Tag Archives: humor

359F: Early 90’s Humorous Horror Children’s Book

Leave a reply

I imagine this will be one of the more difficult ones for you simply due to my lack of information. This was a childhood book of mine that had to have been published in the late 80’s-early 90’s.  It was a series of 10-12 short stories accompanied by cartoon-ish illustrations focused around a punk kid getting into all sorts of spooky and weird situations.   Unfortunately, at the time I couldn’t read, so all I have are memories of the illustrations and some themes of one or two of the stories. The illustration of the kid was the early 90’s typical baggy jeans, backwards ball cap, long (I think) blonde hair. The cover of the book was of this kid spray painting some graffiti on a brick wall. I think whatever he was spray painting was the title of the book.
A few of the memories I have of the stories include one where the kid gets sucked down a drain and another where the kid has no bones. I’m pretty sure there were a few stories where he encounters monsters as well.
Thanks for your help! My brother and I have spent years trying to find this book!

353K: Satiric/ironic book on how to succeed in college (pub. in 1980s or 90s?)

Leave a reply

I am searching for a trade paperback that was published in the 1980s or ’90s (?), possibly written by university students, on how to succeed in college.
Somewhere in the book there may be a section or a chapter titled something like, “If I go to college, do I have to learn anything?” Also, there may be a line advising people to “Be yourself, but if no one likes who you are, I don’t know what to tell you.”
It’s possible that National Lampoon or another college humor society put the book out.

352F: The Nonsense Book

9 Replies

The book I am looking for, a book I read at my elementary school library quite often, is a children’s book, maybe aimed at the 9-12 year old set. I suspect from the late 1960s to the mid 1970s. It was a book of self-proclaimed nonsense, with riddles and jokes and poems and shaggy dog stories, with surrealistic drawings and text. The sense of humor was counter-cultural and a bit Monty Pythonesque. I seem to recall that it had the “As I was going to St Ives” riddle in it.

It was a larger format book, 8.5”x11” or larger, and around 80 pages. I think the cover was a brownish green. The drawing style was in a similar borderline grotesque line-art mode as the illustrations for Shel Silverstein or Roald Dahl books, but with a significant amount of clip art and a throwback-y quality to it. I think the title itself had the word nonsense in it, or a word with a similar meaning.

I’ve been racking my brains trying to recall more about it, but that’s all I can seem to manage.

316X: Kids go after the loot, end up creating successful play

Leave a reply

A young kid like to tell stories to his friends. One summer they hear about a (bank robbery/jewelry heist/etc) and go looking for the stashed loot. I can’t remember the reason but they needed money. They end up putting on an impromptu play for the town in an old house. The main character is emoting to the crowd and stomping on the stage which causes a skeleton to fall out of the ceiling, scaring the audience and making the play a success.

306J: Funny Practical Retelling of Fairy Tales

5 Replies

I am looking for a small hilariously funny book in which the author goes and analyses or re-tells several famous fairy tales using common sense and pointing out the truly ridiculous bits.

I remember in the pulling apart of “Little Red Riding Hood” he ponders why in the world everyone would name a kid after an article of clothing and wonders what if she had been “Little Dirty Tee Shirt” instead.

In “Snow White” he points out that the mirror is essentially creating the whole problem by maliciously or cluelessly making the queen wildly jealous. He also thinks that “Snow White living in the glen, with the seven little men” rather suggests they are getting up to something and is further evidence of the mirror’s troublemaking.

In Rapunzel he comments upon the whole idea of naming your child after a root vegetable and the wisdom of robbing witches.

In Rumpelstiltskin he thinks everyone is rather hard on the poor guy, and wonders why when she knows what his name is, and her baby is on the line, the queen decides it is funny to play around and wind him up by giving the wrong names at first.

The book was (I think) a half-sized hard back (half height but same length as a hardback book? Size of say an Edward Gorey single story like The Doubtful Guest.)  I think it had a black and white drawn illustration on the cover.

I know I gave my copy to a friend around 1983-1985 so it was in print before then. I am thinking it was probably published after 1972 as I think I would have been over 13 when I first received it. My vague memory is that my mother bought several copies as gifts and it was being sold fairly prominently one Christmas season in NYC possibly at Barnes and Noble.

I have tried searching for it but only ever get Fractured Fairy Tales back and that is not it.

I would really enjoy finding this book again!

 

293R: Book about a madcap journey through the U.S. south (Solved)

1 Reply

What I remember: I read it before Borders bookstores closed. I picked it up in paperback on a display that said this type of book was not the author’s usual style. It was long.

Plot: a guy in the south (maybe Georgia?) thinks he kills his secretary and rolls her in the rug and takes the rug to the dump.  The reader has the idea she’s alive, but the hero goes on the lamb in a convertible — I think eventually ending up at his dad’s house.

I also remember at scene where he accidentally sees the neighbor’s wife in a revealing outfit and it causes a family rift. There is a teenager daughter. Maybe he works at a furniture store? I would call it a archetype = hero’s journey

Thanks for any help!!