Book picks similar to
The Worst Book Ever by Elise Gravel


graphic-novels
picture-books
humor
childrens

Big Nate: In a Class by Himself


Lincoln Peirce - 2010
    REALLY big things.But life doesn't always go your way just because you're awesome.Trouble always seems to find him, but Nate keeps his cool no matter what.He knows he's great. A fortune cookie told him so.For fans of the hilarious Diary of a Wimpy Kid series: Here comes BIG NATE, accidental mischief maker and definitely NOT the teacher's pet.

The Mysteries of Harris Burdick


Chris Van Allsburg - 1984
    A fictional editor's note tells of an encounter with an author and illustrator named Harris Burdick, who provided the images and captions as samples, each from a different picture book he had written. He left with a promise to deliver the complete manuscripts if the editor chose to buy the books. Burdick was never seen again, and the samples are all that remain of his supposed books. Readers are challenged to imagine their own stories based on the images in the book.

Hamster and Cheese


Colleen A.F. Venable - 1997
    Venezi's pet shop, and everyone is a suspect, from the chinchillas to the goldfish. Never fear! The world's fluffiest detective on the case: Sasspants, PI(G). By day, Sasspants is your average book-loving, gizmo-inventing guinea pig. By night she solves pet shop mysteries with the help of her sidekick, Hamisher the hamster. Our furry little heroes will stop at nothing to find the sandwich thief! This is the first book in the Guinea PIG, Pet Shop Private Eye series.

The Wolves in the Walls


Neil Gaiman - 2003
    Lucy hears sneaking, creeping,crumpling noisescoming from insidethe walls.She is sure there arewolves living in the walls of her house.But, as everybody says, if the wolves come out of the walls, it's all over.

Where's Halmoni?


Julie Kim - 2017
    Two young children pay a visit to Halmoni (grandmother in Korean), only to discover she's not home. As they search for her, noticing animal tracks covering the floor, they discover a pair of traditional Korean doors, slightly ajar, new to their grandmother's home. Their curiosity gets the best of them, and the adventure begins when they crawl through and discover an unfamiliar, fantastical world. As they continue to search for their grandmother and solve the mystery of the tracks, they go deeper into the world of Korean folklore and experience their cultural heritage in unexpected ways, meeting a number of Korean-speaking characters along the way. Translations to Korean text in the story and more about the folktale-inspired characters are included at the end.

Unlikely Friends


Norm Feuti - 2021
    Beak & Ally is a new early reader graphic novel series perfect for fans of Narwhal and Jelly.Ally the alligator is perfectly happy being alone . . . until one day a noisy bird named Beak lands on her snout. Much to Ally’s annoyance, this chatty bird likes to sing all the time and has chosen a nearby tree to build his new nest. Even worse, he insists that he and Ally will be best friends. In fact, he has all kinds of friendship goals in mind, and it seems nothing Ally says will convince him that she’d rather just be alone.Nothing beats peace and quiet . . . except for maybe a new best friend?Beak & Ally is a brand-new graphic novel series by Norm Feuti, perfect for emerging readers and comic lovers alike.

Moldylocks and the Three Beards


Noah Z. Jones - 2014
    Jones turns well-known fairy tales upside-down in this humorous new series!This series is part of Scholastic's early chapter book line called Branches, which is aimed at newly independent readers. With easy-to-read text, high-interest content, fast-paced plots, and illustrations on every page, these books will boost reading confidence and stamina. Branches books help readers grow!In the Land of Fake Believe, Princess meets a strange girl named Moldylocks. When Princess's stomach grumbles, Moldylocks takes her to the home of the Three Beards. The girls sit in their chairs, eat their chili, and jump on their beds. The Three Beards are not happy when they get home--and they are very, very hungry! Will Moldylocks and Princess go into the chili pot? With easy-to-read text and engaging full-color artwork throughout, kids will be drawn right into this very funny land of fractured fairy tales!

The Golden Compass Graphic Novel, Volume 1


Stéphane Melchior-Durand - 2014
      Lyra Belacqua is content to run wild among the scholars of Jordan College, with her dæmon familiar always by her side. But the arrival of her fearsome uncle, Lord Asriel, draws her to the heart of a terrible struggle—a struggle born of Gobblers and stolen children, and a mysterious substance known as Dust. As she hurtles toward danger in the cold far North, Lyra never suspects the shocking truth: she alone is destined to win—or to lose—this more-than-mortal battle.   The stunning full-color art offers both new and returning readers a chance to experience the story of Lyra, an ordinary girl with an extraordinary role to play in the fates of multiple worlds, in an entirely new way.   “Superb . . . all-stops-out thrilling.” —The Washington Post

The Doubtful Guest


Edward Gorey - 1957
    The staid, pale, Victorian inhabitants of the mansion alternately stare and glare at the doubtful guest as it tears out whole chapters from books, peels the soles of its white canvas shoes, and broods while lying on the floor ("inconveniently close to the drawing-room door"). Strangely, or rather, typically, as this is a Gorey book, the stymied occupants never ask the guest to leave--and in 17 years it has still "shown no intention of going away."

Battle Bunny


Jon Scieszka - 2013
    Alex isn't interested - until he decides to make the book something he'd actually like to read. So he takes out his pencil, sharpens his creativity, and totally transforms the story!Birthday Bunny becomes Battle Bunny, and the rabbit's innocent journey through the forest morphs into a supersecret mission to unleash an evil plan - a plan that only Alex can stop.Featuring layered, original artwork that emphasizes Alex's additions, this dynamic exploration of creative storytelling is sure to engage and inspire.

The Thing Beneath the Bed


Patrick Rothfuss - 2010
    It has pictures. It has a saccharine-sweet title. The main characters are a little girl and her teddy bear. But all of that is just protective coloration. The truth is, this is a book for adults with a dark sense of humor and an appreciation of old-school faerie tales.There are three separate endings to the book. Depending on where you stop, you are left with an entirely different story. One ending is sweet, another is horrible. The last one is the true ending, the one with teeth in it.The Adventures of the Princess and Mr. Whiffle is a dark twist on the classic children's picture-book. I think of it as Calvin and Hobbes meets Coraline, with some Edward Gorey mixed in.Simply said: This is not a book for children.

Dungeon Critters


Natalie Riess - 2020
    As they risk their lives traveling through haunted dungeons, swamps, and high society balls — they also come closer together as friends.Motivated by rivalries, ideals, and a lust for adventure, these critters navigate not only perils and dangers of the natural world, but also perils and dangers… of the heart!

Forgive Me, I Meant to Do It: False Apology Poems


Gail Carson Levine - 2012
    Matthew Cordell’s clever and playful line art lightheartedly captures the spirit of the poetry. This is the perfect book for anyone who’s ever apologized . . . and not really meant it.

The Dunderheads


Paul Fleischman - 2009
    Especially the time-squandering, mindwandering, doodling, dozing dunderheads in her class. But when she confiscates Junkyard’s crucial fi nd, she fi nally goes too far. Enter Wheels (and his souped-up bike with forty-eight extra gears), Pencil (who can draw anything from memory), Spider (look up and you’ll fi nd him), and their fellow misfi ts in a spectacular display of teamwork aimed at teaching Miss Breakbone a lesson she won’t soon forget. From the incomparable Paul Fleischman comes a winning cast of underdogs — and one of the most terrifying teachers you’ll ever meet — brought to vivid life in David Roberts’s quirky, hilarious illustrations.

Up the Creek


Nicholas Oldland - 2013
    So when the three friends go canoeing together one sunny day, it doesn't take long for them to start quarreling with one another. First, they can't decide who should get to steer the canoe. Later, they debate how best to get across a beaver dam that blocks their way. But when they can't agree on the proper course for maneuvering through the white-water rapids they suddenly find themselves in, the consequences become truly perilous. It takes a long, uncomfortable night spent stranded on a rock to remind the bear, the moose and the beaver what they often forget: everything turns out better when they work together as a team. As with his other popular books in the Life in the Wild series, featuring these three lovable animal characters, author-illustrator Nicholas Oldland has created a funny romp of a picture book adventure for young children that will be a favorite choice in the classroom. Oldland's distinctive, simple and playful artwork tells much of the tale on its own, with lots of visual humor in the characters' facial expressions and the numerous asides throughout. At its core, this is a fun, contemporary fable that champions the importance of teamwork, cooperation and communication while also promoting the joys to be found in nature, specifically the wilder parts of the outdoors. This book could serve as an introduction to discussions on animals and their environments in the early grades as well.