And he does not know what his book is about. SELLS: The narrator of this novel is a Black author in his first book tour across America, which just happens to be happening as America erupts in protests over the police murder of a young Black boy. SELLS: I'm recommending 'Hell Of A Book,' a novel by Jason Mott. (SOUNDBITE OF THE BUDOS BAND'S 'T.I.B.W.F.') I'm director of institutional giving on NPR's development team. GHARIB: It's hard to gauge whether these moments are surreal or tragic or hilarious, but I think that's what makes them kind of genius - that she notices these little things, and they feel so relatable.ĮRIN SELLS, BYLINE: My name is Erin Sells. GHARIB: There's one comic of Roberts wiping down a smelly air mattress, or realizing after she's made an entire batch of brownies that they're expired, so she just dumps the pan in the trash, or zoning out while her daughter is talking to her about a new exercise she made up. I love this book because it captures these tiny micromoments in everyday life that kind of just slip through the cracks. GHARIB: It's a darkly funny, whimsical collection of autobiographical stories. I am recommending 'My Begging Chart,' a graphic novel by Keiler Roberts. MALAKA GHARIB, BYLINE: My name is Malaka Gharib, and I'm an editor on NPR's Science desk. (SOUNDBITE OF BLUE DOT SESSIONS' 'PALLADIAN') So if you want a light read that sheds light on a lineage of really funny people, this is your book. And you can tell he's mostly just in awe of the power comedy has to bring people together. Nesteroff is not Native himself, but he takes real care and has a real reverence for the people whose story he's telling. KESLER: The title actually comes from a great one-liner from the legendary comedian Charlie Hill, who used to start off his routines by saying that his people aren't from Wisconsin, that they used to be from New York, and that they had a little real estate problem. Nesteroff's book really shows that with a well-told history of Indigenous comedy from Indian sideshows to profiles of Native comedians making waves today. KESLER: This year, we saw two amazing comedy series from Indigenous writers - 'Rutherford Falls' and 'Reservation Dogs.' But Native people didn't just start being funny this year.

I'm this year's Code Switch fellow, and I'm recommending 'We Had A Little Real Estate Problem' by Kliph Nesteroff.

Today, four of our colleagues have suggestions for when you're looking to pick up something that's weighty but maybe a little bit funny.

It has hundreds of recommendations, so where to begin? We've got you covered. Books We Love - that's NPR's list of best reads from 2021.

Book the guncle