About the Holiday

The whole month can’t go by without celebrating one of the most fantastic things about life—humor! Whether you’re laughing at a funny joke, your favorite comedian or comic strip, a silly mistake, or even yourself, a chuckle is good for you! Today, take time to relax and enjoy the absurd—and give a few hearty “Ha! Ha! Ha’s!” along the way.

Meet the Dullards

Written by Sara Pennypacker | Illustrated by Daniel Salmieri

Gray—that’s what the Dullards are. Gray and happily extra boring. Their life is going on in its monotonous way until one day when Mr. and Mrs. Dullard happen upon a most disturbing sight. Their three children are reading—and not only that, they are reading books about befriending lions, juggling, and walking a tightrope. The elder Dullards do what any self-respecting dullard would do. They retrieve the books and hand their children blank pieces of paper to read instead.

The children are definitely becoming a problem. They want to go to school and have been playing outside. It’s not our fault bemoan the parents; it must be the town where last fall some leaves actually turned color and there’s that unruly snail in the driveway. In fact the whole atmosphere is like a circus! There’s only one thing to do. The Dullards pack up their house and Blanda, Borely, and Little Dud and move away.

Immediately upon moving into their new home, they are bombarded by the neighbor lady bringing exclamation marks and chunky applesauce cake into their perfectly dull new home. The kids are sent to watch the (unplugged) TV, but instead their eyes are drawn to the window. While unpacking Mr. and Mrs. Dullard discover a sight so shocking that Mrs. Dullard faints into the arms of her distressed husband. It’s yellow flowered wallpaper. (An exclamation mark would be appropriate here, but you know…)

On the way to the paint store the family stops to get ice-cream cones, and with 90,000 flavors to choose from they pick vanilla. Plain cone or sugar cone? No cone, of course. At the paint store Mr. Dullard suggests medium gray, but Mrs. Dullard deems it too risky. Its similarity to highways could make the kids think of travel. Beige? Mrs. Dullard counters. Too much like clay, says Mr. Dullard which can be used to create stuff. They come to a compromise and go home to—you’ve got it—watch the paint dry.

While their parents are mesmerized the kids sneak away and out the window that so enthralled them before. The sight of Blanda, Borely, and Little Dud juggling, teaching a dog tricks, and somersaulting on the clothesline, ushers in another move—back to where they came from just in time for the kids to join the circus.

With dry wit and laugh-out-loud dialogue Sara Pennypacker delivers a spot-on family story. While seen through the eyes of Mr. and Mrs. Dullard, this funny tale is all about the kids. What kids don’t think their parents are dull and conventional? And can parents really understand what’s going on in those little minds? Both children and adults will love the Dullards, and after reading you may be inspired to go out for vanilla chocolate ice-cream (ok, you can still hold the cone!)

Daniel Salmieri’s Dullards are comic genius! With their oval bodies and gray attire they blend with their oatmeal-hued walls to perfect effect. Identical square houses give way to identical triangular houses as the Dullards move to avoid catastrophic enthusiasm. The kids’ facial expressions as they adhere to boooring rules are priceless as are the parents’ reactions to the slightest excitement. Details such as a yellow snail in the driveway, the elder Dullards’ looks of horror when discovering the bright wallpaper, the signs on the ice-cream kiosk, and the name of the moving van make provide humorous jokes on each page.

Ages 4 – 8

Balzar + Bray, Harper Collins, 2015 | ISBN 978-0062198563

National Humor Month Activity

Paint Strip Inspiration

Do you like to laugh? Do you like to watch paint dry? It is kind of cool how it changes color a bit as it dries….Oh, sorry! Where was I? Oh yeah—this craft. Paint sample strips make brilliant backdrops to your thoughts about love, life, laughter—anything! You can mix and match your favorite colors and arrange them any way you like to decorate your wall. Frame them for a more put-together look!

Supplies

• 4 -5 paint strips from a hardware store OR You could also make your own color stips with poster board and craft paint
• Poster board
• Craft paint
• Paint brush
• Markers or adhesive letters
• Scissors
• Mounting squares
• Frame (optional)

Directions

1. If you are making your own paint strip, cut poster board into strips 9 inches long by 2 inches wide, or to desired size
2. Paint squares of color to fill the strip, leaving a 1/8-inch-wide stripe between colors
3. Think of a phrase that expresses your thoughts on life and laughter OR use a favorite quote
4. Print the words on the squares of color OR use adhesive letters. You can print one letter per square or multiple letters or even whole words. Mix styles of print to give it your own unique look.
5. Mount or frame your paint strip phrase