What's so funny?

I could use a good laugh.

One thing I have noticed is that different people find different things to be funny. There are so many different flavors of humor, from slapstick to sarcastic to silly to cynical to absurd to irreverent to witty to dark humor. When a patron asks for a good humorous read, I think about some of the funniest books I have read. Yet suggesting those books rarely seems to work. I often have to ask what else they find funny. If they can't think of a book I ask what movies or TV shows they find funny. With that, here are a few of the funniest books I have read.

Big Trouble by Dave Barry. Big Trouble was his first novel. Strangely I find his novels to be far better and funnier than his humor books. His novels are similar to the wacky south Florida novels of Carl Hiaasen and Tim Dorsey. He has a new novel out too titled Lunatics, which I hope to read soon.

Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal by Christopher Moore. This is an hilariously irreverent look at Jesus' childhood. Most of Moore's books are a little to goofy for my taste (like Island of the Sequined Love Nun and You Suck: A Love Story), but Lamb was perfect. It reminded me of the Monty Python film, Life of Brian.

Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit by Jeanette Winterson. A sarcastic teenager comes of age rebelling against her evangelical mother. Full of attitude, but written in a wry understated tone.

I have also laughed a lot while reading Carl Hiaasen, Janet Evanovich, David Sedaris, Christopher Buckley and some Terry Pratchett. 

What are some books that have made you laugh out loud?