jaysdarlin Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 Do stories about "boys", have to be for the "boy audience", and vice versa? Will "The Little Princess" only appeal to gilrs? Will "Anne of Green Gables" only appeal to girls? Will boys like "The Little House on the Prairie"? As a girl myself - I think I am drwn to "girly" books -- or is this a sterotype? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StephanieF Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 Ds9 is currently reading Anne of Green Gables and ds5 listening to little house in the big woods. They are both gender neutral I think. They wouldn't read books with pink sparkly covers though! Stephanie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ria Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 When my boys were little I read the Little House books aloud to them and they enjoyed them. We also watched Anne of Green Gables as a family. Now that they are older (my baby is 11) they are no longer interested in what they perceive as "girly" books. Ria Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elegantlion Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 We did Witch of Blackbird Pond and Caddie Woodlawn as read-alouds last year. DS love them. A couple of years ago we watched Little Women for school. I thought he would be bored to tears listening to the tales of 4 sisters. He loved the movie. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snickerdoodle Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 I don't know and really wonder. I have tried several times for each title to get my sons (7 & almost 5) interested in Anne of Green Gables, Little House, and Black Beauty and try as I might, they're not having it. Also to my shock and horror they're not interested in The Wind in the Willows. They would much rather I read them Famous Men of Rome, Swallows and Amazons, Where the Red Fern Grows, and books of this nature. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
angela in ohio Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 I have found that "girl" books mostly appeal to girls, whereas "boy" book appeal to both. My oldest dd is a boy-book lover. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris in VA Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 Snickerdoodle, Two of the books you mention have really advanced vocab and long descriptions. Could that be part of it? I agree that action seems to rule for many boys. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Danestress Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 They liked Caddie Woodlawn, for example. What they really don't like are books that feature love and romance. They liked Witch of Blackbird Pond until it turned into a "who will the girl marry" book. They just aren't interested in courtship and marriage, and are turned off by books that include that, even as a sub-plot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Danestress Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 . posted in the wrong place! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snickerdoodle Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 Snickerdoodle,Two of the books you mention have really advanced vocab and long descriptions. Could that be part of it? I agree that action seems to rule for many boys. I don't know? I read them The Hobbit and they loved it. They are not shy about asking what something means. By the way, I do get the best book ideas from this forum and a big Thank You for that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peela Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 Ds loved Ann of Green Gables and Little House books. Ds is however enjoying Robin Hood more than Dd. She is not girly girly but ds is just a Robin Hood fan and she isnt. She enjoyed Robinson Crusoe though. When read aloud, ds enjoyed many books I didnt think he would, and dd too. Its good not to have too many pre conceptions and just be open to possibilities. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kokotg Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 I've only got boys and we read everything. Right now I'm reading The Secret Garden with my 7 year old. We've read all the the Ramona books, some Little House books, etc. etc. And I don't mind reading grown-up books with men in them, either ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charlotteb Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 We have spent the last two school years reading thru "The Great Illustrated Classics" series. Since I have one boy and one girl, I would alternate between a "girl book" and a "boy book". We could read "The Secret Garden" one month and then "Journey to the Center of the Earth" the next. They both enjoyed them all the same! We found that the girl books usually deal with emotional things, family issues, etc., and the boy books were more action-y and adventuresome. We came to love both genres since they are so different! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
myfunnybunch Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 My boys have enjoyed The Little House Books, The Secret Garden, Betsy-Tacy. The Little House books inspired weeks of playing pioneers, and they still talk about Dickon from The Secret Garden. A good story is a good story. :-) Cat Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PrairieAir Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 I always liked books with boys in them. Or girls doing boyish things. I would have loved Laura Ingalls and Almanzo Wilder as I do now. I only knew them through the TV show when I was a kid. I have a hard time liking Mary Ingalls much, just as I did when I watched the show on TV. The mystery of The Secret Garden is the only thing that kept me reading that book when I was a kid. I wanted to slap Mary Lennox and her crybaby cousin! I did like her better when she talked about wanting to smack Colin herself, though. That showed a little bit of spunk. Dickon was my favorite character. The Little Princess was okay because even though she was a bit spoiled to start with, she had a kind heart and could handle whatever was thrown at her with grace and dignity. She was a tough little broad inspite of being raised in princess style. Where the Red Fern Grows and Where the Lilies Bloom were two of my favorite childhood books. One is about a boy and his dogs and the other is about a very tough girl who takes charge of her family when her father dies. I don't like prissy, wimpy girl characters in children's or adult's books. I love Jane Austen's novels because even though they may have romantic elements to them and the women may be all in dresses and engaged in ladylike activities, the heroines always have spunk, and the girly-girls are held in less esteem. My youngest son loved the Little House books, btw. My oldest son liked them okay, but he did get a little impatient with them not having more boys in them. They both thought that Laura was alright, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PrairieAir Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 Just thought of this. Youngest dd is more of a girly-girl though also kind of a jock. She did not like the My Side of the Mountain series as much as the other kids, but became more interested when Sam's sister showed up on the scene. Likewise with Robin Hood. She liked it, but not as much as books with girls as the main character. The Little House series and Because of Winn Dixie are her favorites so far, so I think she's drawn to girl characters who are a little more tomboy than princess. Lately she's been getting interested in stories that have a little more romance in them though. The book she is currently reading is The Princess Diaries. If it's like the movie, the girl isn't such a girly-girl but she still gets to experience all that glitter with a touch of romance too. (Sorry, I haven't read the book.) This sounds so much like her personality overall. She loves clothes and shoes and glitz and glamor, but she's very athletic and loves animals and being outdoors too. I think she wants books with characters who reflect both sides of her personality. Hmmm...lightbulb moment on what direction to look for books for my reluctant reader! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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