Guest Hero_Of_Time Posted July 10, 2011 Share Posted July 10, 2011 My son just told me that last night on his Kindle, he was looking for something to read. Note this is because he decided he didn't want to re-read the LotR. He told me he had downloaded a sample of a Stephen King book and only got to read the sample but loved his writing style. Now i wasn't sure what to say, i know he is a very good reader, he has already read Dune, LotR, 1984, and a few others that i didn't get until high school. What do you think? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amo_mea_filiis. Posted July 10, 2011 Share Posted July 10, 2011 I personally do not limit my dd's reading much. I would not let her read the Midnight Breed series, but I would probably let her read Stephen King after I read it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
black_midori Posted July 10, 2011 Share Posted July 10, 2011 At 13 I'd let him read it if he wanted - as long as he knows in general what it is about & wants to! Some of the stuff I read as a youth could get pretty "interesting" (I'm sure my parents didn't know a lot of it, as my big bros let me read anything they had) - but I think it helped me expand my mind!! <g> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mabeline Posted July 10, 2011 Share Posted July 10, 2011 Depends on the book. Some have very disturbing s€x scenes. Most are interesting reads. I would suggest either pre reading them or reading a lot of reviews before oking the book. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
6packofun Posted July 10, 2011 Share Posted July 10, 2011 (edited) There is plenty out there for young teens, even at higher reading abilities, to read without jumping into Stephen King. His name is so well known that it's one of the first adult authors that parents seem to ask about, which is interesting. Anyhow, we just finished a great book called Rot & Ruin by John Maberry (who has written adult books I don't recommend for teens). The book is about 2 brothers living in a community after the world has been overtaken by zombies. NOT your typical gory zombie novel at all. It's a GOOD story, exciting, dramatic and the characters are worth reading about. There is a sequel coming next month that ds17 and I are anxious to get our hands on! Another good one, a series, is the Monstrumologist by Rick Yancey. Again, teen ds and I really enjoyed these (2 and a 3rd coming soon). Both of these suggestions have some violence and swearing but not gratuitous by any means and the writing is much better than most of the teen fare that is currently out there. I tend to read YA/teen books that are more for boys than girls (IMO) so maybe these will be enjoyable to yourds. Edited July 10, 2011 by 6packofun ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Mungo Posted July 10, 2011 Share Posted July 10, 2011 I've read a lot of Stephen King. I haven't read anything that I would give to a 13 year old. There was another thread about this recently: http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=274950 My experience is most people who say yes: 1. haven't read King, 2. don't remember what they read, or 3. don't have teenaged kids (it's easy to say what you will or won't do before you have kids that age). Chuck Palahniuk might be mind broadening too, but that doesn't make it the least bit age appropriate (or in some cases appropriate for *anyone*, lol). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
6packofun Posted July 10, 2011 Share Posted July 10, 2011 Also: The Maze Runner and The Scorch Trials by James Dashner. (These are like a cross between Hunger Games and Lord of the Flies--most main characters are boys.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amy in NH Posted July 10, 2011 Share Posted July 10, 2011 I read a ton of Stephen King when I was 13. I'd let him read Cujo or the Shining. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LibraryLover Posted July 10, 2011 Share Posted July 10, 2011 Michael Creighton might be fun as well. Jurassic Park is a good read, surprisingly, and won't haunt you for the rest of your days as King might. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Mungo Posted July 10, 2011 Share Posted July 10, 2011 There are a lot of alternative authors and books suggested in the other thread that I linked. I will say that The Eyes of the Dragon was written by King so that his 13 year old daughter could read one of his books. He didn't let *his own* daughter read his other books. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LibraryLover Posted July 10, 2011 Share Posted July 10, 2011 (edited) Sherlock Holmes? Edited July 15, 2011 by LibraryLover Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harriet Vane Posted July 10, 2011 Share Posted July 10, 2011 I would not recommend Stephen King to a 13yo. Why fill a young mind with horror and darkness? I do not consider him a good writer and do not find a whole lot of redeeming value in his books. Based on what your son has read so far, he's capable of far better than Stephen King. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harriet Vane Posted July 10, 2011 Share Posted July 10, 2011 The only book I recall that probably isn't so great for that age is Rose Madder. [/i] Just have to say I disagree, and my disagreement is based on having read some of his books myself as a teen. What about Carrie, with all the s@x talk all throughout the book--the mother's fixation against it, the back seat s@x that was rampant with other characters, etc. Not to mention the buckets of pig blood and the fact that Carrie turns into a homicidal maniac with the onset of her period? There's plenty there to cringe about. Or consider The Dead Zone, which deals with a serial killer who likes to have s@x with a woman AFTER he's brutally murdered her? And discussion of his evil mother's s@xual punishments of said killer. All this stuff is described in detail. It's sick and totally inappropriate, especially for a 13yo. I really haven't found much in Stephen King other than gratuitous, often highly s@xualized violence that actually seems to celebrate said violence. He's a hack writer whose appeal is roughly on par with Jerry Springer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiana Posted July 10, 2011 Share Posted July 10, 2011 There are some books of his that I really enjoyed and some I did not. The first one I read was Pet Semetary. I thought it was awful. As a matter of fact, I didn't pick up another one of his for years. The second one, and the one that convinced me to give him another chance, was The Green Mile. Loved that book. Loved, loved it. Some other ones of his that I really enjoyed were Eyes of the Dragon, Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption (novella, but the movie's based on it). I also enjoyed 'Salem's Lot, The Shining. I didn't *enjoy* Cujo, but I still thought it was worth reading. My mother really liked Rose Madder, but she said she had to turn to the end before she could read the middle parts. There are others I read that I really didn't like. YMMV. Honestly I would read them first -- the books vary enough that you definitely can't just say 'Here, read all of them' as you can with some other authors. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mommymilkies Posted July 10, 2011 Share Posted July 10, 2011 I love the Dark Tower series, but there are some very disturbing scenes in there. 13 might be cutting it close for me to allow it, but it depends on the maturity of the reader. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Mungo Posted July 10, 2011 Share Posted July 10, 2011 The second one, and the one that convinced me to give him another chance, was The Green Mile. Loved that book. Loved, loved it. Some other ones of his that I really enjoyed were Eyes of the Dragon, Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption (novella, but the movie's based on it). I think the Green Mile and Shawshank are good reads; I agree that there is redemptive value in them. I don't think they are works of a hack writer. However, I still don't think they appropriate for a 13 year old. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LaxMom Posted July 10, 2011 Share Posted July 10, 2011 (edited) I think I went directly from Harriet the Spy to Salem's Lot. I'm no worse for the wear, mostly. :lol: Honestly I would read them first -- the books vary enough that you definitely can't just say 'Here, read all of them' as you can with some other authors. I totally agree. There are some books that are completely inappropriate for a 13yo boy: Carrie (among other things, I think he would have a harder time relating, just because he's a boy), the Stand (lots of sexual politics, but possibly my favorite), It (just because it gave me nightmares as an adult, and made me leery of clowns... he actually might enjoy it, though) and, yes, the Dead Zone. The Shining may or may not be appealing: there are adult themes of addiction and marital dynamic that may be simply beyond his experience. Ditto, Dreamcatcher; there is adult perspective that he just simply may not be able to relate to. On the other hand, I enjoyed Salem's Lot much younger than he is. The Talisman (King/Straub) is a great adventure story in parallel worlds with a young boy as the hero. (The sequel, Black House, may have more adult themes because Jack is an adult in that one... I can't remember. I read it with adult eyes.) Cujo and Firestarter were good when I was his age. The Green Mile is an amazing story, To Kill a Mockingbird meets the Master of Horror. I will also add that Peter Beagle has some excellent books in the fantasy genre that are probably less iffy, if you decide against King. A Fine and Private place was my favorite; The Last Unicorn may be my dad's all-time favorite book. Edited July 10, 2011 by MyCrazyHouse Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mommy2BeautifulGirls Posted July 10, 2011 Share Posted July 10, 2011 The Green Mile is a good one. I have not read any of his other books, but I do enjoy several of his movies. I just couldn't get into his writing style when I had tried to read them when I was younger. Not sure I would actually attempt to, either. I think they would stick with me too much, and I can't handle that. :tongue_smilie: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrsBasil Posted July 10, 2011 Share Posted July 10, 2011 I went straight from the Babysitter's Club and Sweet Valley to Stephen King at my dad's recommendation at age 11 or 12. I told him I was tired of those and asked what else I could read. He gave me The Stand and Salem's Lot. I would not do that for my own kids based on my experience. I think I would censor that material at that age. I wasn't scarred for life or anything like that, but the themes where above my maturity level and, while I agree that many of the sex scenes are inappropriate, the level of violence was what really disturbed me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kimnc Posted July 10, 2011 Share Posted July 10, 2011 I read a lot of King when I was a teen. I remember there was a lot of violence and profanity. He uses the F word like it's water. There may be one or two of his earlier books I'd let a teen read, but not many. They are too dark for me, and have been getting more so. The last one I tried to read was around 1990 (Gerald's Game, I think). After a chapter or so I was done, haven't read anything of his since. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mothersweets Posted July 10, 2011 Share Posted July 10, 2011 I would not recommend Stephen King to a 13yo. Why fill a young mind with horror and darkness? I do not consider him a good writer and do not find a whole lot of redeeming value in his books. Based on what your son has read so far, he's capable of far better than Stephen King. I agree with you, strider. I started reading Stephen King at age 10 (what were my parents thinking?!). He is a good writer, BUT the subjects are not worthwhile, imo. There are many many other books that are available and of higher quality that he could read. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mothersweets Posted July 10, 2011 Share Posted July 10, 2011 Some of these threads might be a help in finding better books for him to read. http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=225234&highlight=boys+books http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=230801&highlight=boys+books http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=227733&highlight=boys+books and this is a book review site that I have found to be very helpful: Rated Reads Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Camarell Posted July 10, 2011 Share Posted July 10, 2011 My son just told me that last night on his Kindle, he was looking for something to read. Note this is because he decided he didn't want to re-read the LotR. He told me he had downloaded a sample of a Stephen King book and only got to read the sample but loved his writing style. Now i wasn't sure what to say, i know he is a very good reader, he has already read Dune, LotR, 1984, and a few others that i didn't get until high school. What do you think? This would be a tough one for me personally... I read Stephen King at 13 and quite enthusiastically all my teen/young adult years. I also really enjoy his writing style and gravitated towards the dark, mystery type books. There also were never any limitations or discussions on what I was reading... That said, I'll also admit that now, as an adult, I'm scared of the dark. Much more so than I ever was as a child, because now I have these images that my mind has gathered between movies and novels of axe murders and langoliers. I have to be really careful what I watch/read now because it stays with me. My mind can conjure up the most detailed image that will pop up any time I am alone, or in the dark, or other such time and place that is similar to the "scene". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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