Looking for books that the comedy lovers in your family will want you to read over and over again? Check out these 10 children’s books that have been proven to elicit giggles, chuckles, and guffaws.
“Why is 6 afraid of 7? Because 7 ate 9!” It’s a joke that’s always just pun-ny enough to make someone hearing it for the first time chuckle. Now, Tara Lazar has fleshed the old joke out into a Whodunit story for kids. 9 has vanished and everyone suspects that 7 had something to do with it. 6 is fearful for his life. After all, everyone knows that 7 is always after 6. 6 seeks out the help of Private I, who goes on a mission to find out what happened to 9. If your kids love math puns or a good mystery (with a twist), they are sure to get a chuckle while reading this.
“Be Quiet!” by Ryan T. Higgins
All Rupert the mouse wants is to be the star in a story. A beautiful picture book, in fact. Now he finally has the chance to make it happen. He is going to be in a beautiful picture book that is so visually stimulating it doesn’t need words. Unfortunately for him (and fortunately for the readers) his two friends show up. Even though they try to go along with Rupert’s vision, they can’t help but to talk. The result is that Rupert gets more and more upset and finally goes on a huge word-filled rant. The story is hilarious and the pictures only add to it. This will likely be a favorite.
“Honestly Red Riding Hood Was Rotten” by Trisha Speed Shaskan 
If your family loves fractured fairy tales, then this is right up your alley. This story is told from the point of view of the wolf from Little Red Riding Hood, who wants to set the story straight about why he gobbled up the eponymous heroine and her grandmother. Turns out it all boils down to a vegetarian wolf who learns that things look different when you’re hungry. The illustrations are funny and the story can help teach that there are always at least two different points of view in any situation.
“Interrupting Chicken” by David Ezra Stein 
Do you have a child who always questions why characters in stories behave the way they do? For example, have they asked you “But mommy, why doesn’t Little Red Riding Hood see that that is just a wolf in disguise? It’s so obvious!” If so, this book will make them chuckle. The little red chicken is enjoying a series of bedtime stories with her Papa. But the problem is that she sees danger a mile away and is determined to interrupt and alter the story to keep everyone safe. After her exhausted father runs out of stories, it’s her turn to be the storyteller. Will she be able to tell her story without being interrupted? You can’t help but to find this story charming, especially with the beautiful illustrations.
“Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Tale” by Mo Willems 
Mo Willems is a comic genius and this story is proof of that. It’s all about a little girl and her “lovey”- in this case a stuffed toy called the Knuffle Bunny. She has fun going to the laundromat with her father, helping him to put everything in the washing machine. Then they get home only to find that Knuffle Bunny is missing. And she is having NO PARTS of that. Any parent who has had to deal with a case of a missing lovey can relate to this hilarious story. You may find it hard to read with bursting into laughter at the illustrations. (One thing I love about the illustrations is that they are photographed backgrounds with cartoon characters in front.) After you fall in love with this story, I urge you to read Knuffle Bunny Too: A Case of Mistaken Identity. It is hilarious and sweet as well.
“Lady Pancake and Sir French Toast” by Josh Funk 
This story begins in the kingdom of the refrigerator, where leftover friends, Lady Pancake and Sir French Toast learn that there is only a single drop of syrup left. They both want it! Thus begins a race (and fight) to the syrupy finish. Who will win? Told with pitch perfect rhyming, this story is a funny take on what happens with food when we’re not watching. It’s also a gentle reminder about friendship and sharing.
“Mixed Up Fairy Tales” by Hilary Robinson
This split page, spiral-bound book allows you to do just what the title promises – mix up fairy tales with hilarious results. For example: “Goldilocks had a jealous stepmother with a talking mirror and fell asleep for a hundred years before being woken by Little Red Riding Hood’s granny”. Your kids will have fun mixing things up to create their own silly fairy tales (especially if they are already familiar with the real stories).
This story is about trying to solve a growing problem…by throwing things at it. It all begins when a little boy named Floyd gets his kite stuck in a tree. After pulling and swinging fail to do the trick, he decides that throwing a shoe should help. Of course, that gets stuck as well. Instead of giving up, Floyd continues to throw all manner of things in the tree, including a duck, a chair, a bicycle, the kitchen sink, a mailman, and a curious whale that was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. He even throws firemen who came by to help! Your kids will chuckle as Floyd does things that only makes the problem worse. Will he ever get his kite down?
“Warning: Do Not Open this Book” by Adam Lehrhaupt
Little kids love turning the pages of this book, despite its constant warnings for the reader to put the book down and walk away. As the reader continues to ignore the cautionary measures, the story devolves into chaos as a mad pack of monkeys run amok. Then readers are invited to save the day by setting an ingenious banana trap. This is a cute, interactive story that kids will want you to read again and again. Tip: Really lay it on thick when protesting the reading of the book. That really gets the big laughs.
“We are in a Book” by Mo Willems
I had to end this list with yet another Mo Willems book. The “Elephant and Piggie” series is absolutely on my must-have list. I have yet to read one of the stories that didn’t make everyone (including adults) laughing out loud. In this story, which is said to be the last in the series, BFFs Elephant and Piggie, finally catch on to the fact that they are in a book and that people are watching their every move. Better yet, they realize that they can make the readers say whatever they want them to, which leads to laughter. The story gets a bit sad when they realize they are rushing headlong towards the end of the book. But then they remember the beauty of a good book- you can read it over and over again.
Here’s to a ton of laughs as you work your way through this list. I’d also love to know which books make you and your family laugh out loud. Let me know in the comments below!