Trillian Posted December 3, 2012 Share Posted December 3, 2012 My DS is a good reader, but quite particular, I'm hoping to get some suggestions based on what he's liked (and hasn't liked): Loved: The Hobbit (I've read him Lord of the Rings and he wants to read it but I'm holding him off because I got him a nice boxed set for Christmas along with the audio) The Wind in the Willows Percy Jackson 1st two of the Kane Chronicles Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy :hurray: D'Aulaire's Book of Greek Myths The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe/The Magician's Nephew Hated/Didn't finish: The Heroes of Olympus The Last of the Kane Chronicles The Horse and his Boy (wouldn't read any of the series after/issues with the racism) Treasure Island 39 Clues Eragon (too derivative of Lord of the Rings in his opinion) Mysterious Benedict Society (started several times, liked it until they got on the island, then felt it bogged down) He has a whole slew he's read that are o.k. (Tom Sawyer Homer Price, Maniac Magee - others I'm sure) that he says are particularly plot lines he doesn't want - ordinary boy has adventures. He is looking for more fantasy type adventures, humor is good, but not necessary. He likes things that are original. When he was younger, Roald Dahl and William Steig were two favorites. We both get frustrated when we can't find anything appealing, especially since he is a book lover, just a particular book lover. Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Faithr Posted December 3, 2012 Share Posted December 3, 2012 The Prydain Chronicles by Lloyd Alexander! If he liked LoTR he'll like this, I think. It is based on Welsh mythology. There are similarities with LoTR but I think there's enough on it's own to make it a really good series. We have read them several times here. Moomintroll books by Tove Jannsen. We love these! How about books by Edith Nesbit? The Five Children and It, The Story of the Treasure Seekers. She wrote many good ones. Books by Edgar Eager (who was influenced by Nesbit as was C.S. Lewis) Half Magic, Magic by the Lake, etc. The Wainscot Weasel by Tor Siedler is an engrossing read. Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH My 11 yo has just discovered Alex Rider by Anthony Horowitz. This is a series of spy novels for kids. Fast paced. HTH! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fairfarmhand Posted December 3, 2012 Share Posted December 3, 2012 The Magic Thief And the Land of Elyon Series. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jayne J Posted December 3, 2012 Share Posted December 3, 2012 If he is not against female protagonists, he might like the Inkheart series by Cornelia Funke. (Inkheart, Inkspell, Inkdeath) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OrganicAnn Posted December 3, 2012 Share Posted December 3, 2012 You might try the Education of Nicholas Benedict (goes back to when he was a kid). He might like that better then the MBS. Have you read the How to train your Dragon books? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted December 3, 2012 Share Posted December 3, 2012 Seconding many of these... Gregor the Overlander and the Prydain books especially. I'll add the Bartimeaus Trilogy and maybe it's time for Terry Prachett if he liked Hitchhikers. Also, maybe some of Neil Gaiman's YA stuff. Oh, and because it's a favorite of mine... A Tale Dark and Grimm or the new sequel by Adam Gidwitz. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beth S Posted December 3, 2012 Share Posted December 3, 2012 Series of Unfortunate Events Redwall series City of Ember & sequel I believe he will regret his pickiness (esp. skipping the rest of Narnia?!?). But he's only 10. He will be exposed to many different perspectives when reading. He shouldn't expect to "agree" with every author's plot choice, or remarks. But (just like picky eaters) I'm guessing he will expand his OWN horizons as he is exposed to more books. And in a few years he may discover Terry Prachett and PG Wodehouse & that will keep him busy for the rest of his childhood! :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trillian Posted December 4, 2012 Author Share Posted December 4, 2012 Thanks everyone. I forgot some, he did love Gregor the Overlander and City of Ember he read - it was o.k. This gave me lots to investigate and try. I agree he may regret his pickiness. I keep some I think he will like, if he gets more flexible. He has liked some he rejected when he was younger. He's pretty sensitive, so I don't think he's ready for The Hunger Games. He has read the first 3 Harry Potters, but stopped at the 4th. He was freaked out at the beginning when Voldemort killed the caretaker. However, he's maturing by the day, which I think is part of the frustration, neither of us is sure what he's able to handle and what books are good for the level he (sensitivity wise) he's reached. Maybe it's time to re-visit some of those. Thanks for the help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori D. Posted December 4, 2012 Share Posted December 4, 2012 A few more ideas (hope they aren't repeats, as I didn't read through the thread); I went with the gentle/slightly less mature titles; there's plenty of time for the darker stuff in a few years! more Tolkien - The Father Christmas Letters (charming! wonderful for this season) -- either this version or this version -- other editions are VERY abridged picture books - Farmer Giles of Ham (short story -- some big Latin names and terms at the start, but once you get over the hump there, it's VERY fun and funny) - Smith of Wooten Major (short story) - Roverandom (Tolkien's weakest work -- may be too young for DS) adventure - The Wolves of Willoughby Chase (Aiken) -- Victorian-like setting, evil governess, rags to riches -- a favorite of both DSs at that age - Invention of Hugo Cabret; The Houdini Box (Selznick) - Ranger's Apprentice series (Flanagan) -- VERY derivative after the first one; writing is not that great, but my "hard to please" DS who loved Tolkien really enjoyed the first 6 or so of these fun tall tale - Adventures of TinTin (Herge) - By the Great Horn Spoon (Fleischman) - Holes (Sachar) - The Twenty-One Balloons (DuBois) -- Jules Verne-like story, 1800s inventor fantasy adventure - Half Magic; Magic by the Lake, Knight's Castle; Time Garden; Seven Day Magic (Eager) -- BIG favorites here! - Five Children and It; The Phoenix and the Carpet; The Amulet (Nesbit) - The Book of Dragons (Nesbit) -- 7 short stories; very fun and creative - The Secret of Platform 13 (Ibbotson) -- a sort of gentler, kinder Harry Potter - Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (Fleming) - The Phantom Tollbooth (Juster) -- boy journeys through a mathematical land - The Never Ending Story (Ende) -- perfect for a 10yo! incredibly creative world and characters - Peter and the Starcatchers (Barry) -- and sequels - The Sea of Trolls (Farmer) - Dragon of Lonely Island (Rupp) - Dragon Keepers Chronicles (series) (Paul) - Inkheart series (Funke) - Dragon Rider (Funke) - Children of the Lamp series (Kerr) - Artemis Fowl series (Colfer) -- another favorite of my picky DS - Bromeliad Trilogy: Diggers, Truckers, Wings (Pratchett) -- very gentle, light, tongue in cheek -- only Pratchett works appropriate for pre-teens IMO - Enchantress from the Stars (Engdahl) -- sci-fi AND fantasy in one! - Rumplestiltskin Problem (Velde) -- series of short stories of the same fairy tale from VERY different points of view! fantasy (talking animals) -- several of these have a lot of humor, too - Trumpet of the Swan (White) -- another BIG favorite here; funny! - The Mouse and the Motorcycle (McCleary) - Ben and Me; Mr. Revere and I (Lawson) -- very tongue-in-cheek humor - The Rescuers, The Turret, Miss Bianca, Miss Bianca in the Salt Mines, Miss Bianca in the Orient (Sharpe) -- VERY fun; OOP, but worth looking for - Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH (O'Brien) - The Reluctant Dragon (Grahame) - Redwall series (Jacques) - Varjak Paw; The Outlaw Varjak Paw (Said) - Warriors series (Hunter) -- another very derivative series with average writing, BUT back at age 10-12yo, picky DS really loved all of the original series -- there are 3 or 4 series of these now Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paige Posted December 4, 2012 Share Posted December 4, 2012 My 11 yr old likes most of the books yours likes and he is really into the Warriors series now. (cat books). When I was that age, I really liked a series that starts with Another Fine Myth. There's a bunch of them and they are definitely fantasy and adventure, fairly short, and fun. This is not heavy stuff. I need to see if I can find them for my DS too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lynn Posted December 4, 2012 Share Posted December 4, 2012 My son started reading most anything Jules Verne at that age. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twoxcell Posted December 4, 2012 Share Posted December 4, 2012 Has he read the Indian in the Cupboard series. Might be a bit easy for him but I loved those at around 9/10. Another series I really liked at that age was The Tripod Series. I have no idea why this set is so expensive, maybe they are OOP. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lizzie in Ma Posted December 4, 2012 Share Posted December 4, 2012 Ranger's Apprentice Artemis Fowl Gregor the Overlander Belgariad Sister's Grimm Fablehaven Spiderwick Chronicles Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted December 4, 2012 Share Posted December 4, 2012 Terry Pratchett has written books for younger readers: my boys liked The Wee Free Men and sequels. Laura Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trillian Posted December 4, 2012 Author Share Posted December 4, 2012 Thanks again. I'm particularly excited about The Letters from Father Christmas. We have a much abridged version, which is beautiful, but especially this year, has bothered DS in its gaps. He'll be thrilled to learned there is a complete version. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julie Smith Posted December 4, 2012 Share Posted December 4, 2012 If he loved, "D'Aulaire's Book of Greek Myths" have you tired the book, "D'Aulaire's Book of Norse Myths". One book that goes very well with that is, "Thor's Wedding Day". If he is fine with a female main character then try, "The Enchanted Forest" series. If he wants a male main character you can even start with the last book - but I think it's best to start at the beginning. (The author actually wrote book 4 first. Then wrote the other ones. But the 4th book was published 4th) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori D. Posted December 4, 2012 Share Posted December 4, 2012 Thanks again. I'm particularly excited about The Letters from Father Christmas. We have a much abridged version, which is beautiful, but especially this year, has bothered DS in its gaps. He'll be thrilled to learned there is a complete version. This version is the more complete version as far as content of all the letters, and it reprints both the original hand-calligraphied letter side-by-side with a plain text version. But, the layout is not as easy for reading, as there are "ghosted" (i.e., faintly printed) images of calligraphy or simple images under the text, making some of the text harder to see. This version has most of the letters (only skips a few short notes, and just slightly abridges a few letters by cutting out personal remarks to specific children), BUT it is more complete as far as also reprinting the lovely artwork of the hand-done envelopes, and especially the stamps that Tolkien created for each letter. The layout is also easier to read, with text on one page, illustration beside it. Both are now out of print, so you'll have to look for used copies. We have both, and enjoy both. ;) Your DS might also enjoy Tales from the Perilous Realm, which collects Tolkien's 3 short stories (Farmer Giles of Ham; Smith of Wooten Major, and Leaf by Niggle), with the novella Roverandom, plus poems that were printed in a short collection called The Adventures of Tom Bombadil. This edition has illustrations by Alan Lee. And, your DS *might* like the Annotated Hobbit, with wonderful, rich annotations by Douglas Anderson. It is the story that DS has already read, but with loads of interesting information in the margins. Enjoy! Warmest regards, Lori D. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nmoira Posted December 4, 2012 Share Posted December 4, 2012 My 10yo is eating up Discworld (I get her four at a time, every couple months, to ration the delight, cruel beast that I am :tongue_smilie: ), having started with the children's books and barreling right on. She also enjoys Wodehouse, especially Jeeves. And we're reading Railsea aloud for the second time in only a few months, it's that wonderful. There was a great thread some months back, Bizarre books from which you might get some off-the-beaten path ideas. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rwjx2khsmj Posted December 4, 2012 Share Posted December 4, 2012 My picky ds10 suggests: The Redwall books Lord of the Rings The Hobbit Chronicles of Narnia The Lion's Whiskers and Other Ethiopian Tales Mr. Tucket series The Warrior series Call of the Wild White Fang Peter and the Star Catchers Hank the Cow Dog Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lisabees Posted December 4, 2012 Share Posted December 4, 2012 My 10yo is eating up Discworld (I get her four at a time, every couple months, to ration the delight, cruel beast that I am :tongue_smilie: ), having started with the children's books and barreling right on. She also enjoys Wodehouse, especially Jeeves. And we're reading Railsea aloud for the second time in only a few months, it's that wonderful. There was a great thread some months back, Bizarre books from which you might get some off-the-beaten path ideas. Ha Moira! I got excited by your link when I first saw it; a link with bizarre books again? I remembered a great thread from years ago. I clicked and lo and behold your link from "months back" was actually from years back! Time flies when you're having fun!! OP, I agree with Terry Pratchett's Tiffany Aching series. That series led into the Discworld series for my ds. What about some Diana Wynne Jones? Ds enjoyed The Chronicles of Chrestomanci around that age. Dd9 is currently reading Peter and the Starcatchers and enjoying it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nmoira Posted December 4, 2012 Share Posted December 4, 2012 I clicked and lo and behold your link from "months back" was actually from years back! Time flies when you're having fun!! I guess so. Years, huh? I'd insert an amused/aghast smilie, but I'm on mobile. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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