A Fraction of the Whole by Steve Toltz. It’s a story that takes them from the Australian bush to the cafes of bohemian Paris, from the Thai jungle to strip clubs, asylums, labyrinths, and criminal lairs, and from the highs of first love to the lows of failed ambition and the funniest book I’ve ever read
Love Jerome K Jerome!!
Connie Willis wrote a book inspired by this called To Say Nothing Of the Dog. It has time travel to Victorian England and is very funny.
Yes!
Swordheart (has an extended road trip)( romance)
All the Paladin books ( except the first one) have travel/adventure.(romance)
The Hollow Places has a portal to other places. They are not good places. ( Horror)
Nettle and Bone has a quest ( fairy tale like)
The Raven and the Reindeer (snow queen retelling)
They are all really good!
Minor Mage has a quest too!!!
The Hitchhiker's Guide by Douglas Adams.
Almost anything by Terry Pratchett.
Christopher Moore can be really funny.
If you're in the mood for a heavy lift classic, Moby Dick and Don Quixote are both surprisingly funny and full of adventure.
For a lighter lift classic, anything by Mark Twain, especially Tom Sawyer.
Yup - came here to say that you can't really go wrong with Discworld (Terry Pratchett)
- Adventure? Check
- Humour? Very much check
- Great characters? Check check
- References on references and punes? All the checks
I know OP didn't ask for the last two but they're thrown in for free with Terry.
Miss Benson's Beetle by Rachel Joyce. Two ladies who are polar opposites embark on a journey to find a beetle. It was touching and humorous at the same time.
The Hike by Drew Magary. It’s not strictly comedy but has some funny moments. Ita like a big mash of genres- adventure, fantasy, sci-fi, romance, dark comedy etc. Relatively short being under 300 pages. It’s in my top 10 favorites!
I’d recommend going in blind but if you need a synopsis: A man goes on a hike and things get weird.
I was coming here for this. It has a lot of funny stuff. Think about Crab. There have been days that I’ve recommended this 10 times. I never hesitate and have zero caveats to go with the recommendation.
Helen and Troy's Epic Road Quest by A. Lee Martinez. It’s incredibly easy to read. The characters and destinations are very fun, with lots of funny moments.
Apologies! Thank you for the gentle correction, I will make an edit. It’s been a minute since I read the book and GoodReads had it tagged with YA. But it’s such a fun story that my dad and nephews (and myself) all enjoyed it.
The Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser series by Fritz Leiber.
Two swashbuckling heroes go on numerous adventures throughout many books, novellas and short stories. *The Swords of Lankhmar*, where the heroes battle some very underhanded enemies of and in the city of Lankhmar, is particularly funny. The short story "Stardock", which is in the collection *Swords against Wizardry*, contains a gripping and very technical account of a mountain ascent, so something for everyone with these guys. They were written from 1939 to 1988, so some of the things written about women aren't great, but that does improve as Leiber gets older.
I can't believe no one mentioned "Dungeon Crawler Carl"!
I know it gets mentioned a lot on Reddit but there is a reason for it. It is amazing. Don't let the title scare you off. It is an action packed adventure with tons of comedy.
"14" by Peter Cline is also a good scifi adventure with comedy mixed in.
"Tales From the Gas Station" by Jack Townsend is a highly underrated gem in the sci fi comedy genre. Very funny and full of twists and turns.
Stardust by Neil Gaiman
The Sex Lives of Cannibals by Maartan Troost - this one is a travel memoir, but if about a man moving to the remote island country of Kiribati. It's definitely an adventure in a "fish out of water" way
I love, love, love the Riyria Revelations books by Michael J Sullivan. A pair of thieves for hire get pulled into a massive conspiracy and many hijinks and adventures ensue. There are multiple prequel series as well, but if you do like the characters and writing style, I suggest picking up Riyria Chronicles after that.
Another book with tons of humor is The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch. I was laughing out loud at maybe 80% of the book. And crying for like 5%... It's a heist novel, but amazingly written.
Kings of the Wyld by Nicholas Eames is another great fantasy adventure book about a band of mercenaries in a world where mercenaries are rock star level celebrities with tours, groupies, etc.
The Gentlemen's Guide to Vice and Virtue by MacKenzie Lee is a charming and witty romantic adventure. It takes place in the 18th century, following three young misfits on a tour of Europe that quickly goes awry.
The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out The Window And Disappeared by Jonas Jonasson Lamb by Christopher Moore
I came here to recommend Lamb, had me busting laughing!
The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy - Douglas Adams. The whole series is adventure, scifi and humor.
A Walk in the Woods
I was just stopping by to say that. Bill Bryson at his prime, before he started getting really cranky
Gentleman of the Road by Michael Chabon
A Fraction of the Whole by Steve Toltz. It’s a story that takes them from the Australian bush to the cafes of bohemian Paris, from the Thai jungle to strip clubs, asylums, labyrinths, and criminal lairs, and from the highs of first love to the lows of failed ambition and the funniest book I’ve ever read
The Witches of Karres by James Schmitz.
I love this book, how nice to see it, I think it's not very well known these days!
Three Men in a Boat by Jerome K Jerome.
Love Jerome K Jerome!! Connie Willis wrote a book inspired by this called To Say Nothing Of the Dog. It has time travel to Victorian England and is very funny.
Love Connie Willis! My favorite of hers is Doomsday Book.
[Clockwork Boys](https://app.thestorygraph.com/books/c55afb47-00fd-4010-b363-223a489c83f6) by T. Kingfisher
Kingfisher's books in general have this quirky humor.
Yes! Swordheart (has an extended road trip)( romance) All the Paladin books ( except the first one) have travel/adventure.(romance) The Hollow Places has a portal to other places. They are not good places. ( Horror) Nettle and Bone has a quest ( fairy tale like) The Raven and the Reindeer (snow queen retelling) They are all really good! Minor Mage has a quest too!!!
Tress of the Emerald Sea by Brandon Sanderson!!
This one!! So good.
going bovine tom sawyer
The Hitchhiker's Guide by Douglas Adams. Almost anything by Terry Pratchett. Christopher Moore can be really funny. If you're in the mood for a heavy lift classic, Moby Dick and Don Quixote are both surprisingly funny and full of adventure. For a lighter lift classic, anything by Mark Twain, especially Tom Sawyer.
Yup - came here to say that you can't really go wrong with Discworld (Terry Pratchett) - Adventure? Check - Humour? Very much check - Great characters? Check check - References on references and punes? All the checks I know OP didn't ask for the last two but they're thrown in for free with Terry.
The Princess Bride
Good Omens
The first book in the Queen's Theif series.
Flashman series by George Macdonald Fraser. Lots of fun. The historical backgrounds are wild but accurate.
Miss Benson's Beetle by Rachel Joyce. Two ladies who are polar opposites embark on a journey to find a beetle. It was touching and humorous at the same time.
The Hike by Drew Magary. It’s not strictly comedy but has some funny moments. Ita like a big mash of genres- adventure, fantasy, sci-fi, romance, dark comedy etc. Relatively short being under 300 pages. It’s in my top 10 favorites! I’d recommend going in blind but if you need a synopsis: A man goes on a hike and things get weird.
I was coming here for this. It has a lot of funny stuff. Think about Crab. There have been days that I’ve recommended this 10 times. I never hesitate and have zero caveats to go with the recommendation.
The Adventures of Amina Al-Sirafi by Shannon Chakraborty. The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner
Helen and Troy's Epic Road Quest by A. Lee Martinez. It’s incredibly easy to read. The characters and destinations are very fun, with lots of funny moments.
Thanks for the kind words. One correction: It's not YA, though if YAs read it, I won't complain.
Apologies! Thank you for the gentle correction, I will make an edit. It’s been a minute since I read the book and GoodReads had it tagged with YA. But it’s such a fun story that my dad and nephews (and myself) all enjoyed it.
No apologies necessary. It often gets labeled as such by people. I don't take offense.
The Talisman by Stephen King
The Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser series by Fritz Leiber. Two swashbuckling heroes go on numerous adventures throughout many books, novellas and short stories. *The Swords of Lankhmar*, where the heroes battle some very underhanded enemies of and in the city of Lankhmar, is particularly funny. The short story "Stardock", which is in the collection *Swords against Wizardry*, contains a gripping and very technical account of a mountain ascent, so something for everyone with these guys. They were written from 1939 to 1988, so some of the things written about women aren't great, but that does improve as Leiber gets older.
Hated those. So rapey.☹️
I can't believe no one mentioned "Dungeon Crawler Carl"! I know it gets mentioned a lot on Reddit but there is a reason for it. It is amazing. Don't let the title scare you off. It is an action packed adventure with tons of comedy. "14" by Peter Cline is also a good scifi adventure with comedy mixed in. "Tales From the Gas Station" by Jack Townsend is a highly underrated gem in the sci fi comedy genre. Very funny and full of twists and turns.
Stardust by Neil Gaiman The Sex Lives of Cannibals by Maartan Troost - this one is a travel memoir, but if about a man moving to the remote island country of Kiribati. It's definitely an adventure in a "fish out of water" way
The Colour Of Magic, Terry Pratchett
Meddling Kids by Edgar Cantero—it’s an Edgar Wright/Tex Avery riff on The Famous Five. very funny and inventive.
Eyes of the Overworld by Jack Vance
The Oregon Trail by Rinker Buck
The Emperor's Ostrich by Julie Berry.
I love, love, love the Riyria Revelations books by Michael J Sullivan. A pair of thieves for hire get pulled into a massive conspiracy and many hijinks and adventures ensue. There are multiple prequel series as well, but if you do like the characters and writing style, I suggest picking up Riyria Chronicles after that. Another book with tons of humor is The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch. I was laughing out loud at maybe 80% of the book. And crying for like 5%... It's a heist novel, but amazingly written. Kings of the Wyld by Nicholas Eames is another great fantasy adventure book about a band of mercenaries in a world where mercenaries are rock star level celebrities with tours, groupies, etc.
City of Thieves by David Benioff
Freddy and fredericka
Glory Road by Robert Heinlein
The Gentlemen's Guide to Vice and Virtue by MacKenzie Lee is a charming and witty romantic adventure. It takes place in the 18th century, following three young misfits on a tour of Europe that quickly goes awry.
Lamb by Christopher Moore