Top 10 Tuesday: Favorite Humorous Characters

Hosted by The Broke and the Bookish

I do believe that this week's topic was the hardest topic I have ever attempted. The original prompt was Top 10 Favorite Characters from X Genre. What? I knew myself. I knew I would pick either YA Fantasy or YA Dystopian/Sci-Fi, and then I would pick the same characters and books that I've talked about a million times. That's just the way I am.

Instead, I decided to do things a little differently. Rather than focus on a specific genre, I pulled together a list of characters from all genres that genuinely made me laugh. It's a very exclusive club, but I suppose you could say that the arrival of any of these characters on the page instantly reclassifies their book as humor. Did I bend the rules a little (a lot)? Yes. But do you see me apologizing? No.

I give you my Top 10 Favorite Humorous Characters by category.


The clown:

Kenji Kishimoto from Shatter Me and Unravel Me by Tahereh Mafi
Kenji is the very first character that came to mind when I decided my theme. Dude is hilarious. He's irreverent, laid-back, and a total flirt. Surrounded by emotastic friends and stressed-out leaders, Kenji is the class clown who gets everyone to take a moment to chill. He's also a good guy with a tender heart, which makes me like him even more.

Roar from the Never Sky trilogy by Veronica Rossi
The ultimate platonic best guy friend, Roar is always there in a pinch. He's roguishly handsome and charming, but he sticks by his friends to lighten their spirits or carry their load when needed.

The overreactor:

Maggie from Also Known As by Robin Benway
- Maggie is so... teenager-y, but in a good way. She's over-the-top, insecure, and flighty. Sure, she's a spy from a family of spies, but boys are a harder code to crack than WW2 ciphers.

Mia from The Princess Diaries series by Meg Cabot
Ms. Freak-out herself, Mia is brilliant. She is the teenage girl of all teenage girls, complete with an awkward triangular haircut and stork-like body. She deals with parent trouble and school trouble and boy trouble like any other girl. Unlike any other girl, she also deals with the stress that comes with finding out she's a princess smack dab in the middle of her freshman year of high school. Being Mia, she takes the news less than gracefully.

Lex from Croak by Gina Damico
Unlike the other two girls, Lex is less dresses-and-pimple-cream and more black-hoodies-and-death. Whereas Mia and Maggie's freakouts usually involve lots of babbling, Lex prefers to punch people. A lot. As a Grim Reaper with an attitude problem, Lex' snarky asides had me in stitches for most of the book.

The fox:

Eugenides from The Queen's Thief series by Megan Whalen Turner
- C'mon. You had to know Gen would make an appearance. In addition to being crafty, devious, and manipulative, Gen is freaking funny. He has a dramatic flair that serves him well, as well as one of the sharpest minds I've ever encountered. Even after multiple rereads, Gen consistently makes me laugh out loud.

Sage from The False Prince and The Runaway King by Jennifer Nielsen
- Hee-hee, Sage, you're so clever. Like Gen (off of whom I'm convinced he was based), Sage is rarely silly. He is, however, brilliantly self-effacing and sly. Even in the middle of a duel to the death, he cracks jokes, primarily to throw off his opponent.

The clueless:

Nawat from the Trickster series by Tamora Pierce
Ah, my little crow-man. As a crow who has recently turned human, Nawat knows very little of human life. Though he does grow and mature, his early days in human form are hilariously peppered with misunderstandings and mistakes.

Temp from the Underworld series by Suzanne Collins
Misunderstood, ridiculed, and mistreated, Temp and his ways stole my heart from the beginning. He's often in the way and regularly disregarded, but is funny in all his ways and surprisingly wise. Who knew a giant talking cockroach could be so lovable. [I kid you not. Read the series, people.]

The thunder tiger:

Buruu from Stormdancer by Jay Kristoff
Buruu deserves a category all to himself. Fierce and often cranky, Buruu had me in stitches for much of the second half of the book. Like most cats, he can be very silly when the mood strikes him.





So there you have it! I can't wait to read all of your lists, for I'm sure you were far more disciplined than I and actually followed the rules. Have you read any of the books listed above? Do the characters tickle your funny bone as much as they do mine? Tell me below!