What Do You Want to Read Today?

Action/Adventure         Comics/Manga/Graphic Novels         Fantasy

Gothic Horror (Gothic Humor)     Historical Fiction      Humor        Mystery

Nonfiction         Picture Books         Realistic Fiction        Sci-Fi         Sports

Retellings of Classic Literature

Books About Boys and Reading

This list covers a wide range of interests and reading levels, so there should be something for just about any boy. Encourage boys to read what interests them, including fantasy, adventure, sports, and non-fiction. Its fine to read below, even well below, reading level. It is most important to read, and to read a lot. Parents (especially you dads out there), how about reading some of these with your sons?

Please note, these are mostly books published in the past few years (or of recent interest, like the "Lord of the Rings" books.) Boys are often attracted by what is new and contemporary. Also, there are some fine resources in print that cover older books, such as Kathleen Odean's Great Books for Boys. Check it out, then use this list as a supplement.

I would love to hear your reaction to any of these books, and your suggestions for more books to add to the list. Email me at mike@talestoldtall.com. 

Want to learn more about boys and reading? Click here for a short list of books that will help you think about this important topic.

Read more about how to spark a reading interest in boys in my book Connecting Boys With Books, ALA Editions, 2003.

What's New?

Ken Scholes. Lamentation. (Tor, February 2009)

In a post-apocalyptic world, centuries after the folly of man has pushed civilization to the brink, the world has been reordered and brought together again, until an ancient evil is recalled to destroy the center of this emerging civilization. Now all powers strive, in ways both forthright and subtle, to fill the void and dominate what is left over. At the center of the storm is a warrior of great destiny, a boy caught in the whirlwind, a woman who is being played like a piece on a board, and a long-dead leader who has returned to this turbulant world in hopes of saving it.Passion, power, ambition, and enlightment mix in a fast-paced tale of a world that yet may be.


David Gram. The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession. (Doubleday, February 2009)

This nonfiction account covers a hundred years of fateful, and even fatal, expeditions into the heart of the Amazon region. It is part adventure tale, parthorror story, part ecological treatise, all wrapped up in some amazing storytelling. This is Bill Bryson with teeth! It is a tropical Into Thin Air. Journalist David Gram follows in the footsteps of some of the greatest explorers ever into a land that even the great explorers could not conquer to try to solve a mystery as old as history in the New World. He goes in search of the golden city of El Dorado.


Alison Goodman. Eon: Dragoneye Reborn (Viking, December 2008)

There has been a recent trend towards fantasy based on the martial arts, from Jeff Stone's The Five Ancestors to Lian Hearn's Tales of the Otori. Alison Goodman has the latest entrant, with Eon: Dragoneye Reborn. The power of twelve dragons stands behind the empire, and each dragon works through his appointed emmissary and an apprentice. But the most powerful dragon of all has deserted the world for centuries until the most unlikely of apprentices is called. Plenty of swordplay and powerful magic in this epic fantasy based on karate and Chinese mythology.


Michael Sullivan. The Sapphire Knight (The Bard, Book One)  (PublishingWorks, January 2009)

A young traveler sits beside a fire on an open heath and hears a most amazing tale from a broken and disfigured old man, a tale of sorcery and battle between the light of a great white castle and the dark green wood, between the White Lady and the Green Queen. Caught between two great powers, a young knight must discover truth and his own courage to defend that truth. But is it just an idle tale of a lying old man, or is it the true history of the Sapphire Knight?


Erik Craddock. Stone Rabbit: B.C. Mambo. (Random House, January 2009)

A prehistoric farce of a graphic novel about a rabbit, a bottle of barbeque sauce, an evil caveman-genius who wants to rule the world, and an army of wind-up killer robots. No, the boys won't enjoy this!

Action/Adventure

Joseph Bruchac. Bearwalker. HarperCollins, 2007.

Andrew Clements. A Week in the Woods. Simon & Schuster, 2002.

Stephen Cole. Thieves Like Us. Bloomsbury, 2006.

Dan Gutman. Getting Air. Simon & Schuster, 2007.

Will Hobbs. Go Big or Go Home. HarperCollins, 2008.

Anthony Horowitz. “Alex Rider Adventures” (Series)

Gordon Korman. "Everest" (Series)

Gordon Korman. "Island" (Series)

Ben Mikaelsen. Countdown. Disney, 1996.  

Ben Mikaelsen. Rescue Josh Maguire. Hyperion, 1991.    

Ben Mikaelsen. Touching Spirit Bear. HarperCollins, 2001.  

Gary Paulsen. The Car. Harcourt Brace & Company, 1994.  

Graham Salisbury. Night of the Howling Dogs. Wendy Lamb Books, 2007.  

Todd Strasser. "Drift X" (Series)

Classic Retellings

Gordon Korman. Jake Reinvented. Hyperion, 2003. (Retelling of The Great Gatsby)

Rodmn Philbrick. The Young Man and the Sea. Blue Sky Press, 2004. (Retelling of The Old Man and the Sea)

William Shakespeare. Illustrated by Sonia Leong. Romeo and Juliet. (Manga Shakespeare) Amulet Books, 2007.

Fantasy

Tony Abbott. “The Secrets of Droon” (Series)

Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson. Peter and the Starcatchers. Disney, 2004. 

Delaney, Joseph. "The Last Apprentice" (Series)

Downer, Ann. Hatching Magic. Aladdin, 2003.

Kathleen Duey. Skin Hunger. (A Resurrection of Magic, Book 1) Atheneum, 2007.

Eddings, David. "The Tamuli" (Series)

David Elliott. Jeremy Cabbage and the Living Museum of Human Oddballs and Quadruped Delights. Knopf, 2008.

Farmer, Nancy. The House of the Scorpion. Atheneum, 2002.

Flanagan, John. "Rangers Apprentice." (Series)

Alison Goodman. Eon: Dragoneye Reborn (Viking, December 2008)

Chris Humphries. "The Runestone Saga" (Series)

P.R. Moredun. The Dragon Conspiracy. (The World of Eldaterra: Volume One) HarperCollins, 2005.

Lian Hearn. "Tales of the Otori" (Series)

Terry Pratchett. Thud.  HarperTorch, 2006.

Philip Pullman. “His Dark Materials” (Series)

Rick Riordan. "Percy Jackson & the Olympians" (Series)

Emily Rodda. “Deltora Quest” (Series)

J.K. Rowling. “Harry Potter” (Series)

Harry Potter related Books:

Kronzek, Allan Zola. The Sorcerer’s Companion: A Guide to the Magical World of Harry Potter. Broadway, 2001. 

Colbert, David. The Magical Worlds of Harry Potter. Lumina Press, 2001. 

Highfield, Roger. The Science of Harry Potter: How Magic Really Works. Viking, 2002. 

Rowling, J.K. Quidditch Through the Ages. Scholastic, 2001.

Rowling, J.K. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. Scholastic, 2001.

Louis Sachar. Holes. Farrar, Straus, Giraux, 1998.

Ken Scholes. Lamentation. (Tor, February 2009)

Michael Scott. "The Secrets of The Immortal Nicholas Flamel" (Series)

Jeff Stone. "The Five Ancestors." (Series) 

Jonathan Stroud. "The Bartimaeus Trilogy" (Series)

Michael Sullivan. The Sapphire Knight (The Bard, Book One)  (PublishingWorks, January 2009)

J.R.R Tolkien. “The Lord of the Rings” (Series)

J.R.R Tolkien. “The History of Middle Earth” (Series)

J.R.R Tolkien. The Hobbit. Ballantine, 1999.

J.R.R Tolkien. The Silmarillion. Mariner Books, 2001.

David Ward. Escape the Mask. (The Grassland Trilogy, Book 1) Amulet Books, 2008.

Gothic Horror

Anthony Horowitz. "The Gatekeepers" (Series)

Anthony Horowitz. Horowitz Horror: Stories You'll Wish You Never Read. Philomel, 2006.

Anthony Horowitz. More Horowitz Horror: More Stories You'll Wish You Never Read. Philomel, 2007.

A. M. Jenkins. Night Road. HarperTeen, June 2008.

Peg Kehlert. The Ghost's Grave. Dutton, 2005.

Darren Shan. “Cirque Du Freak: The Saga of Darren Shan” (Series)

Darren Shan. "The Demonata" (Series) 

Brad Strickland. The Whistle, The Grave, and the Ghost. Dial, 2003.

Michael Teitelbaum. The Scary States of America. Delacorte, 2007.

Bill Wallace. Skinny-Dipping at Monster Lake. Simon & Schuster, 2003.  

Paul Zindel. Loch. HarperCollins, 1994.

Subgenre: Gothic Humor

A.M. Jenkins. Repossessed. HarperTeen, 2007.

Christopher Moore. Bloodsucking Fiends. Simon & Schuster, 1995.

Christopher Moore. A Dirty Job. William Morrow, 2006.

Christopher Moore. You Suck: A Love Story. William Morrow, 2007.

Historical Fiction

Avi. Crispin: Cross of Lead. 2002. 

Joseph Bruchac. Code Talker: A Novel About the Navajo Marines of World War Two. Speak, 2005.

Dorothy Hoobler. The Ghost in the Tokaido Inn. Philomel, 1999. (and it's sequels) 

Chris Lynch. Gold Dust. HarperCollins, 2000. 

Gary Paulsen. The Rifle. Harcourt Brace & Company, 1995.  

Lawrence Yep. "The Golden Mountain Chronicles" (Series)

Humor

Terence Blacker. Boy 2 Girl. Farrar, Strauss and Giraux, 2005.

Kevin Bolger. Sir Fartsalot Hunts the Booger. Penguin, 2008.

Gennifer Choldenko. Al Capone Does My Shirts. Putnam, 2004.

Eoin Colfer. Legend of Captain Crow's Teeth. Miramax, 2005.

Eoin Colfer. Legend of Spud Murphy. Miramax, 2004.

Lawrence David. “Horace Splattly: The Cupcaked Crusader” (Series)

Jack Gantos. "Joey Pigza" (Series)

D.L. Garfinkle. Storky: How I Lost My Nickname and Won the Girl. Putnam, 2005.

D.L. Garfinkle. "Supernatural Rubber Chicken" (Series)

Morris Gleitzman. Toad Rage. Random House, 2004.

Morris Gleitzman. Toad Heaven. Random House, 2005.

Dan Gutman. The Get Rich Quick Club. HarperCollins, 2004.

Carl Hiaasen. Flush. Knopf, 2005.  

Carl Hiaasen. Hoot. Knopf, 2002.  

Jeff Kinney. Diary of a Wimpy Kid. Amulet, 2007.

Jeff Kinney. Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules. Amulet, 2008.

Gordon Korman. No More Dead Dogs. Hyperion, 2002.

Gordon Korman. Schooled. Hyperion, 2007.

Gordon Korman. Son of the Mob. Hyperion, 2002.

Gordon Korman. Son of the Mob: Hollywood Hustle. Hyperion, 2004.

Kraft, Erik P. Lenny and Mel. Simon & Schuster, 2002.

Lubar, David. Punished! Darby Creek Publishing, 2006.

Christopher Moore. Fluke, or, I Know Why the Winged Whale Sings. Morrow, 2003.

Christopher Moore. Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal. Morrow, 2002.

Nelson, Blake. Gender Blender. Delacorte, 2006.

Paulsen, Gary. Harris and Me. Harcourt, 1993.  

Ken Roberts. The Thumb in the Box. Douglas & McIntyre, 2001.

Louis Sachar. "Wayside School" (Series)

Jon Scieszka. “The Time Warp Trio” (Series)

Lemony Snicket. “A Series of Unfortunate Events” (Series)

Jerry Spinelli. Loser. Joanna Cotler, 2002.  

Smallcomb, Pam. The Last Burp of Mac McGerp. Bloomsbury USA, 2003.

Strasser, Tod. "Help! I'm Trapped..." (Series)

Todd Strasser. Is That a Dead Dog in Your Locker? Scholastic, 2006.

Sullivan, Michael. Escapade Johnson and Mayhem at Mount Moosilauke. Big Guy Books, 2006.  

Van Draanen, Wendelin. Swear to Howdy. Knopf, 2003.

Mystery

Bruce Hale. “From the Tattered Casebook of Chet Gecko, Private Eye” (Series)

Peg Kehlert. The Ghost's Grave. Dutton, 2005.

Wendelin Van Draanen. "Shredderman" (Series)

Nonfiction

Bryson, Bill. A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail. Broadway Books, 1998. 

Buckley, James. The Bathroom Companion: A Collection of Facts About the Most-Used Room in the House. Quirk, 

        2005.

Chin, Karen, and Thom Holmes. Dino Dung: The Scoop on Fossil Feces. Random House, 2004.

Ettus, Samantha. The Experts' Guide to 100 Things Everyone Should Know. Clarkson Potter, 2004. 

Fleischman, John. Phineas Gage: A Gruesome But True Story About Brain Science. Houghton Mifflin, 2002.

Fleisher, Paul. Parasites: Latching On to a Free Lunch. Twenty-First Century Books, 2006. 

Goodman, Susan E., illustrated by Elwood H. Smith. The Truth About Poop. Viking, 2004.

David Gram. The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession. (Doubleday, February 2009)

Gurstelle, William. Backyard Ballistics. Chicago Review, 2001.

Holtz, Thomas R., and Luis V. Rey. Dinosaurs: The Most Complete, Up-to-Date Encyclopedia for Dinosaur 

            Lovers of All Ages. Random House, 2007.  

Krakauer, Jon. Into Thin Air: A Personal Account of the Mt. Everest Disaster. Villard, 1997.  

Kudlinski, Kathleen. Boy Were We Wrong About Dinosaurs. Dutton, 2005.

Michael Lewis. The Blind Side: Evolution of a Game. Norton, 2007.

Markle, Sandra. Outside and Inside Mummies. Walker & Company, 2005.  

Masoff, Joy. Oh Yuck!: the Encyclopedia of Everything Nasty. Workman, 2000.   

Masoff, Joy. Oh Yikes!: History's Grossest, Wackiest Moments. Workman, 2000.   

Philbrick, Nathaniel. Revenge of the Whale: The True Story of the Whaleship Essex . Putnam, 2002. 

Piven, Joshua, and David Borgenicht. The Worst-Case Scenario Survival Handbook. Chronicle Books, 1999.

Piven, Joshua, and David Borgenicht. The Worst-Case Scenario Survival Handbook: Extreme Edition. 

            Chronicle Books, 2005.

Ripken, Cal, Jr., and Mike Bryan. The Only Way I Know. Viking, 1997.

Nancy Rica Schiff. Odder Jobs: More Portraits of Unusual Occupations. Ten Speed Press, 2006.

Silverstein, Ken. The Radioactive Boy Scout: The True Story of a Boy and His Backyard Nuclear Reactor. Random House, 2004.

Singer, Marilyn. What Stinks? Darby Creek, 2006.  

Spignesi, Stephen. The Weird 100: A Collection of the Strange and the Unexplained. Citadel Press, 2004.

Solheim, James. It's Disgusting and We Ate It!: True Food Facts from Around the World and Throughout History. Simon & Schuster, 1998.   

Solway, Andrew. What's Living in Your Bedroom? Heinemann, 2004.   

This Book Really Sucks!: the Science Behind Gravity, Flight, Leeches, Black Holes, Tornadoes, Our Friend the 

        Vacuum Cleaner, and Most Everything Else That Sucks, by the Editors of Planet Dexter. Planet Dexter, 1999.

Webber, Desiree. The Buffalo Train Ride. Eakin Press, 1999.   

Webber, Desiree. Bonehead: Story of the Longhorn. Eakin Press, 2003.  

Woodford, Chris, et al. Cool Stuff and How it Works. Dorling Kindersley, 2005.  

Woodford, Chris & Jon Woodcock. Cool Stuff 2.0 and How it Works. Dorling Kindersley, 2007.  

Picture Books

Buehner, Caralyn. Superdog: the Heart of a Hero. HarperCollins, 2003.

Donaldson, Julia. The Gruffalo. Dial, 1999.

George, Kristine O'Connell, illustrated by Laura Stringer. Fold Me a Poem. Harcourt, 2005.

Gould, Robert. "Big Stuff" (Series)

Duey, Kathleen. "Time Soldiers" (Series)

Goodman, Susan E., illustrated by Elwood H. Smith. The Truth About Poop. Viking, 2004.

Kelley, Marty. The Rules. Knowledge Unlimitted, 2000.

Kudlinski, Kathleen. Boy Were We Wrong About Dinosaurs. Dutton, 2005.

Martin, David. Piggy and Dad Go Fishing. Candlewick, 2005.

McMullan, Kate. I Stink! Joanna Cotler, 2002.

Monsell, Mary Elise. Underwear! Albert Whitman, 1988.

Walter Dean Myers. Patrol: an American Soldier in Vietnam. HarperCollins, 2002.

Dav Pilkey. Kat Kong. Harcourt, 1993.

Dav Pilkey. Dogzilla. Harcourt, 1993.

Dav Pilkey. Dog Breath: The Horrible Trouble With Hally Tosis. Blue Sky Press, 1994.

Scieszka, Jon. The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales. Viking, 1993.

Scieszka, Jon. The True Story of the Three Little Pigs. Viking Kestral, 1989.

Shannon, David. No, David! Scholastic, 1998.

Judy Sierra, pictures by Stephen Gammell. The Secret Science Project That Almost Ate the School. Simon & 

         Schuster, 2007.

Slangerup, Erik John. Dirt Boy. Sagebrush, 2003.

Wiesner, David. Sector 7. Houghton Mifflin, 1999.

Wiesner, David. The Three Pigs. Clarion, 2001.

Wiesner, David. Tuesday. Clarion, 1991.

Williams, Stanley "Tookie". Life in Prison. Chronicle Books, 2001, c1998.

Wong, Janet S., Illustrated by Stacey Schuett. Alex and the Wednesday Chess Club. McElderry Books, 2004.

Realistic Fiction

Avi. Nothing But the Truth: A Documentary Novel. Orchard Books, 1991.  

Hautman, Pete. Godless. Simon & Schuster, 2004.  

Gordon Korman. Jake Reinvented. Hyperion, 2003.

Walter Dean Myers. Handbook for Boys. Amistad, 2002.

Walter Dean Myers. Monster. Amistad, 1999.

Walter Dean Myers. Shooter. Amistad, 2004.

Jerry Spinelli. Maniac Magee. Little, Brown, 1990.

Todd Strasser. Boot Camp. Simon & Schuster, 2007.

Todd Strasser. Give a Boy a Gun. Simon Pulse, 2002.

Vizzini, Ned. It's Kind of a Funny Story. Hyperion, 2006.

Sci-Fi

Anderson, M. T. Feed. Candlewick, 2002.

Eoin Colfer. “Artemis Fowl” (Series)

Bruce Coville. “Bruce Coville's Alien Adventures” (Series)

Jeanne DuPrau. The City of Ember. Random House, 2003.

Jeanne DuPrau. The People of Sparks. Random House, 2004.

David Elliott. The Transmogrification of Roscoe Wizzle. Candlewick Press, 2001.

Kenneth Oppel. "Matt Cruise" (Series)

James Patterson. "Maximum Ride" (Series) 

Rodman Philbrick. The Last Book in the Universe. Blue Sky Press, 2000.

Neal Schusterman. Unwind. Simon & Schuster, 2007.  

Rebecca Stead. First Light. Wendy Lamb Books, 2007.

Will Weaver. Defect. FSG, 2007.

Sports

Baseball:

Dan Gutman. "Baseball Card Mysteries" (Series)

Mike Lupica. The Big Field. Penguin, 2008.

Mike Lupica. Heat. Philomel, 2006.

Chris Lynch. Gold Dust. HarperCollins, 2000. 

Ritter, John H. The Boy Who Saved Baseball. Philomel, 2003.

Ken Roberts. Thumb on a Diamond. Groundwood Books, 2006.

Timothy Tocher. Chief Sunrise, John McGraw, and Me. Cricket Books, 2004.

Basketball:

John Feinstein. Last Shot: A Final Four Mystery. Knopf, 2005.

Mike Lupica. Travel Team. Philomel, 2004.

Extreme Sports:

Gary Paulsen. How Angel Peterson Got His Name, and Other Outrageous Tales of Extreme Sports. Random House, 2003.  

Football:

Carl Deuker. Gym Candy. Houghton Mifflin, 2007.

John Feinstein. Cover-Up: Mystery at the Super Bowl. Knopf, 2007.

John Grisham. Playing for Pizza. Doubleday, 2007.

Tim Green. Football Genius. HarperCollins, 2007.  

Michael Lewis. The Blind Side: Evolution of a Game. Norton, 2007.

Mike Lupica. Two Minute Drill. (Mike Lupica’s Comeback Kids) Philomel, 2007.

Hockey:

Gordon Korman. The Chicken Doesn't Skate. Scholastic, 1996.  

David Skuy. Off the Crossbar. The Writer’s Collective, 2006.

Wrestling:

Alfred C. Martino. Pinned. Harcourt, 2005.

Visual Fiction: Comics/Manga/Graphic Novels

Ken Akamatsu. "Negima!: Master Negi Magi" (Series)  

Erik Craddock. Stone Rabbit: B.C. Mambo. (Random House, January 2009)

Ricardo Delgado. Age of Reptiles. 

Neil Gaiman. The Books of Magic. 

Matsuri Hino. Vampire Knight. Shojo Beat, 2007- 

Jeff Kinney. Diary of a Wimpy Kid. Amulet, 2007.

Jeff Kinney. Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules. Amulet, 2008.

Mitsukazu Mihara. Haunted House. Tokyo Pop, 2006. 

Dav Pilkey. “Captain Underpants” (Series)

Jeff Smith. Bone: The Complete Epic in One Volume. Cartoon Books, 2004. 

Sue Stauffacher. Wireman. Grand Rapids , MI, 2005-

                        Order copies or download for free at www.suestauffacher.com.

Yukiru Sugisaki. “D.N. Angel” (Series) Tokyo Pop. 

Hudson Talbott. Safari Journal: The Adventures in Africa of Carey Monroe. Silver Whistle, 2003.

Yoshihiro Togashi. “YuYu Hakusho” (Series) Viz Media.

Josh Whedon, Karl Moline, and Andy Owens. Fray. Dark Horse, 2003.

Futaro Yamada & Masaki Segawa. Basilisk. Del Rey, 2006. 

Books About Boys and Reading

Alison M. G. Follos. Reviving Reading: School Library Programming, Author Visits and Books that Rock! Libraries Unlimitted, 2006.

Michael Gurian. Boys and Girls Learn Differently!: A Guide for Teachers and Parents. Jossey-Basse, 2001.

Stephen Krashen. The Power of Reading: Insights from the Research. Libraries Unlimitted, 2004.

Thomas Newkirk. Misreading Masculinity: Boys, Literacy, and Popular Culture. Heinemann, 2002.

Daniel Pennac. Better Than Life. Stenhouse, 1999.

Leonard Sax. Why Gender Matters: What Parents and Teachers Need to Know About the Emerging Science of Sex Differences. Doubleday, 2005.

Michael W. Smith, Jeffrey D. Wilhelm. Reading Don't Fix No Chevys: Literacy in the Lives of Young Men. Heinemann, 2002.

Michael Sullivan. Connecting Boys With Books: What Libraries Can Do. ALA Editions, 2003.

                              Last Updated 11/15/2008