RobinL in Canada Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 ...what else might he enjoy reading or listening to on audiobook? He's 13, grade 8, and not the most avid reader, but when he finds something he likes, he sticks with it. For eg, when he was younger, he adored the Warriors series about cats, but he doesn't in general care much for fantasy, although we certainly read aloud a ton of it when he and his brothers were younger. A freind gave him the first book in the "Ranger's Apprentice" series for his birthday months ago but he still hasn't cracked the cover. I'm wondering what other mystery series (or other series) might be "safe" (in terms of adult content) for him to read. Any suggestions? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mumto2 Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 My dd14 likes Anna Katharine Green free on the kindle. I read someplace that Agatha Christie was a fan and Miss Marple came from her Mrs. Butterworth. I have read a few. They were more innocent then Christie IMO. DS12 really likes Artemis Fowl books and Rick Riordian. He also enjoyed the Ranger series so maybe not the most helpful. Eragon series is also a hit with him--halfway through. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3 Only Children Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 My older son really likes the Sherlock Holmes stories. You might also try the Father Brown detective series and mysteries by Dorothy Sayers. they are all very well written. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori D. Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 (edited) Older DS has loved mysteries from an early age. Some safe titles he has enjoyed over the years: Pre-Teen/Young Teen (gr. 5-8): - The Westing Game (Raskin) - Samurai mysteries (Hoobler) - Baker Street Irregular; Case of the Vanishing Corpse; Curse of the Threatened King (Newman) - Detectives in Togas; Roman Ransom (Winterfeld) Mini-Mystery Collections: - anything by Hy Conrad - Little Giant Book of Whodunits (Conrad) - Whodunit: You Decide! (Conrad) - Almost Perfect Crimes (Conrad) - Historical Whodunit (Conrad) - You Be the Jury series (Miller) - Solv-A-Crime (Singer/Gordon) - Case Closed, and others by Obrist -- these are for younger readers - Dr. Quicksolve series -- Sukach -- these are for younger readers - Classic Whodunits: More Than 100 Mysteries For You to Solve (Bullimore, Conrad, Niederman, Smith) - Two Minute Mysteries; More Two Minute Mysteries; Still More Two Minute Mysteries (Sobol) - 5 Minute Mystery series (Weber) Classics - Sherlock Holmes short stories (Doyle) - The Complete Father Brown short stories (Chesterton) - Club of Queer Trades (Chesterton) -- amusing send-up of Sherlock Holmes; may be more appreciated in a few years - Hercule Poirot's Casebook short story collection (Christie) - And Then There Were None (Christie) - Murder on the Orient Express (Christie) - Mousetrap (play) (Christie) - Wodehouse on Crime (Wodehouse) -- very fun; may be more appreciated in a few years Other Adult Mysteries: - Bernie and Chet mysteries (Quinn) -- clever: told from the dog's point of view; some language; intimacy is suggested - Nero Wolfe series (Stout) -- this is an old series - The Cat Who... series (Braun) -- mysteries; I read the first one; light; pretty clean; don't know if the series stays clean - Casey Miller series (Prophet) -- no personal experience; the person who recommended said it was okay for teens - Archy McNally series (Sanders) -- no personal experience; the person who recommended said it was okay for teens Maybe wait on these: - Cadfael novel series (Peters) - The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency series (Smith) - Miss Seeton Draws the Line; Picture Miss Seeton; Witch Miss Seeton; Miss Seeton Sings; Odds on Miss Seeton (Carvic) -- some adult themes mentioned, but very tastefully handled; these are the only 5 by Carvic and are very well-written, with humor and terrific allusions and vocabulary Younger DS who loved the Warriors series when he was young has enjoyed: - All Creatures Great and Small series (Herriot) - Artemis Fowl series (Colfer) -- pretty fun - Harry Potter series (Rowling) -- pretty fun - Percy Jackson and the Olympians series (Riordan) -- I liked these more than Harry Potter - Ranger Apprentice series (about the first 5-6 books) -- I found these to be only mediocre in writing and extremely repetitive, but then, I'm not a 12yo boy who desperately would love to be in Medieval times as an orphan with ninja skills and awesome archery skills... :tongue_smilie: - His Majesty's Dragon series (Novik) -- fluff/popcorn reading; Napoleonic Wars but with a corps of dragons and dragonriders; I read the first one, and part of the second one; warning: may want to wait -- occasional language and mild reference to extra-marital activities - Eragon series (Paollini) -- I couldn't get into it after the first book, the first half of which felt like it was written as "fan-fiction" of Lord of the Rings by a 15yo boy -- which is what it was; I believe in the last 3 books of the 4 book series there is occasional language; violence; and mild reference to intimacy Other young teen boy recommendations I've compiled, but without personal experience: - Midshipman Quinn series (Styles) -- 1800s British seaman - Alex Rider series (Horowitz) -- modern teen "James Bond" like character - Mrs. Pollifax series (Gilman) -- retired lady applies to become a spy; I read the first one, it was fun/light Individual Titles: - Bun Hur (Wallace) - Endurance: Shackleton's Incredible Voyage (Lansing) - The Princess Bride (Golding) - The Sword in the Stone (White) - books by Bock & Bodie Thoene - Guns of Navarone (MacLean) - Up Periscope (White) - Farmer Giles of Ham (Tolkien) - A Short History of Everything (Bryson) - Out of the Silent Planet (Lewis) - I, Robot (Asimov) - Martian Chronicles (Bradbury) - Something Wicked This Way Comes (Bradbury) Recommendations from Nan in MASS (her DSs like sea-faring works): - Dove -- teen sails around the world alone - Captain Blood - Coral Island - Captains Courageous (Kipling) - Lone Voyager (Garland) - The Hungry Ocean (Greenlaw) - Sea Wolf (London) - Cleared for Action (Meader) - Bolitho series (Kent) Edited September 15, 2012 by Lori D. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maus Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 Baroness Orczy's "Scarlet Pimpernel" books, maybe? There are several free for Kindle on Amazon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laughing lioness Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 If he likes Agatha Christie novels he might enjoy the Lord Peter Wimsey mysteries by Dorothy Sayers. They totally rock. A couple of my reviews about a few titles here and here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beth in Mint Hill Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 If he likes Agatha Christie novels he might enjoy the Lord Peter Wimsey mysteries by Dorothy Sayers. They totally rock. A couple of my reviews about a few titles here and here. And another contemporary series... Donna Leon writes sort of an English murder mystery--with the setting in Venice! I love the way she gets behind the scene into the Inspector's Italian family.... there was even a scene describing him playing "italian" Monopoly with his teens! Yet it is a serious detective mystery series. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
prairiegirl Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 My older son really likes the Sherlock Holmes stories. You might also try the Father Brown detective series and mysteries by Dorothy Sayers. they are all very well written. :iagree: I was going to recommend these three as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tex-mex Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 Maisie Dobbs (series) set in WWI to WWII England are very good with a touch of historical fiction. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mommamagistra Posted September 16, 2012 Share Posted September 16, 2012 To Lori D's very extensive and brilliant list, I might add: The Nine Tailors by Dorothy Sayers (part of the Lord Peter Wimsey series) and And Then There Were None by Christie. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.