What is your 12 year old Science Fiction/Fantasy lover reading?

[kwg]

We are going to the beach next week and he gets a ton of reading done!  Dh got him a bunch of books for the kindle and he read them all already!  :glare:  :lol:

 

[Lori D.]

What has DS already read?

Is there a particular type of Sci-Fi or Fantasy DS enjoys or prefers?

Are you looking for classics, or light reads, or something in between?

What level of maturity in language and content are you comfortable with (although, letting us know what has already been read by DS will give us a hint about that)…?

[kwg]

For vacation- light reads or in between but probably not classics. I mean it is ok, but he might not be that into it. 

 

For what he has read- hmmm....lately he has read some Neal Asher, Enders Game series a few times, something about the Uglies, Maze Runner books, City of Bones, Hunger Games, DIvergent, etc.  My husband gave him Old Man's War and the sequels which he loved. *sigh*  I gave him some Heinlein but he said it was so similar in theme to other books he did not want to read it.

 

I just looked at "customers that purchased" and he did not like Eragon  :confused1:

 

We are pretty liberal I guess. I mean- nothing too crazy.  And it is a vacation!

 

 

[Tanaqui]

You gave him grown-up Heinlein or some of his classic juveniles?

[lewelma]

My ds loved the Science Fiction Hall of Fame. Apparently, the highest ranked short stories as voted on by the members of the Science fiction writers of america. http://www.amazon.com/Science-Fiction-Hall-Fame-Vol/dp/0765305372

 

The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Volume One, 1929–1964 is a 1970 anthology of science fiction short stories, edited by Robert Silverberg. It is generally considered one of the best, if not the best, of the many science fiction anthologies. Author Lester del Rey said that "it even lives up to its subtitle." It was first published by Doubleday and subsequently reprinted by Orb.

The content of the book was decided by a vote of the members of the Science Fiction Writers of America, choosing among short stories (up to 15,000 words long) that predated the Nebula Awards. The top 15 vote-getters were included; Silverberg then used his judgment, rather than the number of votes, in selecting 11 of the next 15 for a total of 26 stories. (Several authors had two stories in the top 30 vote-getters, but no author is represented twice in the collection.)

 

++++

 

My ds really liked the deep ideas presented, with such contrasting visions of the future. 

 

Fahrenheit 451 is also a favorite and an easy read.

 

Ruth in NZ

[Lori D.]

....lately he has read some Neal Asher, Enders Game series a few times, something about the Uglies, Maze Runner books, City of Bones, Hunger Games, DIvergent, etc.  â€¦ Old Man's War and the sequels which he loved…  I gave him some Heinlein but he said it was so similar in theme to other books he did not want to read it.

 

I just looked at "customers that purchased" and he did not like Eragon   :confused1:

 

Sounds like your DS is most interested in "dystopias" and sci-fi at this time? Anyways, here are some ideas, in no particular order. BEST of luck in finding some good fits! Warmest regards, Lori D.

 

 

SCI-FI 

- Earth Girl (Edwards)

- The Giver (Lowry) -- dystopia -- and sequels: Gathering Blue, Messenger, The Son

- City of Ember, People of Spark, Diamond of Darkhold (Du Prau)  -- dystopia

- The Tripods (Christopher) -- and sequels -- dystopia

- the Bromeliad trilogy: Truckers; Diggers; Wings (Pratchett) -- short, light, humorous

- House of Stairs (Sleator) -- dystopia

- The Wave (Strasser)

- Star Soldiers (Norton) -- Andre Norton created a LOT of different fantasy series and sci-fi series

- The Eye, The Ear, and The Arm (Farmer)

- A Tale of Time City (Jones)

- Dogbody (Jones)

- Things Not Seen (Clements)

- Martian Chronicles (Bradbury) -- loosely connected series of short stories

- R is for Rocket (Bradbury) -- short story collection

- I, Robot (Asimov) -- loosely connected series of short stories

- Foundation (Asimov)

- Star Dust (Gaiman)

- Out of the Silent Planet (Lewis) -- I'd wait on the sequels

- John Carter of Mars books (also known as The Barsoom series) (Burroughs) -- OLD sci-fi by the Tarzan author

"ALTERNATE WORLD"

- Percy Jackson & the Olympians series (Riordan)

- Artemis Fowl series (Colfer)

- Children of the Lamp series (Kerr)

- Wee Free Men -- and sequels (Pratchett)

- Gregor the Overlander series (Collins) -- same author as Hunger Games

- The Dark is Rising series (Cooper)

- trilogy: Leviathan, Behemoth, Goliath (Westerfeld) -- same author as Uglies -- "steam punk" alternate WW1

- Temeraire trilogy: His Majesty's Dragon; Throne of Jade; Black Powder War (Novik) --  alternate Napoleonic Wars

- Something Wicked This Way Comes (Bradbury)

- Coraline (Gaiman)

- The Graveyard Book (Gaiman)

- Mistborn series (Sanderson)

 

FANTASY

- Enchantress from the Stars (Engdahl) -- sci-fi AND fantasy in one

- Harry Potter series (Rowling)

- The Hobbit (Tolkien)

- Lord of the Rings trilogy (Tolkien) -- Eragon is a LOT like LotR so this may not be a good time for this trilogy if DS rejected Eragon

- The Phantom Tollbooth (Juster) -- lots of fun puns and math-y ideas that may appeal to a 12yo

- The Secret of Platform 13 (Ibbotson) -- feels like a "kinder, gentler" Harry Potter

- Sea of Trolls series (Farmer)

- dragon series: Dragon of the Lost Sea; Dragon War; Dragon Cauldron (Yep)

- tiger apprentice series: Tiger Apprentice; Tiger's Blood; Tiger Magic (Yep) -- Ninja stuff

- Watership Down (Adams)

- The Never Ending Story (Ende)

- Ranger's Apprentice series (Flannagan) -- medieval-type setting, teen boy trains in woodlore/ranger skills and becomes Ninja-like and an excellent archer

 

 

PAST THREADS -- for high school ages

Classic Science Fiction Recommendations
Science Fiction
What is your favorite political Sci-Fi type of book?
Nan, what Sci-Fi did you all read
Utopian and Dystopian Literature
Dystopian Novels?
What is your favorite Dystopian literature?
Recommend some dystopian stuff for me to read!

[kwg]

Wow! Lori thank you!

 

Lewelma- that book looks great! Thank you!

 

Tanaqui- juvenile. Dh gave Alex all these grown up books and a friend was horrified bc I guess maybe it has some really foul language? And she rec those. I am a little embarrassed putting it out there that my just turned 11 year old is reading that but he doesn't seem to have grown any extra heads or anything.

 

Thanks for all the great ideas!

[kiana]

Tanaqui- juvenile. Dh gave Alex all these grown up books and a friend was horrified bc I guess maybe it has some really foul language? And she rec those. I am a little embarrassed putting it out there that my just turned 11 year old is reading that but he doesn't seem to have grown any extra heads or anything.

 

Thanks for all the great ideas!

 

FTR I read a whole bunch of stuff with really adult language and actions at ages younger than that and I think I turned out pretty okay. Of course I'd reconsider it if your kid starts using that language or something like that, rather than understanding that that's what the characters in the books say.

 

What does your kid think of really ancient sci-fi? If you can find them, Isaac Asimov had some anthologies of "before the Golden Age" that I really enjoyed.

 

[Cosmos]

For vacation- light reads or in between but probably not classics. I mean it is ok, but he might not be that into it. 

 

For what he has read- hmmm....lately he has read some Neal Asher, Enders Game series a few times, something about the Uglies, Maze Runner books, City of Bones, Hunger Games, DIvergent, etc.  My husband gave him Old Man's War and the sequels which he loved. *sigh*  I gave him some Heinlein but he said it was so similar in theme to other books he did not want to read it.

 

I just looked at "customers that purchased" and he did not like Eragon  :confused1:

 

We are pretty liberal I guess. I mean- nothing too crazy.  And it is a vacation!

 

Has he read Scalzi's other books like Fuzzy Nation, Red Shirts, and Agent to the Stars? Very good vacation reading. ETA: These have less adult content than Old Man's War. Also Android's Dream is really good, but has some very graphic violence (but so does OMW, so if that was okay . . .)

 

My ds has also enjoyed Dune (and sequels), the Pern series by Anne McCaffrey, and lots of Piers Anthony at age 12-13. Also Rangers Apprentice (a YA series), though I don't think that's really fantasy.

 

What about Artemis Fowl?

[Chrysalis Academy]

Maybe Margaret Peterson Haddix?  She has a couple of series that Shannon has really enjoyed.  Definitely beach reading!  The Shadow Children series and the Missing series have been big hits.  The Shadow Children is dystopian, the Missing is sci fi - time travel w/ pretty good historical veracity.

[happypamama]

12yo DD loved the Wrinkle In Time series!

[Ellie]

When I was 12, I'm pretty sure I had started reading Asimov. I've re-read many of them over the years and I can't think of anything objectionable in them.

 

I was also reading Andre Norton (pen name for Mary Norton, author of the Borrowers series); most of those are ok, the Witch World series starts off ok, but eventually some of the books are kind of, IDK, occultic or something.

[Cosmos]

When I was 12, I'm pretty sure I had started reading Asimov. I've re-read many of them over the years and I can't think of anything objectionable in them.

 

I was also reading Andre Norton (pen name for Mary Norton, author of the Borrowers series); most of those are ok, the Witch World series starts off ok, but eventually some of the books are kind of, IDK, occultic or something.

 

The robot series has some, um, interesting, sexual themes. No explicit sex described, though.

[Ellie]

The robot series has some, um, interesting, sexual themes. No explicit sex described, though.

 

I didn't notice those when I was 12. :-)

[Cosmos]

I didn't notice those when I was 12. :-)

 

Well, I was referring specifically to Robots of Dawn. Perhaps you didn't read that one, because I don't think you can miss it in that book! The discussion of sex is extended and crucial to the plot. And thinking more now, it may even have explicit sex scenes. I can't remember exactly.

 

Just a heads-up for anyone who might not be aware.

[SkateLeft]

.

 

[Ellie]

Well, I was referring specifically to Robots of Dawn. Perhaps you didn't read that one, because I don't think you can miss it in that book! The discussion of sex is extended and crucial to the plot. And thinking more now, it may even have explicit sex scenes. I can't remember exactly.

 

Just a heads-up for anyone who might not be aware.

 

Yes, I read them all. I forgot that one. :-) At any rate, I still don't remember being particularly, IDK, offended or anything.