The dog days of August are certainly here, and while dripping with sweat isn’t all that fun, humor books can give us the lift we so desperately need as we wait for Autumn’s cooling breath.

Author and book reviewer, Bella Gavellon, regales us with her wonderful sense of humor as she tells us to fend off the perils of summer and cautions us stay safe — by reading indoors.:-)

Here with her top six summer humor reading picks is  Bella Gavellon.

Summer is a hazardous time of year for readers.

Beach picnics bring ants who grab your reading munchies. Midges dive-bomb your eyes, mosquitoes and deer ticks think you’re the all-you-can-eat-human-buffet, and grasshoppers make themselves at home on your comfiest lawn chairs.

Here are six of my favorite authors to enjoy while resting in your imaginary, hermetically-sealed, temperature-controlled library.

Grasshopper martini optional.

• • • Humor – Erma Bombeck is known as the queen of ‘everyday life’ humor. For a taste of why she’s still so beloved, try Aunt Erma’s Cope Book: How to go from Monday to Friday in 12 Days.

Back of Book Blurb:  “In this book Erma comes out–out of the kitchen–with these gems: No longer will she be the only woman on the block to wear a slip under a see-through sweater, or feel guilty if the sun sets on an empty crockpot, nor will she care that she flunked her paper towel test. Our Erma is on her way to becoming a sub-total woman.”*

• Fantasy – Terry Pratchett’s The Color of Magic. I love his Discworld novels. Satire, political commentary, or rip-rollicking roller coaster ride; you decide. Or not. Caution: do not read while consuming fluids. 

Back of Book Blurb: “The beginning of the hilarious and irreverent series that has more than 80 million copies worldwide, The Color of Magic is where we meet tourist Twoflower and wizard guide Ricewind, and follow them on their always-bizarre journeys.”*

• Mystery – Janet Evanovich. One for the Money introduces us to Stephanie Plum, a spunky new bounty hunter who needs to learn her trade. Hilarity ensues.

Back of Book Blurb: “Welcome to Trenton, New Jersey, home to wiseguys, average Joes, and Stephanie Plum, who sports a big attitude and even bigger money problems (since losing her job as a lingerie buyer for a department store). Stephanie needs cash―fast―but times are tough, and soon she’s forced to turn to the last resort of the truly desperate: family…”*

• Horror – Richard Kadrey’s Sandman Slim. Horror and humor intertwine in the hands of this masterful author. Think watching a train wreck or sword swallower. Expect London Bridge to blow right up in your face, over your head, and all over every floor in the house. Yet also so over the top, this series had me laughing at the oddest moments. And if some well-meaning relative suggests psychotherapy, don’t dignify it with a response.

Back of Book Blurb: “Sandman Slim has arrived—a wild and weird, edge-of-your-seat supernatural roller-coaster rider that propels author Richard Kadrey to the forefront of the fantasy, thriller, and a host of other literary genres. This spellbinding, utterly remarkable tale of a vengeful magician/hitman’s return from hell is part H.P. Lovecraft, part Christopher Moore, part Jim Butcher, and totally, unabashedly dark, twisted, and hilarious.”*

• Junior – Mo Willems’ Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus. Mo’s stories will inspire conversation between children of all ages on everything from emotions to acceptable behavioral patterns. These stories will make you think, feel, and laugh out loud.

Back of Book Blurb: “When a bus driver takes a break from his route, a very unlikely volunteer springs up to take his place-a pigeon! But you’ve never met one like this before. As he pleads, wheedles, and begs his way through the book, children will love being able to answer back and decide his fate.”*

• Cooking –  FL Fowler’s 50 Shades of Chicken. Because we can indeed be deliciously wicked in the kitchen. Go ahead – be bad. You know you want to.

“Dripping Thighs, Sticky Chicken Fingers, Vanilla Chicken, Chicken with a Lardon, Bacon-Bound Wings, Spatchcock Chicken, Learning-to-Truss-You Chicken, Holy Hell Wings, Mustard-Spanked Chicken, and more, more, more! …

…So begins the adventures of Miss Chicken, a young free-range, from raw innocence to golden brown ecstasy, in this spoof-in-a-cookbook that simmers in the afterglow of E.L. James’s sensational Fifty Shades of Grey trilogy. Like Anastasia Steele, Miss Chicken finds herself at the mercy of a dominating man, in this case, a wealthy, sexy, and very hungry chef.”*

*Much thanks to authors, publishers, and Amazon for the blurbs, and of course to Bella G. for the great reviews.