Made Us Laugh: Fiction

I'm not typically a romance reader, so the sexy stuff made me blush, and I'm really not a vampire reader, so the bloody stuff made me squirm, but just about everything else made me giggle! Charlaine Harris is the kind of smart writer who plays with the tropes of the genres in which she writes so convincingly. -Lauren Moore

This book made me think about laughing. Does that count? Check out this book if you're for something dark and very (very, very) subtly funny. -Lauren Moore

War Dances is an excellent collection of stories and poems that the author describes as a "mix tape." He has an incredible way of talking about difficult topics with such a sense of humor that the stories are not all traumatic. In fact, I often found myself laughing out loud in the car.

Alexie's writing is very rooted in his Native American background, and most of his stories have to do with Spokane or Coeur d'Alene Indians. He discusses his background and the lives of his c...moreWar Dances is an excellent collection of stories and poems that the author describes as a "mix tape." He has an incredible way of talking about difficult topics with such a sense of humor that the stories are not all traumatic. In fact, I often found myself laughing out loud in the car as. -Katie Karkheck

Breathers is an extra-silly story of a man-turned-zombie, who attends a zombie support group and becomes an activist for zombie rights. It's not for everyone, but zombie fans will like the combination of humor and grossness. -Katie Karkheck

(Book Jacket Status: Jacketed) With a New Introduction by John Mortimer P.G. Wodehouse (1881-1975) was perhaps the most widely acclaimed British humorist of the twentieth century. Throughout his career, he brilliantly examined the complex and idiosyncratic nature of English upper-crust society with hilarious insight and wit. The works in this volume provide a wonderful introduction to Wodehouse's work and his unique talent for joining fantastic plots with authentic emotion. InThe Code of the Woosters, Wodehouse's most famous duo, Bertie Wooster and his unflappable valet Jeeves, risks all to steal a cream jug.Uncle Fred in the Springtime, part of the famous Blandings Castle series, follows Uncle Fred as he attempts to ruin the Duke of Blandings while he is preoccupied with his favorite pig. Fourteen stories feature some of Wodehouse's most memorable characters, and three autobiographical pieces provide a revealing look into Wodehouse's life. With his gift for hilarity and his ever-human tone, Wodehouse and his work have never felt more lively.

Meet Stephanie Plum, a bounty hunter with attitude. In Stephanie’s opinion, toxic waste, rabid drivers, armed schizophrenics, and August heat, humidity, and hydrocarbons are all part of the great adventure of living in Jersey.

She’s a product of the “burg,” a blue-collar pocket of Trenton where houses are attached and narrow, cars are American, windows are clean, and (God forbid you should be late) dinner is served at six.

Now Stephanie’s all grown up and out on her own, living five miles from Mom and Dad’s, doing her best to sever the world’s longest umbilical cord. Her mother is a meddler, and her grandmother is a few cans short of a case.

Meet Isabel "Izzy" Spellman, private investigator. This twenty-eight-year-old may have a checkered past littered with romantic mistakes, excessive drinking, and creative vandalism; she may be addicted toGet Smartreruns and prefer entering homes through windows rather than doors -- but the upshot is she's good at her job as a licensed private investigator with her family's firm, Spellman Investigations. Invading people's privacy comes naturally to Izzy. In fact, it comes naturally to all the Spellmans. If only they could leave their work at the office. To be a Spellman is to snoop on a Spellman; tail a Spellman; dig up dirt on, blackmail, and wiretap a Spellman.Part Nancy Drew, part Dirty Harry, Izzy walks an indistinguishable line between Spellman family member and Spellman employee. Duties include: completing assignments from the bosses, aka Mom and Dad (preferably without scrutiny); appeasing her chronically perfect lawyer brother (often under duress); setting an example for her fourteen-year-old sister, Rae (who's become addicted to "recreational surveillance"); and tracking down her uncle (who randomly disappears on benders dubbed "Lost Weekends"). But when Izzy's parents hire Rae to follow her (for the purpose of ascertaining the identity of Izzy's new boyfriend), Izzy snaps and decides that the only way she will ever be normal is if she gets out of the family business. But there's a hitch: she must take one last job before they'll let her go -- a fifteen-year-old, ice-cold missing person case. She accepts, only to experience a disappearance far closer to home, which becomes the most important case of her life.The Spellman Filesis the first novel in a winning and hilarious new series featuring the Spellman family in all its lovable chaos.

Taking the best elements from two of his most outstanding bestsellers, The Gold Coast and The General's Daughter, Nelson DeMille combines the breathless suspense of an expertly wrought murder mystery with his wry perspective on a peculiarly American social scene to deliver an enthralling and compelling story.

Wounded in the line of duty, NYPD homicide detective John Corey convalesces in the Long Island township of Southold, home to farmers, fishermen -- and at least one killer. Tom and Judy Gordon, a young, attractive couple Corey knows, have been found on their patio, each with a bullet in the head. The local police chief, Sylvester Maxwell, wants Corey's big-city expertise, but Maxwell gets more than he bargained for.

The early signs point to a burglary gone wrong. But because the Gordons were biologists at Plum Island, the offshore animal disease research site rumored to be involved in germ warfare, it isn't long before the media is suggesting that the Gordons stole something very deadly. Suddenly a local double murder becomes a crime with national and worldwide implications.

John Corey doesn't like mysteries, which is why he likes to solve them. His investigations lead him into the lore, legends, and ancient secrets of northern Long Island -- more deadly and more dangerous than he could ever have imagined. During his journey of discovery, he meets two remarkable women, Detective Beth Penrose and Mayflower descendant Emma Whitestone, both of whom change his life irrevocably. Ultimately, through his understanding of the murders, John Corey comes to understand himself.

Fast-paced and atmospheric, marked by entrancing characters, incandescent storytelling, and brilliant comic touches, Plum Island is Nelson DeMille at his thrill-inducing best.

Lots of fun! This book parodies Seattle, mom culture, Microsoft, and the malaise of upper middle class life. Bee is a smart kid. As the reward for getting straight A's (or S's - the school couldn't possibly award a's b's and c's - it's too demeaning) Bee decides the family should go on vacation to Antarctica.
Bee's mom, Bernadette, is a certified genius, an agoraphobe, a celebrated architect, and Bee's best friend. She hate Seattle and its inhabitants, especially the other moms at Bee's school, whom she calls Gnats. She pops pills, has an airstream trailer on their property, just so she can be alone, and hires a virtual assistant from India to do everything she needs to do.

This book is fluffy, warm, and very very funny.