Recently my friend Audra had a blind date. Before the date I asked her what the guy was like. Her only comment was, "He isn't funny." The day after the date I got a chance to talk to her, and again I asked her what he was like. Her only comment? "He wasn't funny." Not "He smelled," not "He was a jackass," not even "I think he might be gay," which if you know Audra you know happens. A lot.

Since then I've been thinking a lot about humor in our lives, which is a good thing given that tonight's Reader Advisory class is all about Humorous Fiction. For tonight's discussion I read Confessions of a Teen Sleuth by Chelsea Cain. In this parody author Chelsea Cain invites readers to get to know the real Nancy Drew, not the fictionalized version created by her bitter college roommate Carolyn Keene. Taking us through some of the more important moments in Nancy's life, many questions that readers may have had about the plucky sleuth are answered. For example, was Ned Nickerson the love of Nancy's life or did her heart belong to one of those dashing Hardy Boys? Laugh out loud hilarious at some points while darker at others, this book is recommended to any reader of the Nancy Drew canon.

While I loved the book I read this week, as I've been reading the responses from my students I know that not everyone thought their book was funny. With humor so subjective, how do you find the right book with the right humor when a patron walks up to the desk and asks for something funny?

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