HUMOUR

A

ADAMS, Douglas

The Hitch-Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (A Trilogy in Four Parts) 1979, 1980, 1982, 1984 Humour/SF

A must read/listen to

Life, The Universe and Everything (The Hitch-Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy 3) 1982

Clever, funny, original, post-modern themes

Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency 1987 Humour/SF

P.G. Wodehouse meets Dr. Who: a complete pleasure

CALVINO, Italo

If On A Winters Night A Traveller 1979 Novel

Postmodern, self-aware, deconstructive – but also fun and engaging

ELTON, Ben

Popcorn 1997

Clever, funny, incisive: works as a thriller and as satire

MICALLEF, Shaun

Smithereens 2004

Consistent. Hilarious. Surreal. Uniquely Micallef. Only to be taken in small doses.

MILLIGAN, Spike

Puckoon 1963

Hilarious

WODEHOUSE, P.G.

A Damsel in Distress 1919

Delightful. Hilarious scenes and dialogue. Unparalleled narration.

A-

BARRY, Dave

Dave Barry’s Greatest Hits 1988

Consistently funny newspaper columns

DURRELL, Gerald

My Family and Other Animals 1956

Amusing recollections of an animal mad kid about his eccentric family

HARRISON, Harry

A Stainless Steel Rat is Born 1985

Excellent prequel to the consistent series

KEILLOR, Garrison

We Are Still Married 1989

Inconsistent but often manages warmth & whimsicality without sentimentality

P.G. Wodehouse

Something Fresh 1915

Postmodern Wodehouse

B+

ADAMS, Douglas

The Long Dark Tea-time of the Soul 1988

Somewhat surreal second ‘Dirk Gently’ novel

Mostly Harmless (The Hitch-Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy 5) 1992 Humour/SF

Enjoyable hotchpotch of action, humour, SF satire and post-modern philosophy

CULOTTA, Nino

They’re A Weird Mob 1957

Ingenuous Italian Australian plays with stereotype aussie slang/behaviour

ELTON, Ben

Stark 1989

Consistently funny, unsubtle satire and environmental message

Gridlock 1991

Weird juxtaposition: thriller plot narrated by (good!) stand-up comedian

FFORDE, Jasper

The Eyre Affair (Thursday Next, Book 1) 2001 SF/Humour/Crime

As good as, worse and better than Adams or Pratchett

The Big Over Easy 2005 SF/Humour/Crime

Another enjoyable excursion

HARRIS, Robert

PMQ 2000

(in ‘Speaking With the Angel’; Ed. Nick Hornby)

Amusing frightfully British narration of PM in a sitcom style sketch

HARRISON, Harry

The Stainless Steel Rat 1961

Classic likeable master-thief in comic but workable SF environment

The Stainless Steel Rat’s Revenge 1970

Enjoyable James Bond/Pimpernel farce in space ships

The Stainless Steel Rat Saves the World 1972

Enjoyable James Bond/Pimpernel farce in space ships

HERRIOT, James

If Only They Could Talk 1970

Light and formulaic, but charming and amusing country vet recollections

Let Sleeping Vets Lie 1973

Light and formulaic, but charming and amusing country vet recollections

Every Living Thing 1992

Light and formulaic, but charming and amusing country vet recollections

KEILLOR, Garrison

Lake Wobegon Days 1985 Short Stories/Historical Fiction/Humour

Nostalgic, languid, imaginative, warm, whimsical, indulgently tangential

LODGE, David

Changing Places 1975 Novel/Humour

A middle-aged daydream

Small World 1984 Novel/Humour

Second of the clever and funny Rummidge Uni series

MILLIGAN, Spike

Adolf Hitler – My Part in His Downfall (1^st of his War Memoirs) 1971 Autobiography/Humour

Silly drunken licentious farting about in basic training

PRATCHETT, Terry

Mort 1987 Fantasy/Humour

Some wonderful ideas and descriptions excuse a dumb climax

Pyramids 1989 Fantasy/Humour

Relished the charmingly silly first half, then it seemed to want us care about the absurd plot

Moving Pictures 1990 Fantasy/Humour

Yeah, another Pratchett. Some amusing bits - a workmanlike effort

Soul Music 1994 Fantasy/Humour

Competent. Discworld, drugs and Rock ‘n Roll

Jingo 1997 Fantasy/Humour

Competent – Pratchett’s spin on nationalism

The Last Continent 1998 Fantasy/Humour

Standard Discworld novel, with a few Aussie ‘in’ jokes

The Amazing Maurice and his Educated Rodents 2001 Fantasy/Humour

Funny, workmanlike plot, some charming characters, odd anti-Christian allegories

SIMSEON, Graeme

The Rosie Project 2013 Novel/Humour (Romance, ASD)

Cashing in on the ASD boom, but deftly

WESTLAKE, Donald E.

God Save the Mark 1967 Crime / Humour

Capable enough humourous playing with crime conventions

WILLIS, Connie

To Say Nothing of the Dog 1997 SF / Humour

Light comic SF. Usable Wodehouse characters and settings around passable Dr Who premise

WODEHOUSE, P.G.

The Pothunters 1902

Not just because it’s the first, but because it’s good!

B

BARRY, Dave

Dave Barry’s Guide to Life 1991 (1984; 1985; 1986; 1987) Humour

(Contains: "Dave Barry's Guide to Marriage and/or Sex" / "Babies and Other Hazards of Sex" / "Stay Fit and Healthy Until You're Dead" / "Claw Your Way to the Top")

Less enjoyable than the columns, but still funny

Dave Barry Turns 40 1990 Humour

A Step up on from the ‘Guide to Life’ books, solid, but few laugh out loud moments

Big Trouble 1999 Action/Humour

Professional, funny, but slick, filmic and disposable

COOK, Peter (Cook, William – Ed.)

Tragically I was an Only Twin: The Complete Peter Cook 2002 Humour/Biography

Some great moments, but better as a DVD

CULOTTA, Nino

Cop this Lot 1960

Weird Mob sequel, this time Australians go to Italy

ELTON, Ben

Inconceivable 1991 Novel/Humour

Workmanlike realisation of a usable idea, engaging start and finish, but bogs down in cliché in the middle

FFORDE, Jasper

Lost in a Good Book (Thursday Next, Book 2) 2006 SF/Humour

Funny, original, but poor plot and villains

HAŠEK, Jaroslav

The Red Commissar 1923

Czech satire of bureaucratic absurdities

MILLIGAN, Spike & HOBBS, Jack

William McGonagall meets George Gershwin: A Scottish Fantasy 1988

Hit and miss utterly unedited stream of consciousness goonery

MICALLEF, Shaun

Preincarnate 2010 Humour/SF

Several expectedly hilarious moments, but structurally disappointing

NAYLOR, Doug

Last Human (Red Dwarf series) 1995 Humour/SF

OK if you’re in the right (undemanding) mood

PRATCHETT, Terry

Small Gods 1992

Solid humour as ever but a bit dodgily preachy

WILDE, Oscar

The Canterville Ghost 1887

Light comedy into light ghost story

WODEHOUSE, P.G.

The Gold Bat 1904 Humour

Still aimed at contemporary schoolboys, but more cohesive

The Head of Kay's 1905 Humour

Not timeless, but a palatable authentic ride through historically interesting century old British public schools

The White Feather 1905 Humour

Pleasing, predictable early Wodehouse

Mike and Psmith 1909 (1953)