In case you could stand to smile…these six books, recommended for preschool and/or primary readers, are full of giggles and chortles for young readers and listeners and for adult readers-aloud. See also the Humorous stories tag in the Guide/Reviews Database.

Silly Boobies: A Love Story
by Ame Dyckman; illus. by Christopher Weyant
Preschool, Primary    Two Lions/Amazon    48 pp.
8/24    9781662504129    $17.99

Boobies are birds that live along the coasts of the Eastern Pacific. In this book, the red-footed boobies live on one rock in the sea; the blue-footed boobies live on a rock across the way. The groups vie for dominance and taunt each other (shouting “BEST!” and blowing raspberries), frustrating the hermit crab that lives on the rock between them. A Shakespearean drama unfolds when a blue-footed booby and a red-footed booby meet and fall in love. Ink and watercolor cartoon illustrations with heavy lines contrast with gently shaded colors, creating a sense of character and whimsy while also depicting realistic flourishes such as accurate booby courtship behaviors. Plentiful white space focuses the eye and presents opportunities for oversize text in expressive type to bring the words and art together. The text is a mix of straightforward and comical, with asides to make adults smile, as when readers learn that the hermit crab can perform the lovers’ wedding ceremony “thanks to a certificate he got on the internet.” As is the case in many families nursing an ancient grudge, the emergence of a baby makes everyone reconsider their antagonistic positions. “And finally, all the boobies actually agreed!” Back matter provides facts about boobies. Humorous lessons on life and animal behavior make this a memorable offering. ADRIENNE L. PETTINELLI

Duck, Duck, Goose!
by John Hare; illus. by the author
Preschool, Primary    Greenwillow    32 pp.
9/24    9780063093232    $19.99

On the opening double-page spread, a single duck flies over a peaceful wintry rural landscape while the rhyming text states the obvious: “Duck.” A second duck joins the first on the following spread. “Duck. Duck.” Next up, “Duck. Duck. Goose.” No surprise there…but buckle up, because Hare’s (Field Trip to Volcano Island, rev. 3/22) picture-book romp is about to go off the rails. On the fourth spread, the ducks and goose are now joined by “Moose?” Yes, “Moose on the loose” in a creative flying contraption. From there, the wacky story — involving­ a train, a truck, some muck, and both bad and good luck — takes readers on a wild ride. Hare’s engagingly composed cartoonlike illustrations, “a blend of hand-drawn pencil with digital color and accents,” take the wheel from the stripped-down text, heightening the absurdity. Effective page-turns, text placement, and punctuation enhance the spot-on comedic timing. This is tailor-made for story hours; the simple, repeated vocabulary and large, bold type would also support emerging readers. The adventure ends with ducks, goose, moose, and a hitchhiking hen enjoying tropical “Surf. Sand. Ocean. Sun.” Flying south for the winter may not always be this chaotic — but these snowbirds sure stick the landing. KITTY FLYNN

Everything Is Grape!
by Alastair Heim; illus. by Michelle Tran
Primary    Holt    32 pp.
10/24    9781250891419    $18.99
e-book ed.  9781250406361    $11.99

Two friends meet in the park. One holds up a grape. “Is this a grape? It is shaped like a grape.” The second friend confirms the obvious, to which the first replies: “Well then, I guess you could say it is in grape shape.” As they walk through the park, the punny friend sees only that fruit: “This grape is shaped like a box”; “This bunch of grapes is shaped like a beehive.” The more literal friend plays it straight: “No. That is a box. It is shaped like a box”; “That is a hive full of bees.” Tran’s fanciful digital illustrations enhance the book’s breezy tone; comic-style panels and double-page spreads advance the story and add expression to Heim’s cheeky all-dialogue text. When the two characters encounter a giraffe-shaped grape, things take a wildly unexpected turn as they find themselves riding the giraffe (“How did we even get up here???”), then inexplicably hanging on to the tail of a kite-shaped grape in the sky. While the grape-focused friend is up for the flight, their clear-eyed pal is less than enthusiastic (“Please just get us down”). The sweet reason for the grape day makes sense at book’s end, and the message underneath all the silliness comes through. LINDSAY BAYER

Rocket Puppies
by William Joyce; illus. by the author
Preschool, Primary    Dlouhy/Atheneum    48 pp.
11/24    9781665961332    $18.99
e-book ed.    9781665961349    $10.99

Mid-century aesthetics, dreamlike storytelling, and meticulous craft combine to create a peculiar tale of good versus evil. Thanks to the aptly named Snarly McBummerpants — a six-legged humanoid clad in a tie and bowler hat — the “world got stuck being sad.” The villain’s minions, the solid but smog-like Mopey Smokes, travel far and wide to ruin everyone’s moods; that is, until the arrival of the Rocket Puppies in their doghouse rocket ship. These pint-sized heroes turn bullies into florists, befriend giant sea serpents, and chase away the Mopey Smokes. An epic showdown between the Rocket Puppies and McBummerpants leads to the villain’s first-ever laugh and a complete about-face. The surreal narrative possesses an uninhibited stream-of-consciousness quality; however, the highly rendered illustrations appear carefully planned and precise. The book follows a general layout of an all-white page featuring a sentence or two of text (with the occasional spot illustration) accompanied across the gutter by a full-page illustration. A brisk rhythm keeps the purposely nonsensical plot moving, yet lingering on or returning to each illustration greatly develops the overall narrative. Joyce’s inclusion of numerous breeds of dogs, individualized jetpacks for each Rocket Puppy, and fairly obscure (for young readers) pop-culture references (e.g., Laurel and Hardy) provide much to appreciate and discover. A puppy-powered romp. PATRICK GALL

Mr. Fox’s Game of “No!”
by David LaRochelle; illus. by Mike Wohnoutka
Preschool, Primary    Candlewick    40 pp.
9/24    9781536229677    $17.99
e-book ed.  9781536240481    $17.99

Beware cartoon foxes luring unsuspecting readers into a challenge: “Hurry! Hurry! Hurry! Step right up for a battle of wits.” The tricky fox in this interactive picture book looks harmless in his plaid pants, purple tuxedo jacket, and top hat. He waves a cane around as he introduces readers to the rules of his game: “Every time I ask a question, you have to say ‘NO!’ If you accidentally say ‘YES,’ then you have to go all the way back to the beginning of the book and start over.” The game requires concentration. Some questions are sneaky (“Are you ready to play?”). Others require ignoring desire, as when a giant sundae is delivered — want some? To get to the end of the book, readers will have to lie, exaggerate, feign ignorance, and let themselves in for some gross situations (such as being slobbered on by a smelly water buffalo). The exaggerated illustrations play up the humor throughout, and the fox and other characters gaze meaningfully at readers to amplify the interactive connection. Finishing the book by winning the game may require several restarts, but every accidental “YES” will compound the silliness of the experience. The final question is a desperate play for a compliment: “Have you ever read a funnier, better written, more beautifully illustrated book than this one?” While only one answer will win this battle of wits, any answer might require re-reading it yet again from the beginning. JULIE ROACH

How to Pee Your Pants: The Right Way
by Rachel Michelle Wilson; illus. by the author
Primary    Feiwel    32 pp.
10/24    9781250910172    $18.99
e-book ed.  9781250405449    $11.99

In this nonjudgmental, laid-back, and very funny picture book, a bespectacled young penguin demonstrates how to cope with a potty accident at school: “It can happen when you are sleeping. It can happen in class. It can happen when you are sleeping in class.” From possible causes (e.g., not wanting to interrupt a lesson, drinking too much lemonade at lunch) to avoidance techniques (“the grab-and-hold…obvious but effective”) to coping skills after the fact (cause a distraction, find clean clothes), the text is unfailingly reassuring: “We’ve all been there.” The art, in a soothing limited palette, has a subdued, retro flair. There are funny visual gags (origami undies) and pee-pee puns (book titles glimpsed in the art include Urine Control and Pee Prepared), but the humor is never at anyone’s expense. And best of all, the culminating messages of problem-solving, helpfulness, and, especially, empathy are transferable to other would-be embarrassing situations — peelieve it or not. ELISSA GERSHOWITZ

From the February 2025 issue of Notes from the Horn Book.