pbb119 Posted May 7, 2012 Share Posted May 7, 2012 I'm sorry if this has been covered...I am new to the group, and this is my first time in the AL section. I really need help with figuring out what leisure books would be good for ds9 this summer. I really do not have time to read everything prior to him reading to make sure it is appropriate. I really have only had to start worrying about that, and I am not familiar enough with current young adult literature to know if it is ok for a 9 year old. His interests are....well, he likes book series...his favorites 2 summers ago were Spiderwick Chronicles and the Narnia series, and he still often revisits these. Last summer he read some of The 39 clues, but seemed to get a little bored. Then he read Moby Dick a few times and loved it. Tom Sawyer and Robin Hood he also liked. Right now he is reading Gulliver's Travels and is really enjoying it. When he is finished with that, I just don't know where to go. But I need to get something on his Kindle or in his hands soon, b/c he likes go between several books at once. When I downloaded Gulliver's Travels from the Kindle Classics store, I also got Jungle Book and The Velveteen Rabbit. He was very much not impressed. I am just at a loss right now. Any help would be greatly appreciated!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AK_Mom4 Posted May 7, 2012 Share Posted May 7, 2012 Chronicles of Prydain Peter and the Starcatchers (there are 4 or 5 books in this series) Percy Jackson Series Wrinkle in Time series (1st 4 books) Harry Potter Pendragon series by DJ MacHale Warrior Cats by Erin Hunter (OK...I don't really like these, but DD10 thinks they are awesome) Brandon Mull's Fablehaven series (we also liked Candy Shop War) Edge Chronicles by Paul Stewart Seventh Tower series by Garth Nix Ranger's Apprentice series by Flannigan Redwall series Septimus Heap books by Angie Sage Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Halcyon Posted May 7, 2012 Share Posted May 7, 2012 These are the books my 9 yo has read this year. Perhaps they might give you some ideas: Mrs Frisby and the Rats of NIMH The Cricket in Times Square The River by Gary Paulsen From the Mixed up Files of Mrs Basil E FrankWeiler Where the Red Fern Grows Bud Not Buddy Toothpaste Millionaire The Whipping Boy by Peter Sis Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets Hatchet by Gary Paulson The River by Gary Paulson Brian's Winter by Gary Paulsen My Side of the Mountain by George Stories of Freedom Shark Life True Stories about Sharks and the Sea Go Free or Die A True Story about Harriet Tubman The Rise and Fall of American Slavery by Time McNeese Silverwing Sunwing Fire Wing Dark Wing Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parrothead Posted May 7, 2012 Share Posted May 7, 2012 Ann of Green Gables Alice's Adventures in Wonderland 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea The Adventures of Pinocchio Heidi The Jungle Book The Wonderful Wizard of Oz Just So Stories Peter Pan The Secret Garden Narnia series Charlie and the Chocolate Factory Anything about faries Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeanM Posted May 7, 2012 Share Posted May 7, 2012 You've already got some great suggestions. My 10 year old loves the Artemis Fowl books, and the Percy Jackson books. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mamaeast Posted May 7, 2012 Share Posted May 7, 2012 My son also likes series. Some of them are pretty easy and he can read them very quickly, but he enjoys that, too. Guardians of Ga'hoole Fudge books by Judy Blume Hardy Boys Diary of a Wimpy Kid Harry Potter anything by James Howe He's also liked all of the classics above (from PP) plus James and the Giant Peach Pinocchio Dr. Jeykl and Mr. Hyde Frankenstein Journey to the Center of the Earth I can't think of any others right now. I can always post more later. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Embassy Posted May 7, 2012 Share Posted May 7, 2012 My son started this list at age 9. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SunnyDays Posted May 7, 2012 Share Posted May 7, 2012 My son's all time favorite is also the Warriors series... there are actually four series within the larger one, and he's read all of them!! I haven't gotten him to try Harry Potter or Percy Jackson. He says he's not into fantasy... I refrained from pointing out that a series about clans of talking cats isn't exactly realistic fiction... :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pbb119 Posted May 8, 2012 Author Share Posted May 8, 2012 He says he's not into fantasy... I refrained from pointing out that a series about clans of talking cats isn't exactly realistic fiction... :D :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pbb119 Posted May 8, 2012 Author Share Posted May 8, 2012 Thanks so much! This has been extremely helpful! He wants to start the A Wrinkle in Time series and The Hobbit. When did you (or do you) pre-read books to check for maturity content? It's so hard now b/c just because he CAN read like a 12 year old doesn't mean he SHOULD read what a 12 yr old is reading....well, maybe I have another year or 2 before I really have to worry about that sort of thing? :confused: Thoughts? Experiences? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pbb119 Posted May 8, 2012 Author Share Posted May 8, 2012 My son started this list at age 9. Great resource, thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Embassy Posted May 8, 2012 Share Posted May 8, 2012 Thanks so much! This has been extremely helpful! He wants to start the A Wrinkle in Time series and The Hobbit. When did you (or do you) pre-read books to check for maturity content? It's so hard now b/c just because he CAN read like a 12 year old doesn't mean he SHOULD read what a 12 yr old is reading....well, maybe I have another year or 2 before I really have to worry about that sort of thing? :confused: Thoughts? Experiences? I read aloud books that I may be a little iffy on. Others I save for later. There is plenty of time to read books with mature content. This year I've been giving my son some easier reads because they are classic books I didn't want to skip. Sometimes I listen to books on CD or Librivox while I am working at night. That helps me decide about some books. I tried reading just ahead of my son, but soon discovered that the book he had started was quite inappropriate:tongue_smilie: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ErinE Posted May 9, 2012 Share Posted May 9, 2012 (edited) You really need to screen the books content. I made the mistake of using the ALA recommended books and many were too mature for my ds. He is not sensitive to sad stories, but he is too young to understand adult themes. I read the negative comments on Amazon to see if any objectionable content in the book would bother my son. For school, I assign 1-2 books a week. We have assigned reading time until the book is finished plus he reads before going to sleep. Last year, he was burning through books, daily reading 2-3 books, like Magic Treehouse or Secrets of Droon. He was hauling home book stacks feet tall until I started assigning reading. I also limit his book haul to what can fit in a small book bag. Now, he tends to pick books based on thicknesses and print size. Thicker books and smaller font are better! His assigned reading this year: A Lion to Guard Us by Clyde Robert Bulla The Broken Blade by William Durbin The Samurai's Tale by Erik C. Haugaard Homer Price by Robert McCloskey Fever 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson The Black Stallion by Walter Farley The Ghost in Tokaido Inn by Dorothy Hoobler Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of Nimh by Robert C. O'Brien At the Sign of the Sugared Plum by Mary Hooper The Enchanted Castle by Edith Nesbit The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt The Cricket in Times Square by George Selden The Sign of the Beaver by Elizabeth George Speare My Brother Sam is Dead by James Lincoln Collier The Year of the Hangman by Gary Blackwood Carry on, Mr. Bowditch by Jean Lee Latham The Whipping Boy by Sid Fleischman The Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Patterson Maniac Magee by Jerry Spinelli Moutain Light by Laurence Yep The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster Midnight is a Place by Joan Aiken The Devil's Highway by Stanley Applegate Victory by Susan Cooper Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O'Dell Julie of the Wolves by Scott O'Dell Amos Fortune, Free Man by Elizabeth Yates Assigned, but yet to be read: Zulu Dog by Anton Ferreira Only the Names Remain by Alex W. Bealer Old Yeller by Fred Gibson In the Shadow of the Alamo by Sherry Garland Call It Courage by Armstrong Sperry By the Great Horn Spoon by Sid Fleischman His free reading: My Side of the Mountain by Jean Craighead George From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E. L. Konigsburg Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls Bunnicula series by James Howe The Indian in the Cupboard series by Lynne Reid Banks The Starcatcher Series by Dave Barry Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins (I didn't let him read the remaining books) The Redwall Series by Brian Jacques Plus far more books than I can list here of easy readers, particularly series like 39 Clues, Star Wars: The Clone Wars, The Secrets of Droon, and Gordon Korman's adventure books (Titanic, Dive, Island, Everest) Ds read these when he was younger: The Underland Chronicles by Suzanne Collins The Dark is Rising Series by Susan Cooper Percy Jackson series by Rick Riordan The Chronicles of Prydain by Lloyd Alexander Eragon by Christopher Paolini The Candy Shop War by Brandon Mull The Castle in the Attic series by Elizabeth Winthrop Hatchet by Gary Paulsen (ds read the books following Hatchet, but doesn't recommend them) Harriet the Spy by Louise Fitzhugh Harry Potter series by J. K. Rowling A Wrinkle in Time series by Madeleine L'Engle Edited May 9, 2012 by ErinE Correct errors Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jill Posted May 13, 2012 Share Posted May 13, 2012 In addition to many of the books already mentioned, there's a series of books by Gary Paulsen of Hatchet fame about a young man, Francis Tucket, who was headed west on the Oregon Trail and got waylaid by adventures: http://www.randomhouse.com/features/garypaulsen/library/tucket.html These books dovetailed nicely with our history unit. I don't see them mentioned much but my son really enjoyed them last fall just before he turned 10. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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