in Shiny Pants by Jill Soloway

Can’t seem to makes those cool links with the book titles?!"

On mobile divices you can do it like this:
[book: title-of-your-book]

for example
[book: Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone]
should link to Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone


(for authors it's the same: [author: J.K. Rowling] --> J.K. Rowling)

https://www.goodreads.com/help/show/4...

A couple of classics I've been wanting to read fall under this category:

The Princess Bride
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

Hi there! I'm compiling everyone's suggestions onto lists for the challengesin case that;'s easier for some people (I know it is for me) c:

https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1...

Andie wrote: "rae, I would highly recommend checking out Samantha Irby. "We Are Never Meeting in Real Life" is a hilarious collection of essays."

This book is one of my all time favorites - laugh out loud funny with cringe-worthy vulnerability in a raw, honest voice.

Lucia wrote: "Hi there! I'm compiling everyone's suggestions onto lists for the challengesin case that;'s easier for some people (I know it is for me) c:

https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1......"

Love it! Also do a search for the NYPL Suggestions on the Read Harder Challenges. https://www.nypl.org/blog/2018/12/28/...

I'm glad I'm not the only one who is, weirdly, struggling with this category. I tend to define Read Harder categories relatively strictly, and to me a "humor book" is a collection of funny essays, something that David Sedaris or Bill Bryson might write. So to me, any novel I found funny wouldn't sit right for me.

I was going to use A Walk in the Woods for my book by a journalist, but I might move it back here instead since I think I might actually have a harder time with this category than with that one!

Kate wrote: "I'm glad I'm not the only one who is, weirdly, struggling with this category. I tend to define Read Harder categories relatively strictly, and to me a "humor book" is a collection of funny essays, ..."
I read that last year in the book about Nature. The man is definitely amusing and you will enjoy it. I was surprised when I first saw someone list it as a suggestion here, and then I thought, yes, yes. Like you I think of humor as jokes and such - Jenny Lawson. I wonder if perhaps Ann Landers would work?

This year I'm planning on using books I already possess for most of the challenges!
So.. For "humor book" Emma it is.
Ive read its considered a comedy.

I'm reading , a comic novel which won the Pulitzer Prize in 2018.

I would like to suggest The Rosie Project as a romantic and humorous book. Also for double dippers the main character has Asperger's syndrome.

I love humor! Any of the Hitchhiker's Guide series by Douglas Adams would work, or his Dirk Gently's Detective Agency. Anything by P.G. Wodehouse or David Sedaris. 3 Men in a Boat (not to mention the dog) by Jerome K. Jerome is a classic. As well as The Princess Bride.

rae wrote: "Can anyone recommend something by a woman that isn't a celebrity memoir? Preferably something by a woman of color and/or queer woman? All the humor shelves I've glanced at are dominated by white men."

Not WOC or queer as far as I know but:

I really loved Hark! A Vagrant and it was hilarious so for this I am going to read: Step Aside, Pops

The Samantha Irby book looks pretty great!

I was also looking at David Sedaris, or one of Daniel Ortberg's books (earlier copies published under Mallory Ortberg) - Texts from Jane Eyre: And Other Conversations with Your Favorite Literary Characters or The Merry Spinster: Tales of Everyday Horror

For people after fiction, Jasper Fforde's books always make me laugh and The Eyre Affair and the following series are great for book lovers

There are many books I would love to read for this task, but I'm going to go with Terry Pratchett's "Pyramid" as I haven't had a chance to read any of his books yet.

I finished my first book for this challenge, Hyperbole and a Half: Unfortunate Situations, Flawed Coping Mechanisms, Mayhem, and Other Things That Happened. I got it from the library to read late last year, but didn't get around to it. It was fine. I rarely laugh out loud at books.

I adored Hey Ladies!: The Story of 8 Best Friends, 1 Year, and Way, Way Too Many Emails, which is a hilarious skewering of modern women's relationships and emotional labor, and would qualify as an epistolary novel/collection of letters (task 1) as well.

I'm reading Horrorstör. Involving a haunted Ikea (sorry, "Orsk" store). The book is laid out like an Ikea catalog, very fun.