A droll how-to offers guidance for those young readers who would Rather Not. Read, that is.
Much as we hate to admit it, reading is not everyone's favorite activity. I Hate Reading: How to Read When You'd Rather Not is for kids who would prefer to do math, throw up or even look at blank pages over reading. But it's also for kids who love humor in their books, especially humor that includes words like "butt" (as in the oft-repeated refrain: "Eyes on book. Butt on chair"). In the vein of Adam Lehrhaupt and Matthew Forsythe's Warning: Do Not Open This Book! and Ryan T. Higgins's Be Quiet!, this illustrated work of metafiction sneakily leads reluctant readers down the dangerous path to becoming enthusiastic page-turners, even as it explains exactly how not to do so.
Written by a mother (Beth Bacon) as told by her children (Arthur and Henry), I Hate Reading is packed with hilarious tips to avoid reading (get a bloody nose, offer to wash the car). Bacon specializes in books that validate the challenges many young kids experience with reading, including The Worst Book Ever; The Book No One Wants to Read; and Blank Space. Designed with blocks of color, playfully-sized fonts and plenty of white space, this visually appealing book may make striving readers feel less alone even as they discover that books can make them laugh. After all, as one tip says, "Funny books seem to go by fast." Indeed they do. --Emilie Coulter, freelance writer and editor