Team Burger Shed by Tavin Dillard made my reserved and faintly aloof husband snort and then laugh out loud. And I wasn’t even reading it to him. In fact, he was sitting on the couch reading his own book while the kids and I were talking about Tavin Dillard’s latest antics in the chapter I had been reading. I reached for my phone and turned on the audiobook to play a section for my boys. Before I knew it, I was laughing at my husband, because he could not resist laughing at Tavin. I don’t know what else to say… this book makes my daughter roll her eyes, me groan, my boys fall over themselves laughing, and even drew my otherwise reticent husband into the fun. I have concluded that this is a quintessential boy-humor book that is fun for the whole family. Even if half of the fun is just laughing at those who think it is hilarious. 

Tavin Dillard is a comedic character created by Joel Berry in the style of old-fashioned comedy storytelling. Tavin and his friends join an adult softball team and take us along on their wild season. The story is told in rapid-fire stream-of-consciousness that is both strange and hilarious. Reminiscent of Duck Dynasty or Charlie Berens or Jim Gaffigan, this goofy story is clean and good for just about anyone in the family . . . well, except maybe grandma, if she is the type who scolds you for telling jokes at the Thanksgiving dinner table. 

Team Burger Shed is published by Best Medicine Books which is an imprint of Story Warren Books. It is the second Best Medicine book that has been published, but it is the first not written by S.D. Smith. Story Warren has been such a lovely publisher in this crazy world we live in. Sam’s books really are new books with old souls because they celebrate the goodness of God and His creation. Best Medicine Books are coming from the same heart but are being told in a different way. Like Chesterton, Story Warren believes that good humor is balm for the soul. And the more world weary we become, the more we need to laugh. 

I compared Team Burger Shed to Duck Dynasty. I am not too proud to admit that this Northerner has seen all the Duck Dynasty episodes (many of them many times) and loves them. They are goofy, they are silly, they can be a little raw, and they just make me laugh! But I cannot share all of their episodes with my children because children are not their target audience. Team Burger Shed, however, is safe for families, there is a little something in there for everyone. 

While I never would have reached for this book, I am so glad I have it now. And I am delighted to have this goofiness in my library. I think it might be a great book for dads to read aloud to their families. But, I have to particularly mention the audiobook. The audio is read by the author, Joel Berry, in the voice of Tavin, and it is absolutely hilarious. I got a sense of the rhythm and cadence of the speech patterns in print (which I thought was impressive writing). But hearing Tavin tell his story, himself . . . well friends . . . it is absolutely worth the listen.