Great laughs in an early chapter book - Horrid Henry series (and a free giveaway!)

When kids are learning to read chapter books, it's important that there are immediate rewards. They have to understand the story, the characters, the situation. But laughter is the best reward of all. Horrid Henry, by Francesca Simon, is a new series in the US that is sure to find a good following among 1st and 2nd graders who want to move up to chapter books. Would you like a free book? See the contest at the end of this post!

Horrid Henry
written by Francesca Simon
illustrated by Tony Ross
IL: Sourcebook, 2009.
ages 6 - 8

Henry is an ornery little boy - he's always causing trouble, and his parents expect him to. In fact, his brother is nicknamed Perfect Peter. Until one day, Henry decides that he's the one who should be perfect. Peter can't stand this, and starts acting out in all sorts of ways. Eventually, he throws his dinner at Henry (who naturally ducks), and the dinner lands straight on their mother's face! This is the first chapter in Horrid Henry, and it certainly made me laugh.

The Horrid Henry chapter books are broken into four short chapters that pretty much stand alone. Each set of pages has a small illustration that adds to the laughs and keeps the readers connected to the silly situations of the stories. This will definitely appeal to reluctant readers.

While I wasn't immediately taken with this mischievous boy, every child I've shown it to has immediately wanted to read it. That's a pretty good result. This will appeal to kids who like naughty stories, who like mischief, and who want a quick read. If they zoom through this first book, there are more: Horrid Henry's Stinkbomb, Horrid Henry Tricks the Tooth Fairy, and Horrid Henry and the Mega-Mean Time Machine.

To celebrate summer reading, I have four Horrid Henry books to give away, thanks to the kindness of the publisher Sourcebooks. If you would like a Horrid Henry book for your little mischief maker, leave a comment or send me an email. In your comment, let me know a favorite funny book that your kids enjoy reading. If you are or become a follower, let me know and that counts as an extra entry! Contest ends on Monday, June 22nd. Remember to leave your email address, please!

**UPDATE: GIVEAWAY EXTENDED to Sunday, June 28th! For an extra entry, follow Great Kid Books through email updates, Facebook, or RSS feed. Let me know either through email or the comment page.

To read a chapter, see this excerpt from Horrid Henry Tricks the Tooth Fairy.
To read other reviews, see:
The Happy Nappy Bookseller
The Reading Tub

Find Horrid Henry at your local independent bookstore, Amazon, or public libraries.