# The Funniest Book You Ever Read **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 10, 2000, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-funniest-book-you-ever-read/28767 "2000-08-10T00:32:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Sands](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/22d042/32.png) [@Sands](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sands)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2000, 5:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-funniest-book-you-ever-read/28767/21 "2000-08-10T05:47:28Z")
I’m not claiming this is the most riotous book of 'em all…but i certainly got some decent laughs out of it: A Walk In the Woods by Bill Bryson. ---
**Author:** ![Or\_n\_ry\_Oscar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/9de0a6/32.png) [@Or\_n\_ry\_Oscar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Or_n_ry_Oscar)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2000, 5:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-funniest-book-you-ever-read/28767/22 "2000-08-10T05:56:34Z")
If you like reading rather than hitchhiking you might try someting by T.C. Boyle. The funniest of his, IMHO, is _Budding Prospects_, about growing dope in Mendocino County in the early 1980s. _Water Music_ is also very good, but very dark. The recipe the author includes for baked camel is to die for. If you like history, try one of the Flashman books. The best is the original (_Flashamn_), but they’re all quite good. ---
**Author:** ![That\_Girl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e79b87/32.png) [@That\_Girl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/That_Girl)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2000, 6:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-funniest-book-you-ever-read/28767/23 "2000-08-10T06:09:07Z")
I like the children’s book **The Magic Tollbooth** Where a kid gets a tollbooth that’s like Alice’s lookingglass, and lets him into a lot of strange lands where they play word games and have number mines, etc. Just so clever, and little kids like to hear it, and it’s full of adult things for the reader to catch on to. ---
**Author:** ![That\_Girl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e79b87/32.png) [@That\_Girl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/That_Girl)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2000, 6:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-funniest-book-you-ever-read/28767/24 "2000-08-10T06:10:44Z")
(I thought it sounded wrong) ---
**Author:** ![Gozu\_Tashoya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/7993a0/32.png) [@Gozu\_Tashoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gozu_Tashoya)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2000, 7:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-funniest-book-you-ever-read/28767/25 "2000-08-10T07:50:18Z")
I’ll second _Good Omens_ as one of the funniest books I ever read. Two of the runner ups would be _Pest Control_, by Bill Fitzhugh, and _Blood Sucking Fiends, a love story_, by Christopher Moore, IIRC. As for T.C. Boyle, I actually had him as a professor at USC, and he was great. Oh, that reminds me, _Glyph_ by Percival Everett (another prof of mine) is also a great read. Written in a great, very sardonic voice, it’s very witty, if not necessarily ha-ha funny. Well, that’s my $.02. ---
**Author:** ![UncleBeer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/977dab/32.png) [@UncleBeer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleBeer)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2000, 11:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-funniest-book-you-ever-read/28767/26 "2000-08-10T11:25:09Z")
> [@](#): > > Mods, is this going to be in IMHO before the week is over? Yes. And I can’t believe no one has mentioned [_Double Whammy_](http://shop.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/isbnInquiry.asp?userid=22I0ME0B54&mscssid=LNMN6ADSGANT9MR370PB6MNJ0ATG2D4D&isbn=0446352764) by Carl Hiaasen. It almost makes me wanna take up bass fishin’. ---
**Author:** ![Jello](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f05b48/32.png) [@Jello](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jello)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2000, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-funniest-book-you-ever-read/28767/27 "2000-08-10T13:37:18Z")
Double Whammy was great. So were all the Douglas Adams books, and of course, Cecil Adams…but why on Earth has nobody mentioned what is _truly_ the funniest book ever? Catch-22, by Joseph Heller ---
**Author:** ![lunapark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/278dde/32.png) [@lunapark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lunapark)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2000, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-funniest-book-you-ever-read/28767/28 "2000-08-10T13:40:49Z")
All of **Charles Bukowski’s** novels are hilarious. I’ll nominate _Post Office_ as the most. ---
**Author:** ![Missy2U](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/3bc359/32.png) [@Missy2U](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Missy2U)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2000, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-funniest-book-you-ever-read/28767/29 "2000-08-10T14:29:20Z")
I love everything Erma Bombeck wrote. Last night, I reread “A Marriage Made in Heaven or Too Tired For an Affair” and am still giggling. ---
**Author:** ![ENugent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/4af34b/32.png) [@ENugent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ENugent)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2000, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-funniest-book-you-ever-read/28767/30 "2000-08-10T14:42:46Z")
Anything by P.G. Wodehouse (I can’t believe no one has mentioned this yet). Also, _Bellwether_ by Connie Willis. ---
**Author:** ![blokeychap](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3ab097/32.png) [@blokeychap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blokeychap)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2000, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-funniest-book-you-ever-read/28767/31 "2000-08-10T19:56:23Z")
I would go for anything by Terry Pratchett and also the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy. Added to this would be the only book I was rendered helpless through laughter ‘Feel This Book’ by Ben Stiller And Janeane Garofalo - the funniest you can get ---
**Author:** ![Balance](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ccd318/32.png) [@Balance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balance)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2000, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-funniest-book-you-ever-read/28767/32 "2000-08-10T20:09:51Z")
All right, we’ve got Terry Pratchett, Douglas Adams, Spider Robinson, and (of course) Cecil Adams. Everything I’ve read by these authors has amused me. Unfortunately, Barry Hughart seems to have been overlooked; his _Chronicles of Master Li and Number Ten Ox_ (omnibus of 3 novels) _still_ makes me fall over laughing at times–especially _Bridge of Birds_. ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2000, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-funniest-book-you-ever-read/28767/33 "2000-08-10T20:19:13Z")
One in recent memory is “Red Lobster, White Trash and the Blue Lagoon” by Joe Queenan. My friend couldn’t breathe while reading some of the scathing reviews of Kenny G, Cannonball Run II, etc., out loud. And David Sedaris too. ---
**Author:** ![ENugent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/4af34b/32.png) [@ENugent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ENugent)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2000, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-funniest-book-you-ever-read/28767/34 "2000-08-10T20:24:10Z")
Can you still _buy_ that, Balance?! I borrowed the third book instead of buying it myself, and now it’s out of print and the person I borrowed it from has moved away. ---
**Author:** ![herownself](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/8baadc/32.png) [@herownself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/herownself)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2000, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-funniest-book-you-ever-read/28767/35 "2000-08-10T20:56:14Z")
Books that haven’t been mentioned: Bingo by Rita Mae Brown Dance Me Outside by W. P. Kinsella Two very different books which I think are outrageously funny in similar ways. Both examine the minute details of life in a small community. Both had me snorting and chuckling out loud, with an irresistible urge to read my (long suffering) husband the funny parts. Of course, he does the same to me. They appeal to me in the same way that David Sedaris does, and I can’t think of a better recommendation. ---
**Author:** ![tak29813](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/cab0a1/32.png) [@tak29813](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tak29813)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2000, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-funniest-book-you-ever-read/28767/36 "2000-08-10T21:03:54Z")
Baja Oklahoma - Dan Jenkins Probably the best book ever written involving sports (Dead Solid Perfect was pretty good also). God’s Other Son - Don Imus Satan would probably like this one. Not for the faint of heart. The Kentucky Derby is Sick and Depraved - Hunter S Thompson Anything by Kinky Friedman, Carl Hiassen or any Fletch book by MacDonald works for me as well. ---
**Author:** ![Balance](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ccd318/32.png) [@Balance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balance)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2000, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-funniest-book-you-ever-read/28767/37 "2000-08-10T21:16:22Z")
ENugent, the Master Li omnibus is available from Stars Our Destination Books at [http://www.sfbooks.com/](http://www.sfbooks.com/) They’re sold out right now, but they plan to print more of them. ---
**Author:** ![Lowellster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/2bfe46/32.png) [@Lowellster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lowellster)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2000, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-funniest-book-you-ever-read/28767/38 "2000-08-10T21:44:24Z")
I’m not a big reader, but Voltaire’s “Candide” is by far the funniest book I’ve ever read. Laughed so damn hard my ass split right in two. Won’t take you long to get through either, so you’ll have time for at least one more recommendation. I’m not generally a big fan of 17th century French philosophers, but thinking about this makes me want to read it again. It’s been too long… Hasta. Lowell ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2000, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-funniest-book-you-ever-read/28767/39 "2000-08-10T22:00:35Z")
**Breakfast of Champions** , by Kurt Vonnegut. The way he skewers the absurd condition of the human species made me laugh 'til I couldn’t breath. Also his **Cat’s Cradle** and **Slaughterhouse Five** have sidesplitting moments as well. And since **tak29813** brought up Hunter S. Thompson, **Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas** also gets my nod. ---
**Author:** ![Boots](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/c89c15/32.png) [@Boots](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boots)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2000, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-funniest-book-you-ever-read/28767/40 "2000-08-10T22:39:06Z")
Lunapark - You are correct! I agree that Bukowski is the funniest author I’ve ever read, but I have to say that Factotum my favorite. I laughed so hard and for so long at one chapter (I think it’s chap. 23) that I threw up. Also, Woody Allen’s books are funny, particularly Without Feathers. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-funniest-book-you-ever-read/28767.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-funniest-book-you-ever-read/28767.md?page=3)