Customer Reviews

The Giggler Treatment

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The Giggler Treatment is a funny book that takes place in Ireland. The chapter names are funny. For example, there is a chapter called Chapter Mammy Doyle because she said he could stay up late if he named a chapter after her. Different parts of the story are also funny. For example, there was one chapter that has nothing much in it except one very exciting thing at the end, and the very exciting thing was that a lady was walking in a park in Bombay and she nearly stepped on a snail. There is a voice in the book that said, "That wasn't exciting!" And then, the narrator says, "Well, the snail thought it was." It also teaches you Irish words, such as "giving out" which means "scolding and complaining." It says in the book that "parents are very good at it and they do it a lot."

In the book, there are little creatures called Gigglers. Gigglers are furry creatures that change colors when they are next something, like chameleons. Gigglers are not very good at turning purple. Whenever a grown-up is being mean to children, Gigglers put animal "poo" right where the grown-up is about to step. Then, the grown-up steps in the "poo," and that is what the Giggler Treatment is.

Kids in the second, third, and fourth grade would like this book, especially kids that like fantasy books.

This book is called "The Giggler Treatment". It is written by Roddy Doyle and illustrated by Brian Ajhar. It is a funny book for ages 8 and above. It's about these tiny little creatures called Gigglers who watch over children and make sure grown-ups are treating them fair. And if not, then they get "the treatment" which is little pranks that the Gigglers pull off. One day Mr. Mack is walking to his work when all of a sudden the Gigglers put a pile of dog "poo" (which is "poop") in his path. But it was by accident. The Gigglers made a big mistake. Mr. Mack didn't deserve the treatment! Even though he had sent his kids up to their room, he fixed it later on. But the Gigglers didn't know he fixed it. So Rover, Robbie, Kayla and Billy Jean have to stop him from stepping in the "poo". I found that there were some weird words in this story and I had no idea what they meant. Thankfully there was a glossary where you can look up almost all the words that sound weird to you. For instance, "plaster" means "bandaid". I would recommend this silly book to kids who like funny stories.

When Roddy Doyle said he had taken a break from his comedic "Barrytown Trilogy" and "Paddy Clarke, Ha Ha Ha"-type writing to write the more serious "Star called Henry" trilogy, I was saddened. After all, Paddy Clarke is one of the best comedic Irish books ever and the Barrytown stories are nearly as good.
My fears were unfounded. "The Giggler Treatment" is the same type of immature genius that made me love Roddy Doyle as much as that other "RD" of semi-adult fiction, Roald Dahl. The book could have been written by Doyle's character, Paddy Clarke.
It will surely be marketed toward children, but any adult fan of Doyle's should pick it up. The illustrations are cute, too.

With the wit and gleaming spirit one reputedly hears only in Irish pubs, Roddy Doyle (author of the Booker Prize winning Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha") has written the quintessential pub tale for kids. The book treads new ground in the annals of scatological literature. The Gigglers are resourceful little creatures who administer "dog poo" punishment to adults who are mean or unfair to kids. This time, however, the Gigglers make a mistake, and a variety of human and non-human characters attempt to rescue Mr. Mack from making an excremental next step.

This book (much like the "Harry Potter" books) breaks many of the rules that often result in stiff, safe kids' fare. First, Doyle never talks down to his young audience, he takes them into his confidence like an old friend, and spins wild adventures and non sequiturs without condescension or apology. The book's sophistication is cinematic: Doyle cuts back and forth between the foot approaching the poo, the circumstances leading to this messy scene, and the history of the Gigglers. In addition, he tells the story from different points of view: As omnipresent narrator, as talking dog ( you didn't know dogs could talk and earn money from Gigglers for their "poo?") as the kids, even as the reader. He also plays with the usually staid format of children's books, for example, creatively numbering or non numbering the chapters ("This Chapter Is Named After My Mother Because She Said I Could Stay Up Late If I Named it After Her: Chapter Mammy Doyle") and providing an American-English/Irish glossary. Although dazzling in its execution, Doyle's playful spirit never obscures the general requisites of a clear (though slightly askew) story line or plausible motivation.

In short, this is a hilarious book, one of my 7-year old's favorites (he even loaned it to his second/third grade teacher to read in school). The text is matched perfectly by the glorious black and white shadings of illustrator Brain Ajhar. The book is for adults and kids who enjoy their humor both intelligent and silly, and probably not for the traditionalist. It's simply one of the best of its kind. Very highly recommended!

Poor Mr Mack, he's about to get the Giggler Treatment. And what, you may ask, is that? It seems, that Gigglers, small furry beings that can change color as they move, like chameleons, have been around evening the score since the beginning of time. They punish adults when they're mean or unfair to children by strategically placing dog poo in the adult's walking path. And there's the punishment...poo on the shoe! Last night Mr Mark was so angry over a broken kitchen window, that he sent his sons to bed without supper. Upon seeing this, the Gigglers rushed to collect Mr Mark's punishment from a very large dog, next door. Unfortunately, they missed Mr Mark's apology as he called his boys to the table and fixed them their favorite dinner. Now, as the boys find out their dad is in for the Treatment, they race against the clock to try and stop this unfortunate event from happening..... Roddy Doyle, author of adult bestsellers, Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha and A Star Called Henry, has really captured the essence of the pre-adolescent, in this, his first children's novel. The Giggler Treatment is a fast paced, page turner, with easy to read short chapters and silly, vivid scenes that will have your youngsters laughing out loud to the end of the story. His writing is down to earth with hip, irreverent dialogue and his characters, including a talking dog, an unusual seagull and the Gigglers, themselves are all terrific and memorable. Perfect for kids aged 9-12 and destined to become a classic, you can't go wrong with this book. The only problem is that it's over too soon!

Kids--this if a very short, humorous, and fun-to-read book about little creatures called Gigglers that get revenge on mean grown-ups by making the grown-ups step on poo. The noble dog Rover tries to keep his master from stepping on poo that the Gigglers have put in the master's path by mistake.

There are a lot of good reasons to read this book:

1) Poo is funny, and Rover is a funny dog. He even knows how to send e-mail.
2) Poo is especially funny to YOU because your mom doesn't think it's that funny (unless she's like me).
3) Even though the book is a chapter book, the chapters are extremely short and the story moves very quickly.
4) The chapters have funny titles. One is named after the author's refrigerator!

My own refrigerator is named Elvis (as of now). Enjoy!

On the recommendation of my friendly bookseller I bought this book, and I am so glad I did! I read it today, and it made me laugh as I read every page! The illustrations also are wonderful, I am considering buying a copy to frame the cover! This book is wonderful, lots of fun and laughs. I can't wait to give my nephew a copy for his birthday, but it won't be my own copy! Also I am calling my best friend in California and ordering her to get a copy tomorrow. Get this book - even if there are no kids in your life! I will now look into reading Roddy Doyle's adult novels! READ THIS!

This book is a delight from start to finish. I cannot honestly say that I am a judge of children's literature. I have not read kid's books since, well, since I was a kid, and that was in the early 60s! Are Captain W.E. Johns and Enid Blyton still popular? The only reason I bought the 'The Giggler Treatment' was Roddy Doyle's name on the cover. He is one of our best contemporary writers. 'The Barrytown Trilogy', 'Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha', and 'The Woman Who Walked Into Doors' are gritty slices of life which show a genuine sympathy and understanding of modern Irish life. Modern classics, every one of them. I was a bit surprised when I saw that he had written a children's book. Intrigued by the good reviews, I decided to risk buying it. I'm I glad I did. The story is just wonderful. It is clever, funny, ingenious, beautifully told, oh, and any other superlatives you like to add. (I particularly love the way that everything takes place within such a minuscule time span. Is Doyle rewriting the rules of children's 21st Century literature in the same way that Joyce did for the 20th Century novel? )

How a child would view this book, I don't know. Favourably, I would have thought. Doyle is irreverent enough to get them onto his side and funny enough to keep them there. There is so much in this book to admire. Buy it for a child, by all means; but read it first. You will enjoy.

A delightfully-rude and very funny children's book by Roddy Doyle, which answers the age-old question of how and why people step in dog poo on the sidewalk...The Gigglers are small, furry creatures with a chameleon-like ability to hide, whose mission in life is to give the Treatment to grown-ups who have been mean to children. Mr. Mack is a likeable biscuit-taster who's been set up for the Treatment by mistake (yes, he sent his sons to bed without supper, but immediately apologized) and the rest of the plot is a breakneck romp to see if anyone can prevent Mr. Mack from stepping in the largest pile of poo in the world...With asides and soliloquies and ridiculous chapter titles and droll illustrations...

I could imagine selecting this for a read-aloud storytime, and the kids all shrieking with laughter while their parents stood by, horrified that anyone would say "poo" out loud. It's that kind of book. Funny for grown-ups, too, with adult-level bad puns (Rover, the family canine, swears "to Dog" at one point, knows perfectly-well how to use the toilet and is of course embarrassed to have to poo outside, and uses the computer to e-mail his girlfriend in Galway) and an amusing glossary of Irish terms (biscuit=cookie, plaister=Band-Aid, etc.). Deliciously-ridiculous. Sure to be banned somewhere. Excuse me, but I've got to go find a kid to read this one to...

My 7-year-old son & I read this book together in one sitting, and laughed practically the whole time! Roddy Doyle builds up great suspense, and Brian Ajhar's illustrations complement the text perfectly. Any fan of the Captain Underpants series should appreciate "The Giggler Treatment." Lots of great shock value, and some international culture, too! I'll be looking for more Roddy Doyle books.