Horrid Henry and the Soccer Fiend

I bought the book for my five year old soccer-playing grandson on the basis of a rave review by a panel of reviewers on Simon Mayo's BBC 4 show, which I listen to on podcast. The review was not for this particular book but for the Horrid Henry series in general. After previewing the book, however, I have two reactions: (1) although it is entirely is within my grandson's ability to comprehend the stories, their subject matter is not yet suitable for a child of this age, or so I find; and (2) the hilarity of the stories mentioned by the reviewers eluded me, despite my being a British-American by heritage (English and Irish, a reader of British literature by profession,and a lifelong lover of British humor. But give me Daniel Pinkwater or Shel Silverstein any time for young readers--although, I confess, I do not consider myself especially knowledgeable about much of contemporary children's literature. One final point: the book has been annoyingly Americanized, e.g., the U.K. title is "Horrid Henry and the Football Fiend," a much more alliterative title.