KidsPost review of “Liar, Liar” by Gary Paulsen

“Liar, Liar” by Gary Paulsen, ages 8-12, $12.99.

We could say that we’re recommending this book in KidsPost because it teaches kids the valuable lesson of always telling the truth.

We could, but we would be lying.

We’re recommending this short, laugh-out-loud-funny book by one of the greatest children’s authors alive because it’s short and laugh-out-loud funny. (If you have a book report due Monday that you haven’t started, you’ll want to thank us for this.)

“Liar, Liar” is about 14-year-old Kevin Spencer, who is such a good liar that by the end of the foreword you actually believe him when he says: “So really, I lie for the greater good. I’ve come to believe that it’s almost my duty. Like some kind of superhero. . . . I like to think that I’m doing my bit to make the world a better place — one lie at a time.”

Of course, over the next 120 pages, Kevin’s lies, which seem harmless (such as telling his teacher “I really do have to use the bathroom and I don’t just want to walk around the halls during class wasting my time”), spin out of control as he fakes illness, messes up at school and even causes real problems in his family.

So, maybe there is a lesson to be learned; but reading this book will be so much more fun than having a “serious talk” with your dad about honesty.

No lie.

— Tracy Grant