Funny comics and graphic novels

• Ricky Ricotta books in order by Dav Pilkey, illustrated by Dan Santat (Martin Ontiveros drew the first editions)

  Ages 4–9 · the publisher's age 9 books. Short chapters of big print with a picture on most pages, and a flip-a-page comic in the middle of each book.

• Pizza and Taco books in order by Stephen Shaskan

  Ages 5–8 · the publisher's age 11 books. Big panels with a line or two of speech in each bubble, split into short chapters.

• The Bad Guys books in order by Aaron Blabey

  Ages 6–10 · Peabody's own estimate 20 books. Big pictures and few words on a page, part comic and part chapter book.

• Captain Underpants books in order by Dav Pilkey

  Ages 6–10 · Peabody's own estimate 12 books. Short chapters with lots of cartoons and comic pages: a step up from a comic.

• Narwhal and Jelly books in order by Ben Clanton

  Ages 6–9 · Peabody's own estimate 10 books. Very short comics in big panels with only a line or two of text each, plus sea-creature facts at the end of some chapters.

• Yotsuba&! volumes in order by Kiyohiko Azuma

  Ages 6–12 · Peabody's own estimate 16 volumes. Everyday scenes with short speech bubbles.

• CatStronauts books in order by Drew Brockington

  Ages 6–10 · the publisher's age 8 books. Big clear panels, short bubbles and a lot of space-science words explained as the story goes.

• Agent Moose books in order by Mo O'Hara and Jess Bradley

  Ages 6–9 · Peabody's own estimate 3 books. Short comic panels with big pictures and a lot of puns, so a child can follow the plot with little reading.

• Pea, Bee, & Jay books in order by Brian "Smitty" Smith

  Ages 6–10 · Peabody's own estimate 6 books. Short books of big panels with very few words in each bubble and puns on every page, made for new readers.

• Dog Man books in order by Dav Pilkey

  Ages 7+ · the publisher's age 15 books. Short speech bubbles in big comic panels, with a joke on most pages.

• Cat Kid Comic Club books in order by Dav Pilkey

  Ages 7+ · the publisher's age 5 books. Comics inside a comic: short bubbles, and each kid's comic in the book is drawn a different way.

• InvestiGators books in order by John Patrick Green

  Ages 7–10 · Peabody's own estimate 9 books. Full-color comic panels with short speech bubbles and a pun or wordplay joke on nearly every page.

• Babymouse books in order by Jennifer L. Holm and Matthew Holm

  Ages 7–10 · the publisher's age 20 books. Comic panels with short speech bubbles and a few lines of narration.

• Lunch Lady books in order by Jarrett J. Krosoczka

  Ages 7–10 · the publisher's age 10 books. Short comics with a lot of white space, a few words per bubble and one joke after another.

• Squish books in order by Jennifer L. Holm and Matthew Holm

  Ages 7–10 · the publisher's age 8 books. Comic panels with short speech bubbles, plus a comic-within-the-comic and a few science facts.

• Bird & Squirrel books in order by James Burks

  Ages 7–10 · Peabody's own estimate 7 books. Colourful comic panels with short speech bubbles and a lot of action, so the story is easy to follow.

• Max Meow graphic novels in order by John Gallagher

  Ages 7–10 · the publisher's age 6 graphic novels. Bold comic panels with short speech bubbles, sound effects and a lot of silly action.

• Diary of a Wimpy Kid books in order by Jeff Kinney

  Ages 8–12 · the publisher's age 21 books. A handwritten-looking diary with a cartoon on most pages: more words than a comic, in short entries.

• Bone books in order by Jeff Smith

  Ages 8–12 · the publisher's age 9 books. Comic panels with fuller bubbles, and one long story that grows darker as it goes.

• The Last Kids on Earth books in order by Max Brallier, drawn by Douglas Holgate

  Ages 8–12 · the publisher's age 10 books. A novel with a big drawing on most spreads and a few comic pages.

• Hilo books in order by Judd Winick

  Ages 8–12 · the publisher's age 11 books. Bright comic panels with short speech bubbles, quick jokes and a bigger story that builds across the books.

• Phoebe and Her Unicorn books in order by Dana Simpson

  Ages 8–12 · Peabody's own estimate 24 books. Short comic strips and a few longer stories, with witty dialogue in small panels and a joke every few lines.

• Big Nate novels in order by Lincoln Peirce

  Ages 8–12 · Peabody's own estimate 8 novels. Short chapters of plain, chatty text on every page, with cartoons and comic strips mixed in.

• Chi's Sweet Home volumes in order by Konami Kanata

  Ages 8–12 · Peabody's own estimate 12 volumes. Mostly pictures, with a few words in each bubble, in short scenes of one to a few pages.

• Bunny vs Monkey books in order by Jamie Smart

  Ages 8–12 · the publisher's age 12 books. Comic panels with short speech bubbles and a joke on almost every page, in short stories that run into longer ones.

• Cleopatra in Space books in order by Mike Maihack

  Ages 8–12 · the publisher's age 6 books. Fast, full-colour panels with plenty of action and not many words per page.

• Sanity & Tallulah books in order by Molly Brooks

  Ages 8–12 · the publisher's age 3 books. Colourful comic panels with a lot of speech and science words, and a mystery to follow.

• Stuntboy books in order by Jason Reynolds and Raúl the Third

  Ages 8–12 · Peabody's own estimate 2 books. Short chapters mixing prose and busy, colorful pictures, with a chatty narrator who stops to explain things.

• Ham Helsing books in order by Rich Moyer

  Ages 8–12 · the publisher's age 3 books. Pages of cartoon pictures mixed with text, with jokes and puns, and a longer story across each book.

More kinds: Comics about animals · Adventure comics · Fantasy comics: dragons, magic and other worlds · Comics about friends · Comics about school · Comics set in space · Mystery comics. Or let Peabody pick three.