All of us need a distraction in the short days and long nights of winter. So why not laugh your way through the winter? Here is a list of some funny books to keep you smiling this winter.
Heartbreak Boys by Simon Green
When their ex-boyfriends get together and start Instagramming a disgustingly perfect summer of love, Jack and Nate decide to concoct a mutual Insta-worthy summer adventure of their own to prove they’re just fine, and everything’s great.
Of course, it’s hard to have an epic summer road trip when they’re stuck in a van with Nate’s midlife crisis-bound parents and his annoying younger sister. And it’s been years since Jack and Nate have said more than a few sentences to each other. But their followers don’t have to know any of that.
How hard could faking the high life be? Posting as @TheHeartBreakBoys, the duo stumbles into one hilarious situation after another—and each discovers that maybe the cure for heartbreak has been the boy riding next to him all along.
How To Date A Superhero (And Not Die Trying) by Cristina Fernandez
Falling for a superhero is dangerous. You have to trust that they’ll catch you.
Astrid isn’t a superhero, not like the ones she sees on the news, but she has something she thinks of as a small superpower: She has a perfect sense of time. And she’s not going to waste a single second.
Her plan for college is clear—friends, classes, and extra-curriculars all carefully selected to get her into medical school.
Until Max Martin, a nerdy boy from high school, crashes back into her life. Things with Max were never simple, and he doesn’t keep to her schedule. He disappears in the middle of dates and cancels at the last minute with stupid excuses.
When a supervillain breaks into her bedroom one night, Astrid has to face the facts: Her boyfriend, Max Martin, is a superhero. Double-majoring as a pre-med was hard, but now Astrid will have to balance a double life. This wasn’t part of her plan.
This Will Be Funny Someday by Katie Henry
Sixteen-year-old Izzy is used to keeping her thoughts to herself—in school, where her boyfriend does the talking for her, and at home, where it’s impossible to compete with her older siblings and high-powered parents.
When she mistakenly walks into a stand-up comedy club and performs, the experience is surprisingly cathartic. After the show, she meets Mo, an aspiring comic who’s everything Izzy’s not: bold, confident, comfortable in her skin. Mo invites Izzy to join her group of friends and introduces her to the Chicago open mic scene.
The only problem? Her new friends are college students—and Izzy tells them she’s one, too. Now Izzy, the dutiful daughter and model student, is sneaking out to perform stand-up with her comedy friends. Her controlling boyfriend is getting suspicious, and her former best friend knows there’s something going on.
But Izzy loves comedy and this newfound freedom. As her two parallel lives collide—in the most hilarious of ways—Izzy must choose to either hide what she really wants and who she really is, or finally, truly stand up for herself.
– Provided by Publisher
My Contrary Mary by Cynthia Hand
Welcome to Renaissance France, a place of poison and plots, of beauties and beasts, of mice and . . . queens?
Mary is the queen of Scotland and the jewel of the French court, except when she’s a mouse. Yes, reader, Mary is an Eðian (shapeshifter) in a kingdom where Verities rule. It’s a secret that could cost her a head—or a tail.
Luckily, Mary has a confidant in her betrothed, Francis. But things at the gilded court take a treacherous turn after the king meets a suspicious end. Thrust onto the throne, Mary and Francis face a viper’s nest of conspiracies, traps, and treason. And if Mary’s secret is revealed, heads are bound to roll
– Provided by Publisher
Jay’s Gay Agenda by Jason June
There’s one thing Jay Collier knows for sure—he’s a statistical anomaly as the only out gay kid in his small rural Washington town. While all his friends can’t stop talking about their heterosexual hookups and relationships, Jay can only dream of his own firsts, compiling a romance to-do list of all the things he hopes to one day experience—his Gay Agenda.
Then, against all odds, Jay’s family moves to Seattle, and he starts his senior year at a new high school with a thriving LGBTQIA+ community. For the first time ever, Jay feels like he’s found where he truly belongs. But as Jay begins crossing items off his list, he’ll soon be torn between his heart and his hormones, his old friends and his new ones . . . because after all, life and love don’t always go according to plan.
– Provided by Publisher
Once Upon A Quinceañera by Monica Gomez-Hira
Carmen Aguilar just wants to make her happily ever after come true. Except apparently “happily ever after” for Carmen involves being stuck in an unpaid summer internship. Now she has to perform as a party princess! In a ball gown. During the summer. In Miami.
Fine. Except that’s only the first misfortune in what’s turning out to be a summer of Utter Disaster.
But if Carmen can manage dancing in the blistering heat, fending off an oh-so-unfortunately attractive ex, and stopping her spoiled cousin from ruining her own quinceañera—Carmen might just get that happily ever after—after all.
– Provided by Publisher
Last Chance Books by Kelsey Rodkey
At Books & Moore, the musty bookstore her family has owned for generations, Madeline knows nothing is going to stop her from coming back after college to take over the store from her aunt. Then, a chain bookstore called Prologue opens across the street and threatens to shut them down. Jasper, the guy who works over at Prologue, seems intent on ruining her life. Not only is he taking her customers, but he also has the unbelievable audacity to be extremely cute! But that doesn’t matter: Jasper is the enemy, and he will be destroyed. Madeline knows: all’s fair in love and (book) wars.
– Adapted from Jacket
