How It Works: The Dad review – are the Ladybird spoof books funny?

The hugely successful series of books, perfect till-reads, combine satirical observation and absurdism. But what kind of nostalgia titillation is going on? And should they be better?

Arriving as the latest addition to the outlandishly popular Ladybird series for adults is How It Works: The Dad. “Laurie hates fishing so he only goes once a week. He comes here for the peace and quiet, but the water is a bit too noisy. ‘Shhhh,’ says Laurie to the ripples.” Dads tut and forget, they go to work to escape the noise of the children, they do the mildly comic things that dads do.

The high concept comedy book is often not particularly funny, and often isn’t meant to be: it has been devised as a “till read”, viz, a book you pick up because it’s right under your nose. With little thought going into your purchase of “Dos and Don’ts for Wives or Husbands”, you’re deliberately not saying anything very profound about the intended recipient, or your relationship to them (let’s take it as given that you would no sooner buy a till read for yourself than you would treat yourself to some chrysanthemums from a petrol station). Rather, you simply wish your giftee well; it is like a thick greeting card.

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