Tom E. Moffatt is an award-winning New Zealand children’s author based in Rotorua. He writes adventure-comedy books and has created over 2,000 original jokes for kids. His debut novel Barking Mad won the 2015 Tom Fitzgibbon Award and a 2017 NZ Notable Book Award.

Most of Tom’s books are written for children aged 7 to 12, though he jokes they’re for “laughter-lovers aged 7 to 107.” They’re especially popular with reluctant readers because of their fast-paced plots and humour — both boys and girls who claim they don’t like reading tend to get hooked quickly.

Tom writes adventure-comedy novels, joke books, and activity books. His fiction series include Barking Mad Adventures (mind-swapping mix-ups for dog-lovers) and Bonkers Short Stories (collections of wacky independent stories). Tom E. Moffatt’s Jokingdom consists of four books in the I’m Joking series, plus the You’re Joking series (non-fiction books teaching kids how to tell, write, and collect jokes). All his books are available in print and eBook formats.

Yes — Tom has twelve years’ experience as a primary school teacher and now visits schools across New Zealand as an author speaker. His sessions include storytelling, joke-telling, and interactive writing activities. To enquire about a school visit, use the contact form on this site.

Tom’s books are available directly from this website, as well as through major online retailers, including Amazon and Kobo. Print and eBook editions are available. Buying directly from the site supports the author.

Yes — hundreds of Tom’s original jokes are available free on the Jokes page of this website, organised by category including Animal Antics, Toilet Humour, Wordplay, and more. He also offers Tom E. Moffatt’s Jokingdom — a free joke eBook — to email subscribers.

Yes. Tom’s debut novel Barking Mad won the 2015 Tom Fitzgibbon Award (New Zealand’s top prize for a first children’s novel) and was named a 2017 NZ Notable Book. His joke collection You’re Joking: Become an Expert Joke-Teller was shortlisted for the 2021 NZ Children’s Book Awards in the non-fiction category.