The Queen and I by Sue Townsend
Funny Novels? Page 2
Michael Pailn's Diary.
i have a big huge autobiography of the pythons, i'll have to dig it out i only read the start so i can't say if it is funny or not, (so why did i post this reply, it just creates a anti-climax)
And it's not a novel, either. 
Not in the true sense of the thread perhaps, but still a good read.
if your talking novels then: Little Green Men by Christopher Buckley
Pigs Have Wings by P. G. Wodehouse and Clothes They Stood Up In by Alan Bennett., these are my favorites and catcher in the rye
Quote: Matthew Stott @ January 31, 2007, 6:45 PMRobert Rankin is great, hes written tons of books, all nice and silly.
I fell in love with Robert Rankin's sense of humour many years ago.
I was in a bookshop in Bedford, avoiding going to lectures at the Uni, and I saw the title 'Armageddon the Musical' on a spine. I just knew I had to read it from the title alone.
A mere four chapters in, I had to rush out and buy the other two parts of the trilogy; 'The Came and Ate Us' and 'The Suburban Book of the Dead'. (I never spent my student loan on food or rent - just on books and videos...)
Then I ploughed through the Brentford "trilogy" too. By then, I had caught up with the publishing schedule and I have been reading him ever since.
I just adore Hugo Rune and his bizarre outlook on life. I still quote him today...
"I think therefore I'm right"
Some people try to comapre him to Terry Pratchett, which I think is rather odd. I think Douglas Adams is a better comparison.
And, I almsot forgot... Barry the talkative time-sprout travelling in Elvis' head!! Pure genius!
Rankin is great, Ive got all his books. I first got into him in about '91, after id read all douglas admas works and wanted something similar. With Rankin I think I got something even better. Rankins world is a mad one, full of talking sprouts and old jokes. There are so many jokes and characters that flit between his many books that the more you read, the funnier they are and the more youre hooked. I dont think a lot of people know about him, which is a shame, as I much prefer him to more popular writers, such as Pratchett, who Ive never really clicked with. Rankins brand of lunatic sillines is much more up my street!
Anything by Martin or Kingsley Amis. My favourite would have to be Martin Amis's Money - the ageing movie star (apparently based on Kirk Douglas) and the section where the protagonist attempts to rape his girlfriend are hilarious. John Irving is pretty funny as well, especially A Prayer For Owen Meany, which is tremendously moving as well.