A Book Your Reluctant Reader Will Love

Trent, one of my preschool pals, couldn't stop giggling as he told me this gem, "So, a horse walks into a bar and the bartender says, 'Hey, why the long face?'" Kids love good jokes - and they don't seem to mind the bad jokes, either! If you have a kid who doesn't like to read, try a joke book. Joke books are perfect for young or reluctant readers because:

1. Jokes are short.

2. You can flip through pages instead of reading sequentially so the thick books aren't intimidating.

3. Humor makes these books intrinsically motivating.

4. With "knock, knock" jokes, kids can already read some of the most important words.

5. Reading and rereading joke books in order to learn the joke for future telling builds reading fluency.

One of my favorite easy-to-read joke books is Knock, Knock! illustrated by fourteen artists and published by Dial Books for Young Readers. Each artist chose a different "knock, knock" joke to illustrate. The repetition of words like "knock, knock" and "who's there" plus the clues from the art make this book one most kids can read successfully, especially if you read it to kids first and let them guess what the punchlines to the jokes will be.

Come to the Orion Township Public Library and choose from shelves full of joke and riddle books. If your budding comedian needs an audience, I promise to laugh at all the right times.

Kristen Remenar is a Youth Services Librarian at the Orion Township Public Library and she loves corny jokes. For more book recommendations and activities, please visit her at the library or at: http://kristenremenar.com/