November 2015: Light/humorous

What's everyone planning on reading this month?

My usual for this style is Dean Koontz, he writes a lot of lighter "horror" with a main character who is delightfully witty and has hilarious banter with other characters, they're some of the most fun things I've read, hahaha. I might take a look at my shelves though if I have anything else that will fit, since I tend to like to keep his for those times I want something lighter to zip through and I don't have many left! xD

Some suggested titles mentioned eons ago were
Tick Tock
Odd Thomas
Nekropolis
Pride and Prejudice and Zombies
Good Omens
Charlaine Harris
YA (therefore on the lighter side)
Lemony Snicket's Series of Unfortunate Events
RL Stine's Goosebumps series
LJ Smith's Vampire Diaries series

I'm reading Bird Box at present, which is very good, but doesn't qualify as light or humorous.
Of the books I have I'm thinking Souless by Gail Carriger; picked up a secondhand copy in September.

I don't know if I'll be able to fit something into this challenge, as I have a lot of other challenge and book-club books to get through this month. However, I wanted to recommend Horrorstor, which I'd read earlier this year and thought was a lot of fun. What do you get when you cross IKEA with a haunted house?

>3 mathgirl40: I saw your review for that one, it is def on my wishlist!

I'm planning on Blood Sucking Fiends which will surely fit here.

>1 .Monkey.: Thanks for getting this thread up and running! :)

I haven't started my November book yet, though I finished Zipangu Night by Hideshi Hino yesterday (a short story manga collection, which I liked; the stories more than the artwork). What I might read is Bloodsucking Fiends by Christopher Moore or The Nymphos of Rocky Flats by Mario Acevedo or Monster by A. Lee Martinez, but I'm really liking the idea of reading children's horror instead. I think I still have some unread R. L. Stine and Point Horror books around. Good idea!

>2 si: That one looks great. I love the cover. :) And good luck with the Gail Carriger book. I've heard good things about that series.

>3 mathgirl40: I remember checking that one out at work. I never got to read all of it, but I liked the idea of a haunted IKEA. I love a lot of IKEA's stuff, though I can't afford to re-furbish my place every time they add something new.

>5 majkia: Great choice! :) It definitely fits the light/humorous bill. And it's book 1 in that series, if you're like me and have this almost obsessive habit of reading books in order. ;)

>6 saraslibrary: Well I am back, so it only makes sense I resume my admin duties ;)

I decided to go for Nekropolis since it's been sitting on my shelf a couple years. I was mainly putting it off because it's the first of a series and the only one I have. But I figured eh, might as well just read it! It's interesting and amusing and certainly has my attention.

How to Survive a Horror Movie / Seth Grahame-Smith
5 stars

What would you do if you ever found yourself trapped in a horror movie? First, you must determine that you ARE in a horror movie, then determine what subgenre of horror it is (and Grahame-Smith helps with all of this). Then, he has all kinds of tips that will help you make it all the way to the end credits (then you just have to hope you don't end up in a sequel!).

This was hilarious!!! I found myself smiling, giggling, laughing, and even nodding in agreement! It's a quick read. I was reading the ebook ; there were a few cartoon illustrations here and there, and I would be curious to know if they are in colour in the print book. It would have been nice to see them a bit larger, as well, but it didn't take away from the hilarity of the rest of the book! So much fun!!

I also have a few more possibilities:

- Bite Me / Christopher Moore
- Dead Ever After / Charlaine Harris

>7 .Monkey.: That makes sense. :)

Good choice btw! And I'm glad it's an attention-grabber. It looks like it's only a trilogy for now, so maybe(?) you won't miss much until you can get your hands on the following two books.

>8 LibraryCin: I loved that book, too! :D I think I gave it 5 stars, too; it was hilarious.

>9 LibraryCin: It looks like it might be a Christopher Moore month. ;) And Charlaine Harris books are always fun to read, too.

>10 saraslibrary: Yeah, I noticed that too, about Christopher Moore!

I posted the below message on the October thread, but I thought I'd mention it here as well:

This is kind of late for October (and not really funny or light for November), but I just found out I can loan my ebook copy of Header by Edward Lee to someone with an email account for 2 weeks. (It's a novella, so it shouldn't take that long.) And yes, it's free to whomever I lend it to. Anyone interested? Let me know. :)

No e-reading for me, but maybe someone else :)

>13 .Monkey.: No problem. I swore off e-books, too, but I like to try things at least once. Or twice.... :) (Plus some e-books are cheaper compared to physical books, like Header; that's why I tried it.)

Just started Welcome to Night Vale, which I think will fit this month's theme nicely.

Oh I never posted about finishing Nekropolis. It was good, I'd like to read the other two books that follow. Not quite as light/humorous as the cover & blurbs made out, but it definitely had its chuckle moments, and I really enjoyed it. It was a fresh new twist on the trite old vampire/zombie/scary things cliches, and Waggoner did a good job at making this new world of his. The writing wasn't always the best, there were times it was a little too much tell - not enough show, but the characters were excellent, the story interesting, and overall it's certainly worth the read.

>16 .Monkey.: I'm glad Nekropolis worked out for you. :) I really liked the covers for it, especially the black, white, and red one. Best of luck if you do continue with the series. You're lucky it's only a trilogy for now. Some series seems to stretch on forever....

Anyway, I got totally sidetracked on what I was going to read for this month, but somehow managed to read two picture books that fit this month's challenge: The Adventures of the Princess and Mr. Whiffle: The Thing Beneath the Bed by Patrick Rothfuss (more for adults or older children; I just loved this book--the humor, the story, the illustrations--and have my fingers crossed the sequel I ILL'd will come in soon)--and The Little Shop of Monsters by R. L. Stine, which is definitely marketable for children. Nothing spooky or gory like his Goosebumps or Fear Street books, so the youngin's will be ok with this one. Out of the two, I'd highly recommend Patrick Rothfuss's first!

Haha, I do like long series though, I just hate when they're still in the works and there's a big delay between being able to read them, so that I forget the previous stuff by the time another is out! :P

Ooh The Adventures of the Princess and Mr. Whiffle sounds delightful!

I hear you on that! :) Sometimes I'll wait until I have all the books in a series before I start it, just so I don't have that pause in between books.

The Adventures of the Princess and Mr. Whiffle was delightful, though I do have to warn a few cat lovers out there, because something nasty does happen to the kitten. :( Still, a totally awesome picture book (or graphic novel, if you don't want to think of it as a children's book).

Well the author says it's not a kids book, he even made a gold foil sticker to put on printings that says "This shit is not for kids ...seriously!" hahaha.

LOL! Are you serious? I wish the one I'd read had had that on it. Funny stuff. :)

Yep! XD

Found a pic of it on his blog!

"As always, I feel a slight twinge about this sticker, which on casual inspection makes my book look like a Caldecott Award winner. But then I remind myself that any parent that buys a book for a child based on an award sticker they don’t even read, deserves what’s coming to them."
Lmao. I love this guy!

>22 .Monkey.: What a great sticker!

I haven't read anything for this category yet and probably won't be able to fit one in, in the remaining time. However, I really liked this book that I'd read last year: Can You Survive the Zombie Apocalypse? by Max Brallier. It's a Choose-Your-Own-Adventure type of book, where there are various outcomes depending on which path you choose.

By the way, if anyone would like to have this book for next year's challenge (maybe for the Short Stories category?), send me a message. It's a BookCrossing book. I've been a dedicated BookCrosser for years and have sent books all around the world and wild-released some in local spots. However, this one is a tough one to give away, as it's so different. I don't want to leave it in a Little Free Library or the like because, even though it looks like a children's book, the content is inappropriate for kids. By the way, if you do want the book, there is no obligation to join BookCrossing; that's totally optional. My only request is that you try to pass the book onto to another reader when you're done.

Oh me me I'd take it! I loved the Choose-Your-Own-Adventure books as a kid, that sounds awesome, hahaha.

>24 .Monkey.: OK. Sending you a PM!

>22 .Monkey.: haha! That's cute!

>22 .Monkey.: I love it! :) It kind of reminds me of Stephen Colbert's stickers. Not as funny as Patrick Rothfuss's, but it does seem that people think a book is so much better with an award sticker on it.

>23 mathgirl40: & >24 .Monkey.: & >25 mathgirl40: That books looks awesome; I'm glad it found a good home. :)

>27 saraslibrary: Haha well, if you are interested then I can see about getting it to you after I've had my turn :P

>27 saraslibrary: When my son sees a book with a sticker on it, he says it's quality. Of course, he's seven.

>28 .Monkey.: I don't have a clue how BookCrossing works, so that's ok, I'll pass. Thank you, though. :) I'm sure it'll be a great read for next year.

>29 sturlington: I can see how that would make sense to a 7 year old. :) When I was a kiddo, all the "A" papers got stickers, too, so why not books?

I'm not on bookcrosing either lol

>30 saraslibrary: >31 .Monkey.: You don't have to be on BookCrossing. The goal of BCers is to "keep books travelling", that is, pass them around instead of letting them collect dust on shelves. We pass along our books to other BCers and non-BCers alike. If you receive a BC book, you can just read it and pass it on to a friend, or even keep it on your own shelves. No obligation involved. :)

The advantage of registering a book at BookCrossing is that, if people add journal entries on the book's Web page, you can see where the book has travelled. For example, this book is my most well-travelled one. It has been in 17 sets of hands in a dozen different countries.

My attitude is: once a book has left my hands, the recipient is free to do whatever he/she wants with it. Most of the books I wild-release (i.e. leave somewhere rather than give to a specific person) don't get journal entries, but I'm happy enough knowing someone else is enjoying the book.

Sorry, that was a long-winded way to say: don't be scared of taking a BC book because you're not a member. There's no commitment except to enjoy the book and hopefully pass it on. :)

I finished Welcome to Night Vale. It was weird and chuckle worthy. I'm not too sure about the plot. I've never heard the podcast its based on because I just don't think of podcasts.

>32 mathgirl40: I'd joined one of those book passing sites like 15 yrs ago, but I tend to hold on to my books, so, you know. XD They're a nice idea though, and if ever I decide to weed through and discard a lot of my "fluff" (thrillers etc), I may do it through one of those places. :)

>33 sturlington: Well sounds like you mostly enjoyed it, at least, so that's good! I know I've seen a lot of talk about the podcast over the past few years, but I'm not much for them either, so I don't really have any idea what it's like either, aside of super popular. xP

Good topic! Wish I had joined sooner. So which of the touchstones turned out to be really good humorous Horror?

Hi Michael, glad to have here! If you read through the posts, you can see what we thought of the books we read. :)

>35 Michael333: Well, you're here now to join us for December and next year's themes! Welcome!

I'm a month behind but I'll be reading Bloodsucking Fiends. My proper December read will be coming with me when I see family over Christmas, when I do a lot of reading while resting my stomach after all the heavy meals they serve up. Might get through some older children's books if I finish the first book soon enough.

>3 mathgirl40: Horrorstor looks a lot of fun, a future read for sure.

>5 majkia: >6 saraslibrary: How are both of you getting on with Bloodsucking Fiends? No spoilers though...

>17 saraslibrary: The Adventures of the Princess and Mr. Whiffle looks my kind of read - thanks for introducing us to it :)

>23 mathgirl40: I love Choose-Your-Own-Adventures! Thanks for the recommendation. I want to get hold of a copy of Life's Lottery by horror author and critic Kim Newman, which is a CYOA style book, for next year.

>32 mathgirl40: Oh, this is super-belated, but thank you for explaining how BookCrossing works! :)

>34 .Monkey.: I tend to hold on to my books, too. :)

>38 Moomin_Mama: Well, you needn't worry about spoilers from me, because I never got around to reading Bloodsucking Fiends. :) And you're welcome re: The Adventures of the Princess and Mr. Whiffle. It was my favorite horror read in November. Oh, and I was able to read the sequel this month (December)--The Adventures of the Princess and Mr. Whiffle: The Dark of Deep Below --which I also highly recommend. It was much longer than the first and had a little more story to it.

Bloodsucking Fiends - A good, fun, light read. I don't tend to like humorous genre books - I found The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy really annoying, and had the same reaction reading Jasper Fforde - so imagine my surprise when I found myself enjoying this! I still don't find this kind of thing laugh-out-loud funny but what I did like was the plot and the likeable characters, particularly the Emperor and his 'men'. 3 stars.

>40 Moomin_Mama: Oh, good! I'm glad it wasn't a total letdown. :)

I enjoyed Hitchhiker's Guide but I read the complete collection in one volume straight through, so by halfway through I was about done, lol.

>42 .Monkey.: I only read The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy a few years ago and since its publication that kind of humour has been much copied, so doesn't feel very original or clever. I think I would have liked it more if I'd read it years ago.