I'm currently reading Bastian Sick's "Der Dativ ist dem Genitiv sein Tod" and finding it occasionally funny but mostly just pedantic. Ain't Deutsch a funny ole language etc. etc. rinse lather repeat. (To be fair it's a newspaper column, and not many newspaper columns will bear aggregation.)

Looking for the German equivalent of Mark Twain - or P.G. Wodehouse - or P.J. O'Rourke - or, well, anybody funny really.

Recommendations?

And do not tell me that Douglas Adams/Terry Pratchett/Christopher Moore has been translated, or I will call down the wrath of cablecom upon your mom, neighbor or whoever is paying for your internet connection.

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Small world.. so am I..!!

The one and only: Loriot
The classical one: Wilhelm Busch
My favourite: Erich Kaestner

"Der neue Berg" / Franz Hohler (Switzerland)
- a new mountain in Oerlikon

"Helden wie wir" / Thomas Brussig (Germany)
- DDR to BRD, Story about the wall and why it came down

"Die Känguru Chroniken" / Marc-Uwe Kling (Germany, PoetrySlammer)
- The Story about the usual Kangaroo in the neighbourhood

...and all of Max Goldt, he wrote lots of columns for Titanic-Magazin

Might have some of the books at home. Contact me if you'd like to get some delivered.

Second the recommendation of sharp-tongued Max Goldt--very sparse style of language and the anthologies of his columns and very, very funny.

I enjoyed his columns for years, but I was very disappointed when I watched him live: What an egocentric and complacent idiot...

There is only one egocentric and complacent idiot I like and that is Harald Schmitt. But I must warn you that books like "Quadrupelfuge" are far from easy even for native speakers...

same as most successful comedians, then...

I'm a huge fan of Wladimir Kaminer, who writes about his life in Berlin as a Russian-Jewish immigrant. Clever, biting, and insightful short stories are the staple. There are enough volumes to take up a few shelves in a small library. "Russendisko" is the first book and is quite well viewed.

If it's anything like the British (Ukrainian) writer Marina Lewycka I'll go for it, too. Thanks

I suggest you read out loud and you pee your pants...






Ok, that was not funny. My dad used to keep a little notebook on him at all times and write the most nonsense and weird sounding words he came across, hence my first German word was "lochkreiszeuge" or something like this.

I second Erich Kaestner. And all books by Karel May, classics, but not funny. And Bernhard Schlink, not humorous either.

I'd like to find Bernd Lichtenberg, since he wrote Goodbye, Lenin!

I recommend: Erich Kästner, Goethe, Michael Ende, Gotthelf (is a Swiss)

But I personally prefer actually english writers. They write better.

funny AND German...hmmm... if you are into funny little rhymes, try Joachim Ringelnatz and many years ago I came across a book called "Im stillen Winkel 14a" but I am afraid it is not available any more. When I get home I'll tell you the author's name which has escaped me. Googled it but without success.

OK the name is Hans Alfred Kihn and it is available at some secon hand bookshops
http://www.zvab.com/advancedSearch.d...iref=suggest07

used at amazon.de

I packed down these books for my tandem partner:

- 'Ich bin dann mal weg', Hape Kerkeling
- 'Glennkill', Leonie Swann
- 'Maria, ihm schmeckt's nicht', Jan Weiler

I had LOL moments with all of them and think they are easy to read.

I quite enjoy Bastian Sick, but then I'm a boring, pedantic person...

And I third (or fourth?) Max Goldt. And Vladimar Kaminer, very much so.
Two more I can warmly recommend: Harald Martenstein - he writes a column for DIE ZEIT, has also written one or two novels, but I prefer his columns - and Axel Hacke - his "Der weisse Neger Wumumba" is classic (based on people mishearing/misunderstanding German and what they hear/understand instead).

Erich Kästner is always good, and Tucholsky - for something light and rather sweet in a very antiquated way, try "Schloss Gripsholm: Eine Sommergeschichte".

More essays, if you like that kind of thing (I obviously do): Elke Heidenreich wrote a column for the German women's magazine Brigitte for many years. Often very funny. There is a whole series of books with the essays, probably easily available cheap in a used book shop.

If you want to be Swissy patriotic, then try "Mein Name ist Eugen", a very funny look at the scrapes a young boy in the 1950s gets into, told from his perspective (author: Klaus Schädelin) and Gisela Widmer (used to be columnist for Tagesanzeiger Magazin, has several books of columns/essays.

When you're tired of reading, buy or rent the movie KEINOHRHASEN.

Baron von Münchhausen

http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hierony...C3%BCnchhausen


Karl May ; not a humour-writer but a writer full of humour

http://www.karl-may.de/index.php

the books done in Radebeul-bei-Dresden are the genuine ones


and then for children :

http://globi.ch/

Read Winnetou already; found it hilarious but probably not for reasons the author intended.