This post originally ran as a guest post at Steady Mom on January 4, 2010.
Is there such a thing as a boy book?
As a mother and former teacher, I cringe at the idea of boy books, which imply there are titles meant for some children and not for others. While I feel strongly books are for everyone, I can’t deny there are books boys tend to gravitate to and others they typically avoid. Here is a list of middle-grade and young adult titles (and authors) that have a proven track record in the classroom.
The Bizarre: (middle-grade)
Boys love weird things. These titles that might grab your son’s attention:
Whales on Stilts! By M.T. Anderson
The Curse of the Campfire Weenies and Other Warped and Creepy Tales by David Lubar
The Wayside School series by Louis Sachar
Anything by Roald Dahl, author of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Anything by Bruce Coville, author of My Teacher is an Alien
Anything by Daniel Pinkwater, author of The Hoboken Chicken Emergency
Mysteries: (middle-grade)
The Hank the Cowdog Series by John Erickson
The Chet Gecko series by Bruce Hale (noir lizard detective)
The Mysterious Benedict Society series by Trenton Lee Stewart (MG/YA because of length and reading level)
Stories About Everyday Kids or Extraordinary Kids in Everyday Situations: (MG/YA)
Anything by Andrew Clements, author of Frindle (MG)
The Diary of a Wimpy Kid series, by Jeff Kinney (MG)
Holes by Louis Sachar (MG)
Anything by Jerry Spinelli, author of Eggs (MG)
Schooled by Gordon Korman (YA)
Adventure/Survival: (middle-grade)
Anything by Gary Paulsen, author of Hatchet
Anything by Roland Smith, author of Peak
Anything by Harry Mazer, author of Boy No More
Anything by William Durbin, author of The Broken Blade
Anything by Will Hobbs, author of Far North
Anything by Sid Fleishman, author of The Whipping Boy
Fantasy: (MG/YA)
The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster (MG)
The Secrets of the Cheese Syndicate, by Donna St. Cyr (MG)
The Redwall series by Brian Jacques (YA)
The Harry Potter series by JK Rowling (YA)
The City of Ember series by Jeanne Du Prau (YA)
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins (YA)
What books have your boys enjoyed?
I’m so impressed with your list! My son is only five and I like YA fiction best. Looking forward to reading some of the MG/YA titles together like The City of Ember.
I don’t have boys, but the library where I work has a book club for boys ages 9-14. They’ve read some of the titles on your list, and also Alabama Moon by Watt Key, The London Eye Mystery by Siobhan Dowd, The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan, The Name of This Book is Secret by Pseudonymous Bosch, Chasing Vermeer by Blue Balliet, and many others.
I worked in an alternative school for 15 years that had a mostly male student population. These were mostly high school age kids and in the at-risk population. Many were reluctant readers. They tended to gravitate toward edgier books, although they loved Gary Paulsen’s books as well. It was a pretty specialized population. I really enjoyed reading your lists b/c I’ve worked mostly with struggling readers and can have a skewed idea of what boys will connect with on the page. Thanks!
Those are great recommendations, Caroline. My sons also love The Ranger’s Apprentice series, The Last Apprentice series, the Guardians of Ga’hoole books, and the Septimus Heap series by Angie Sage. 🙂
Well… I was a tomboy growing up and I absolutely adored Bruce Coville’s books!! And the Wayside School!!! ARRRGGGHHHH!!! Sorry. Those books were just too awesome.
Also (storytime)… when I first started dating my now husband, he had just bought a leopard gecko and was trying to think of a name for the little guy. I was working at Barnes and Noble at the time and remembered seeing the Chet Gecko series…. so… I named him Chet! Yay!! (storytime over)
My boys seem to have skipped the middle grade stuff almost entirely, although the oldest enjoyed the Chronicles of Narnia.
They both (ages 12 and 9) enjoy reading Louis L’Amour novels. I like that each story features a main character with integrity and common sense, and there is a great deal of survival information in there for the observant.
Good lists! You’ve got a lot of the books in my house on there 🙂 My son also likes the Alex Rider series by Anthony Horowitz, the Percy Jackson series by Rick Riordan and when he was younger, the Spiderwick series by Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi.
i was an elementary school librarian for over 5 years and The Time Warp Trio books by Jon Scieszka were big hits with boys and girls alike (although the first four featured only the three boys as the MCs).
Scieszka is a former elementary school teacher who has been promoting getting boys engaged in reading for many years. his web site http://www.guysread.com/ is a great place to start when looking for books for boys.
matt christopher (http://www.mattchristopher.com/) has written upteen sports-themed chapter books for boys. they were always checked out in both of the schools i worked in.
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This is a fabulous list. I’m going to pass it along to the group of MG writers I write with, if that’s okay.
This conversation is why I love blogging. Thank you so much for reminding me of titles I’d forgotten and adding new titles to my list!
Valerie, I sat next to Bruce Coville during an SCBWI lunch once. I love what he has to say about the need for books that speak to boys (and, of course, some girls, too!).
Paul, I continue to be amazed at the way Gary Paulsen’s books reach out to so many kids in so many circumstances.
And The Time Warp Trio and Alabama Moon! How did I miss these?
And Tom, welcome!
My younger son loved the Captain Underpants series.
My older son liked Robinson Crusoe (classic adventures)
Good post!
My son’s favorites in kindergarten and first grade were the Ricky Ricotta series, but the first books he truly fell in love with were the Deltora Quest books. He discovered these the summer between first and second grade and from then on, he was hooked on fantasy series. Following this was the Silverwing series, Warriors, Guardian’s of Ga’hoole, Septimus Heap, Eragon, and the Gregor the Overlander, and The Cry of the Icemark series.
Thanks, Vonna. I don’t know many fantasy titles.