shinyhappypeople Posted March 6, 2013 Share Posted March 6, 2013 My 9 yo hates to read because she thinks it's boring. However, I got her a copy of (oh my gosh, I can barely type it...) Captain Underpants from a thrift store for 25 cents. Hey, don't judge me, I was desperate! Anyway, she picked it up yesterday and read the entire book cover to cover. She LOVED it. I heard her laughing practically the whole way through. :) Reading is no longer boring for her! I know there are other books in this series. I'll probably get them for her. But what are some other extremely funny chapter books like CU? Bonus points if the books are lightly illustrated like CU. I'm trying to help her build up her stamina, because her ultimate goal is to tackle Harry Potter. I'm not going to engage in the twaddle debate. She's reading. She's making positive associations with books and now believes reading can be fun. I.don't.care whether or not these books are high quality literature. I just care that she has fun doing something she used to dread. By the way, the factor that has influenced her to even try reading more is that every single one of her girlfriends is a voracious reader. Three cheers for peer pressure!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elizsharp Posted March 6, 2013 Share Posted March 6, 2013 They aren't gross but maybe a chose your own adventure book? They are fun to read and re-read since the story changes each time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dbmamaz Posted March 6, 2013 Share Posted March 6, 2013 yeah, curious what her other interests are? my reluctant reader will read club penguin books. he also loved stink, and squish. and he'll read horrible science and murderous maths books. the books of How to Train your Dragon . . . diary of a wimpy kid . . . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nmoira Posted March 6, 2013 Share Posted March 6, 2013 Franny K. Stein Baby Mouse Bad Kitty Wayside School series (Sachar) The Secret Knowledge of Grown-Ups Nate the Great Diary of a Wimpy Kid Roald Dahl Calvin and Hobbes Clementine Frindle and other books by Andrew Clements Daniel Pinkwater - The Werewolf Club series, The Hoboken Chicken Emergency and many others How to Eat Fried Worms Bruce Coville - My Teacher is an Alien and others Horace Splattly: The Cupcaked Crusader The Best Christmas Pageant Ever I Was a Rat! (Pullman) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EJCMom Posted March 6, 2013 Share Posted March 6, 2013 It is such a relief to find something they are willing to read more than two pages of, without complaint, isn't it?! I will have to keep this series in mind for when my son is done with the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series. My daughter is also a reluctant reader. We finally found a hit with (it's painful to type) My Little Pony, something about Twilight Sparkle. She's reading. If I could do backflips, I'd be turning them up and down the street. I LOVE to read. I want my kids to LOVE to read. If it takes My Little Pony to get her to LOVE to read, we will buy every MLP book they publish. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roadrunner Posted March 6, 2013 Share Posted March 6, 2013 Have you tried Pippi Longstocking? It's not as cool as some of the titles I saw above, but it did it for my younger boy. Since its about a girl and a very cool one if you ask me, your DD might just find it interesting and funny. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clear Creek Posted March 6, 2013 Share Posted March 6, 2013 My 8 (almost 9) year old reluctant reader enjoys the Geronimo Stilton books. She also likes Calvin and Hobbes, Garfield, and Fancy Nancy (not chapter books, but still reading nonetheless). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arborite Posted March 6, 2013 Share Posted March 6, 2013 Horrible Histories are disgusting. She might like them! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thebacabunch Posted March 7, 2013 Share Posted March 7, 2013 GO to horriblebooks.com. There are tons of educational and disgusting books available there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deee Posted March 7, 2013 Share Posted March 7, 2013 Anything by Andy Griffiths, Morris Gleitzman or Paul Jennings (yes, Australia punches well above its weight in this category). Jackie French has a few as well, although some of hers are more serious (and all are very well written). The Selby books by Duncan Ball are very good and very silly (I think our first ever poetry analysis was something about bums). Asterix, TinTin, and the wonderful, fabulous Roald Dahl! D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shinyhappypeople Posted March 7, 2013 Author Share Posted March 7, 2013 Great suggestions, thanks so much! Do keep them coming :) We went to the library yesterday and I discussed my dilemma with our awesome children's librarian. She suggested funny (but not gross) books by Andrew Clements. Meanwhile, when we went to Barnes & Noble DD insisted that she wanted to read Harry Potter, so I bought it for her. It's a huge leap (small text, lots of pages) but she's motivated by the fact that almost all of her closest friends have read and loved that book. Peer pressure is working in our favor at the moment :) She's about 3 or 4 pages in and is remembering what she's read, so I guess it's not too hard for her. I swear, there was something magical for this DD about turning 9 years old. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julie Smith Posted March 7, 2013 Share Posted March 7, 2013 Franny K. Stein I really like this series. Have you tried Pippi Longstocking? It's not as cool as some of the titles I saw above, but it did it for my younger boy. Since its about a girl and a very cool one if you ask me, your DD might just find it interesting and funny. We are reading this series right now. I agree that it might be a perfect fit for your daughter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grovegirl Posted March 8, 2013 Share Posted March 8, 2013 My struggling reader loved the My Weird School/My Weirder School series by Dan Gutman. I didn't really like the content, but they were the only books I could get her to read. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
briansmama Posted March 8, 2013 Share Posted March 8, 2013 I would just give her Harry Potter. Ds9 loves to be read to and was really hesitant to read chapter books to himself until he was so excited to get to the next chapter in each HP book that he would continue reading after Dh put him to bed. He's now reading the last books in the series on his own. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carriewillard Posted March 8, 2013 Share Posted March 8, 2013 My 10 yo daughter and 12 yo son retain an incredible amount of history from the Oh Yuck history book, they love reading it. Joy Masoff is the author. I actually enjoy reading it! :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carriewillard Posted March 8, 2013 Share Posted March 8, 2013 Everyone Poops and The Holes In My Nose for my toddler, she is all about poop and boogers currently. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zoobie Posted March 8, 2013 Share Posted March 8, 2013 The Invention of Hugo Cabret isn't gross, but it is heavy on the sketches rather than words. It's a nice, thick book, so it feels like an impressive accomplishment to finish. :) Roald Dahl's The Twits is rather disgusting (in a good way) and got my DD to read other books of his. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nscribe Posted March 8, 2013 Share Posted March 8, 2013 My 10 yo daughter and 12 yo son retain an incredible amount of history from the Oh Yuck history book, they love reading it. Joy Masoff is the author. I actually enjoy reading it! :) The Oh Yuck! and Horrible Histories were big hits. Phineas Gage = another one. Ripley's, the Guiness Books, any of the Wierd (insert state name) and so forth are all hits. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris in VA Posted March 8, 2013 Share Posted March 8, 2013 When she's a little more comfortable, try the Sid Fleishman books. Seconding Wayside School series--some clever language play and they aren't that badly written. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
weederberries Posted March 8, 2013 Share Posted March 8, 2013 Diary of a Wimpy Kid Clementine These are the books that encouraged my reluctant, but skilled, readers to enjoy books. I would also recommend Judy Moody, the sister of Stink. The Hank the Cowdog books are hilarious. I would recommend getting an audio book and following along with the first one or two because you really get a feel for the humor that way. Then, she'll be able to read and distinguish the subtle jokes from reality. They're probably a little low for her level, but the Junie B Jones series had my kids laughing in stitches. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nomen Nescio Posted March 8, 2013 Share Posted March 8, 2013 In the Terry Pratchett book Snuff, there's a children's book called The World of Poo. Subsequently, they actually published The World of Poo as a separate book. I haven't gotten a chance to read it myself, but in the world of the novel it was described as very much the kind of thing the OP is talking about. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blondeviolin Posted March 8, 2013 Share Posted March 8, 2013 Have you tried Pippi Longstocking? It's not as cool as some of the titles I saw above, but it did it for my younger boy. Since its about a girl and a very cool one if you ask me, your DD might just find it interesting and funny. I agree. We checked out this edition illustrated by Lauren Child and my girl LOVED all of the illustrations. You might see if your library has it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori D. Posted March 8, 2013 Share Posted March 8, 2013 lots of illustrations and humor (gr. 3 reading level): Ottoline and the Yellow Cat (Riddell) Roscoe Riley Rules series (Applegate) Ellie McDoodle: Have Pen, Will Travel (Barshaw) Stink series (McDonald) Franny K. Stein series (Benton) Geronimo Stilton series (Stilton) Zombiekins (Bolger) Splurch Academy series (Berry) humor series: Time Warp Trio series (Scieszka) (gr. 3-4 reading level) Bruce Coville books (gr. 5-6 reading level) Bunnicula series (Howe) (gr. 5-6 reading level) Hank the Cowdog series (Erickson) (gr. 4-5 reading level) humorous books our DSs enjoyed: Time Warp Trio series (Scieszka) -- and other books by Scieszka Henry Huggins series (McCleary) (gr. 3 reading level) The Whipping Boy (gr. 3); By the Great Horn Spoon (gr. 3-4) (Fleischman) -- and other books by Fleischman Trumpet of the Swan (White) (gr. 3-4 reading level) Pippi in the South Seas (Lindgren) (gr. 3-4 reading level) Mrs. Piggle Wiggle series (MacDonald) (gr. 4 reading level) The Best Christmas Pagent Ever (Robinson) (gr. 4-5 reading level) Calvin and Hobbes comic collections (Watterson) The Great Brain series (Fitzgerald) (gr. 5-6 reading level) magic books by Edward Eager (gr. 5-6 reading level) illustrated books our DSs enjoyed: "exploded view" books with lots of illustrations and "bites" of text for captions Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
North Coast School Posted March 8, 2013 Share Posted March 8, 2013 Harry Potter 1 and 2 (I think the later ones are too mature for a 9 year old) Bad Kitty books (illustrated like Captain Underpants) Dear Dumb Diary Series Dork Diary series Ellie McDoodle A series of Unfortunate Events (not gross, per say, but dark humor) Aything by Dahl (Fantastic Mr Fox, Charlie and the Choc Factory; James and the Giant Peach--again, not gross, but illustrated lightly and have a sort of dark humor abou them) Also, there are lots and lots of wonderful graphic novels out there now, many for kids. Talk to your librarian about graphic novels that suit your DD's tastes. My 5 yo likes to look at Star Wars and Ninjago graphic novels. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blondeviolin Posted March 8, 2013 Share Posted March 8, 2013 Just noticing your icon...there are also Phineas and Ferb chapter books. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom2OandE Posted March 8, 2013 Share Posted March 8, 2013 My 10 year old loves the Dork Diaries. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gingersmom Posted March 9, 2013 Share Posted March 9, 2013 Ricky Ricotta Zack files Hank Zipzer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roadrunner Posted March 9, 2013 Share Posted March 9, 2013 Lindgren, the author of Pippi, also wrote Karlson on the roof. It is absolutely fantastic and hillarious. "Karlsson's antics earned him the ire of some traditional educators and parents, who believed Karlsson would incite young children to disobey authority, and mistrust and fear babysitters." This quote from Wikipedia explains why the book didn't become popular in the U.S. Oxford University Press finally reprinted the books. Highly recommended! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alte Veste Academy Posted March 9, 2013 Share Posted March 9, 2013 I will heartily third the Bad Kitty books. DD LOVES these books! She laughed so hard over them that the boys were jealous and kept running off with them. The laughter always gave them away though... ;) :D Our library has them, but even after reading through each one several times, she begged me to buy them. I think Bad Kitty Gets a Bath is first. http://www.amazon.com/Kitty-Gets-Bath-Nick-Bruel/dp/0312581386/ref=pd_sim_b_14 There is a 3 book box set though, so cheaper that way. http://www.amazon.com/Bad-Kitty-Boxed-Nick-Bruel/dp/1250010349/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1362809855&sr=1-1&keywords=Bad+kitty+box+set Also agreeing with Calvin and Hobbes, probably the biggest hit of all time here. They are so well loved that we frequently have to confiscate them. :lol: ETA: Regarding... I got her a copy of (oh my gosh, I can barely type it...) Captain Underpants from a thrift store for 25 cents. Hey, don't judge me, I was desperate! Santa brought Captain Underpants for DS6. Only he would allow that to come into my house... DH was absolutely shocked! :tongue_smilie: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bug's Mom Posted March 9, 2013 Share Posted March 9, 2013 Calvin & Hobbes The Aldo Zelnick books by Karla Oceanak http://www.aldozelnick.com/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hockey Mom Posted March 9, 2013 Share Posted March 9, 2013 I didn't read through all of the responses yet, but have you considered purchasing the books AND audio books? We've tackled a couple of "big" books this way, and it has really ignited a fire for my boys in our quest to "love reading". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4ofus Posted March 10, 2013 Share Posted March 10, 2013 The Truth About Poop Gee Whiz It's Disgusting & I Ate It These are some fun books to read ~ they were read when my kids did Human Body using GuestHollow as a guideline ~ the books stayed on our shelves & the boys STILL pull them off to read occasionally. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SailorMom Posted March 10, 2013 Share Posted March 10, 2013 The first two Harry Potter books are pretty easy reads. They do 'grow up' with their audience.... Calvin and Hobbes! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cagirlintexas Posted March 14, 2013 Share Posted March 14, 2013 Great ideas how about horrible Henry and horrible Harry. These are 2 different series. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.