31 Funny Graphic Novels – Imagination Soup

Most kids love reading funny books. Add in the graphic novel format, and you get a winning combination of funny graphic novels!

The funny graphic novel books listed here share stories that engage readers of all ages whether in elementary, upper elementary, or middle school. If you know a reluctant reader, try a book off of this list. (And honestly, all of us can be “reluctant” once in a while.) Even better, many choices are books with a series — so you can keep reading once you like the first book.

Children who love silliness, wordplay, sarcasm, and weird and quirky plots will love these book choices! And if these aren’t right for your kids, try a different format (aka. not a graphic novel) and a different genre like mystery or historical fiction. Or read a book about a favorite topic.

The goal is to read! I hope this list will give you some new ideas.

Funny Graphic Novels

Early Elementary (Ages 6 – 9)

The Cosmic Adventures of Astrid and Stella by Sabrina Moyle, illustrated by Eunice Moyle
Astrid and Stella (and their robot) rocket into outer space, bringing snacks and dance breaks in preparation. When they get a distress call from Caturn about Kittywonkus taking over the planet, they decide to save it, but how will they get Kittywompus to break the spell? Then, they head to the planet Bloop for a beach vacation. Filled with puns, hilarity, adventure, and cuteness — this is sure to be a new favorite story for your 6- to 9-year-olds.

Dolphin Girl Trouble in Pizza Paradise by Zach Smith
This hilarious story is about the weird and ridiculous antics of an unusual superhero, bizarre villains, and the Pizza Paradise restaurant. Dolphin girl uses her echolocation to learn Sea Cow’s evil plot. She recruits her friend Keith who becomes Otter Boy to help her thwart Sea Cow’s nefarious plan to turn Pizza Paradise customers into zombies and take over the restaurant. Gasp! So evil. What a silly adventure!

Cookie & Broccoli Play It Cool by Bob McMahon
This cute story shows that kindness is better than coolness…Cookie, Broccoli, and Garlic are SO excited to join the cool crowd but they’re all rejected. But when the leader of the Cool Crowd, Cucumber, quits, and Broccoli gets elected as their leader, maybe they can join now?  Broccoli runs away from all the work and Cookie and Garlic still don’t get it but don’t worry, they learn a valuable lesson and readers will enjoy the humor with a great message.

Hound Heroes: Beware the Claw by Todd H. Doodler, illustrated by Todd Goldman
When a spaceship crash lands, it gives a group of dog friends superpowers…and superhero outfits. Each dog in the group has a unique personality, but none take their powers seriously at first because they’re too busy wreaking havoc and goofing around. Until…the evil kitties TAKE OVER THE CITY!! Can the Hound Heroes save the day?

Dog Man by Dav Pinkey
Weird. Quirky. Funny. I think all three describe this new graphic novel from the creator of Captain Underpants. In this story, a police officer and a dog are joined together — the top from the dog, the bottom from the officer to make: Dog Man. Dog Man solves crimes and has adventures, the likes of which will entertain you for hours.

Scaredy Squirrel in a Nutshell by Melanie Watt
Scaredy Squirrel has many fears and therefore, elaborate coping strategies. In the first story, the scariest thing is an adorable pom-pom-tailed creature–a rabbit.

Guinea Pig, Pet Shop Private Eye by Colleen AF Venable, Stephanie Yue
This is a hilarious early chapter book /graphic novel about a detective who just happens to be a guinea pig and solve mysteries in the pet store.

Bird and Squirrel on Ice by James Burks
Hysterical! In this first book, Bird’s over-confident, laissez-faire character pairs perfectly with Squirrel’s logical, fearful one. The duo crash land in the Penguin world where Bird is dubbed the “Chosen One” meant to save the penguins from the Great Whale. 

Banana Fox and the Secret Sour Society by James Kochalka
Kids who like very weird and wild stories that ONLY make sense to kids will adore Banana Fox. The book is filled with totally ridiculous humor (not potty humor) about Banana Fox whose goofy antics to stop the Secret Sour Society will keep you laughing the book.

Baloney and Friends Going Up! by Greg Pizzoli
From writing a theme song to sleepovers to thinking deep thoughts, this book of stories showcases characters you can’t help but love including Baloney the pig, Bizz the bumblebee, Peanut the horse, and Krabbit the rabbit. Plus, read directions for drawing the characters with emotions in the back.

Blue, Barry, & Pancakes by Dan & Jason
Blue the worm doesn’t want to share the beach ball with Barry and Pancakes because of what inevitably happens– they lose it. (Well, it’s swallowed by a whale.) The misadventures continue a silly cause & effect story, where one disaster leads to another even into outer space and a volcano but ends with a sweet celebration of friendship.

Cat Kid Comic Club by Dav Pilkey
Cat Kid teaches a class for the tadpoles about making your own comic books…which doesn’t go well until the tadpoles get excited about failure and start writing and drawing. If you like a lot of silliness (including potty humor) with great messages about writing, creativity, and persistence, read this book next.

Jop and Blip Wanna Know #1 by Jim Benton
If you like kooky stories, playful characters, and random facts, this beginning graphic novel for ages 6 to 10 is a hilarious and informative reading experience. Jop and Blip ponder topics like farts, words that begin with silent letters, perspective, dragons, and more — and as they discuss, you’ll learn a thing or ten.

Smell My Foot (Chick and Brain) by Cece Bell
Written in comic panels, you’ll crack up at the hilarious and weird conversations between Chick and Brain and eventually, Spot. Chick tries to teach Brain about polite conversation and Brain demands that Chick smells his foot. Which Chick won’t do until…Brain says please. It’s friendship, fun, and frivolity.

 
Mr. Pants It’s Go Time! by Scott McCormick, illustrated by R.H. Lazzell
Mr. Pants really wants to go to laser tag, but since he didn’t clean his room, his sister picks a visit to Fairy Princess Dream Factory. Fun and entertaining.

Cosmic Pizza Party by Nick Murphy & Paul Ritchey 
This fun and comedic novel follows the mishaps and adventures of a sci-fi gang of pizza makers as they market their pizza across the galaxy. 

Bee & Flea and the Compost Caper by Anna Humphrey, illustrated by Mike Deas
If you like funny and gross stories with wordplay and science, don’t miss this hilarious choice! A bored bee offers to help a flea with her rule enforcement for the agents of F.L.E.A. Bee and Flea land on a compost pile where Bee and Flea encounter danger, a daring rescue, and a heartwarming, developing friendship moment — plus, we learn all about the purpose of compost and the jobs of its many residents!

Agent 9 by James Burkes
Agent 9 is a cat secret agent who’s currently on probation for how reckless she is on her missions. What will she do when the entire rest of her organization gets captured by the evil King Crab, and only she can help?

Mal and Chad by Stephen McCranie
A hilarious graphic novel book series about Mal, a young inventor, and his best sidekick, his dog, Chad. Perfect for growing readers and reminds me a little of the beloved comic strip Calvin and Hobbes.

Donut Feed the Squirrels by Mika Song
Norma and Belly are squirrel friends who really, really want a donut. Can they work together, sneak in a food truck, and have the biggest ever donut party ever? Minimal text, plenty of silliness, and a lovely surprise ending!

Upper Elementary & Middle School (Ages 9 – 12)

First Cat in Space by Mac Barnett, illustrated by Shawn Harris
Absurdly hysterical, this is a bizarrely perfect adventure in space with a cat and a toenail-clipping robot who journey into space to stop the rats from eating the moon. Silly adventures ensue –like befriending a whale, becoming pirates, and answering a sphynx’s riddle — plus plenty of drama and creative world-building.

Phoebe and Her Unicorn: A Heavenly Nostrils Chronicle by Dana Simpson
Sarcastic and hilarious, this is a laugh-out-loud comic book series about a precocious young girl and her reluctant unicorn “best friend.” My kids and I adore these characters and love this new book. It’s one we’ll read over and over again.

Big Nate Welcome to My World by Lincoln Peirce
Big Nate’s life at school and home will keep kids laughing throughout the entire book. Hilarious!

Big Nate: What’s a Little Noogie Between Friends? by Lincoln Peirce 
Another hilarious winner in the Big Nate series of books. From school picture fiascos to girl trouble and detentions, these are laugh-out-loud funny and a kid favorite! (Diary of a Wimpy Kid fans, you will LOVE this series!)

Ham Helsing Vampire Hunter by Rich Moyer
If you like adventure, potty humor, surprising plot twists, and quirky characters, then do not miss this entertaining story with heart and humor. And instead of vampire hunting, the hunter and vampire team up to fight the evil spider-woman who has been terrorizing the town, becoming friends instead of enemies. And the ending? Perfection!

Barb The Last Berzerker by Dan & Jason
Join Barb on a funny, gross, and adventurous quest to find the northern tribe of Zerks so they can help rescue her clan from the Witch Head has captured but Barb escaped. Before she did, Barb steals a special magical sword to help her become a Berzerker. As she travels, she’s joined by her yeti friend named Porkchop. Barb’s small but she’s brave and empathetic, both of which help her with the snot goblins, a giant, and vampire goat fiends, eventually finding her way to the Northern Zerks. But will they help?

Strubble Town Squirrel Do Bad by Stephan Pastis
Because of her overprotective dad, Wendy the Wanderer is stuck inside all day–until her dad takes a trip and she gets an inattentive teenage babysitter. You might be able to predict that this story will be a cascade of funny cause and effect.

The Croc Ate My Homework by Stephan Pastis
This book is so funny I can hardly stand it. My kids LOVED this book, as did I. The crocs are not the smartest, and their stupidity will keep you thoroughly entertained. You’ll share page after page with your family, friends, and neighbors.

Lupin Leaps In: A Breaking Cat News Adventure by Georgia Dunn
Get the news that matters (to cats) as reported by three cats including one named Lupin. My daughter laughed her way through these funny cartoons. She stopped repeatedly to show me her favorite pages. Because when something is funny, you just want to share it! (Don’t miss the previous book, Breaking Cat News.)

Snug Harbor Stories (Wallace the Brave) by Will Henry 
Reminiscent of Calvin and Hobbes for hilarious, snarky humor, dive into the unforgettable everyday life of Wallace and his two friends, Spud and Amelia, whose personalities will crack you up! 100% delightful humor you’ll want to read again and again. If you love to laugh, this is your next book…

Otto: A Palindrama by Jon Agee
Hilarious and brilliant, this is a crazy adventure story told ONLY in illustrations and palindromes. I found it clever, surprising, and humorous. Will kids love it as much as I do? If they like humor and words, then yes!

 

 

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