# Anybody else out there enjoy childrens and/or young adult books? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 7, 2004, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-out-there-enjoy-childrens-and-or-young-adult-books/253998 "2004-07-07T20:14:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![well\_he\_s\_back](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/3ab097/32.png) [@well\_he\_s\_back](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/well_he_s_back)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2004, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-out-there-enjoy-childrens-and-or-young-adult-books/253998/1 "2004-07-07T20:14:51Z")
I have found many children’s and young adult novels that I have enjoyed lately. Now maybe, working two jobs I’m just too tired sometimes to pick up an aimed-at-adults novel. I don’t know - but I just read a series of books by Gerald Morris which were reworkings of Arthurian legends. They were really fun. And last night I read a book called “East”, an imaginative version of the old “East of the Sun…” fairy tale. Anyway are there any other adults out there who also pick up books aimed at younger audiences? ---
**Author:** ![Flutterby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Flutterby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flutterby)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2004, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-out-there-enjoy-childrens-and-or-young-adult-books/253998/2 "2004-07-07T20:23:59Z")
Oh yeah, I have a few favourites. Them being Tamora Pierce, Robin McKinley, Annette Curtis Klause uhm… and that girl who wrote Demon in my View (I forget her name, I just remember she’s around my age) I don’t really care if the books are written for a younger audience, I find them just as interesting to read as ‘adult’ books. ---
**Author:** ![slortar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6bbea6/32.png) [@slortar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slortar)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2004, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-out-there-enjoy-childrens-and-or-young-adult-books/253998/3 "2004-07-07T20:26:45Z")
Sure. I’m reading through a small stack of Heinlein’s juvenile science fiction right now. Great stuff. I particularly enjoyed “The Rolling Stones.” ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2004, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-out-there-enjoy-childrens-and-or-young-adult-books/253998/4 "2004-07-07T20:43:44Z")
I hardly think you’re alone… Do you think it’s all kids replying to those Harry Potter threads? And among my other favorites are the Narnia books, the Prydain books, _A Wrinkle in Time_ and its sequels, and all of Heinlein’s juveniles. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2004, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-out-there-enjoy-childrens-and-or-young-adult-books/253998/5 "2004-07-07T20:59:12Z")
I love kids books, and I’m 33. I especially like William Sleator and the Lewis Barnavelt books by John Bellairs/Brad Strickland. When I was a kid I never managed to read all the interesting stuff despite my best efforts, so I make it up to myself now. ---
**Author:** ![Flutterby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Flutterby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flutterby)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2004, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-out-there-enjoy-childrens-and-or-young-adult-books/253998/6 "2004-07-07T21:17:45Z")
> [@Flutterby](#): > > and that girl who wrote Demon in my View I remember her name now. It’s Amelia Atwater Rhodes. But yes, I do love to read young adult books… I have at least 2 ready to be started right now. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2004, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-out-there-enjoy-childrens-and-or-young-adult-books/253998/7 "2004-07-07T21:36:25Z")
Tom Swift Jr. [http://users.arczip.com/fwdixon/tomswift/ts2.htm](http://users.arczip.com/fwdixon/tomswift/ts2.htm) ---
**Author:** ![Delly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/85f322/32.png) [@Delly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Delly)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2004, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-out-there-enjoy-childrens-and-or-young-adult-books/253998/8 "2004-07-07T22:28:32Z")
Aside from the Potter books, I enjoyed reading Philip Pullmans trilogy, NorthernLights, The Subtle Knife and The Amber Spyglass. I think collectively its called His Dark Materials. ---
**Author:** ![trupa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/aeb1de/32.png) [@trupa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/trupa)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2004, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-out-there-enjoy-childrens-and-or-young-adult-books/253998/9 "2004-07-07T22:52:47Z")
Friend of our family is a medical oncologist. She almost exclusively reads kids and teen’s books as a means of escapism / stress relief. My wife and I really enjoy Harry Potter. Especially since I went to a highschool that is reminiscent of Hogwarts , well, a meaner, boys only, without the magic Hogwarts ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Flutterby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Flutterby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flutterby)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2004, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-out-there-enjoy-childrens-and-or-young-adult-books/253998/10 "2004-07-07T22:54:23Z")
> [@Delly](#): > > Aside from the Potter books, I enjoyed reading Philip Pullmans trilogy, NorthernLights, The Subtle Knife and The Amber Spyglass. I think collectively its called His Dark Materials. The first book is The Golden Compass (at least as sold here, I haven’t heard any alternate names for it though). I may have to read the His Dark Materials series again, I enjoyed it last time, but something about it bugged me and I never did figure out what. ---
**Author:** ![Ms\_Boods](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5e9695/32.png) [@Ms\_Boods](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ms_Boods)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2004, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-out-there-enjoy-childrens-and-or-young-adult-books/253998/11 "2004-07-07T22:56:02Z")
I have a box of my books from when I was a wee Boodie – they’re comfort reading. I still buy children’s books, but now I do it with no qualms; for a while, when I was uni age or so, I always felt like people were wondering, ‘Why in the heck is she buying Beverley Cleary or Eleanor Estes or Judy Blume books?’ and I would actually get strange looks (I’d make up excuses that they were gifts for nieces and nephews.) My favourite book I still read is called ‘Charly’ (the American title is 'The Girl Who Ran Away). ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2004, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-out-there-enjoy-childrens-and-or-young-adult-books/253998/12 "2004-07-07T23:05:14Z")
> [@Delly](#): > > I enjoyed reading Philip Pullmans trilogy, NorthernLights, The Subtle Knife and The Amber Spyglass. I think collectively its called His Dark Materials. Northern Lights is called The Golden Compass in North America, which is, IMO, a much better title. It better fits with the theme of the other titles (and the general series title) and is a whole lot less GENERIC. Anyway…Potter, HDM, check. I’m fond of the novelizations of BtVS, which are mostly aimed at a teen audience (at least that’s where I need to go to find them). The Chronicles of Narnia and The Hobbit are favourites. I like reading (or re-reading) Dr Suess when I have access to them. I haven’t read any other children’s/YA books since I was in their target audience - even then I found most YA stuff pretty lame, and I don’t know how well the ones I didn’t would hold up. ---
**Author:** ![rjung](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/45deac/32.png) [@rjung](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rjung)\ **Post date:** [July 7, 2004, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-out-there-enjoy-childrens-and-or-young-adult-books/253998/13 "2004-07-07T23:48:41Z")
Terry Pratchett’s “young adult” books outclass most “real adult” books, IMNSHO. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![AveDementia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bc8723/32.png) [@AveDementia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AveDementia)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2004, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-out-there-enjoy-childrens-and-or-young-adult-books/253998/14 "2004-07-08T00:08:57Z")
> [@Dung Beetle](#): > > I especially like William Sleator INTERSTELLAR PIG!!! 😃 I’ve been reading stuff I was aware of, but never really got into, like the Anne of Green Gables books. I think I can appreciate them more now. I’m looking forward to re-reading some other classic childrens series, too, like the Little House books. It’s nice to understand them better than I did the first time, and see things I didn’t catch when I was little. I recommend George Selden, even though you weren’t asking for recommmendations. 😉 He wrote _The Cricket in Times Square_, and has done several great sequels with the same animal characters. Tucker the Mouse, Harry the Cat, and Chester the Cricket. They aren’t dumbed down or preachy, they’re just very cool. I especially used to love _Tucker’s Countryside_. I just remembered how much I used to love them thanks to this thread, so I’m definitely adding them to the list of re-reads. ---
**Author:** ![Lsura](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7993a0/32.png) [@Lsura](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lsura)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2004, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-out-there-enjoy-childrens-and-or-young-adult-books/253998/15 "2004-07-08T00:19:50Z")
I like YA books too. Tamora Pierce has been mentioned. Philip Pullman Garth Nix’s _Abhorsen_ trilogy. John Marsden, _Letters from the Inside_ and the _Tomorrow, when the war began_ series (well, what I’ve managed to read so far - hard to get in the bookstore here, and the library doesn’t have a lot of them). Nancy Farmer, particulary _The House of the Scorpions_ Diana Wynne Jones Diane Duane J.K. Rowling I particularly like YA fantasy books, but it’s always one section that I scope whenever I’m in the library or a bookstore. And typically I could find _something_ to buy, if only I had the money. Thank goodness for used book stores and trade credit! ---
**Author:** ![Primaflora](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/898d66/32.png) [@Primaflora](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Primaflora)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2004, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-out-there-enjoy-childrens-and-or-young-adult-books/253998/16 "2004-07-08T00:57:14Z")
I read a lot of YA and children’s books. Lately me and my boy have liked the new Nix series and Phillip Reeve’s Mortal Engines series. I’m not a Marsden fan at all. I find his books to be cynical and nihilistic. Plus he’s really milking the cash cow now with the Ellie chronicles. Hated Dear Miffy with a passion – I really prefer my kids books without c\*nt and other words in them. It might be authentic but it’s not necessary. ---
**Author:** ![Flutterby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Flutterby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flutterby)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2004, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-out-there-enjoy-childrens-and-or-young-adult-books/253998/17 "2004-07-08T01:01:04Z")
**Lsura** have you been to Tamora Pierce’s website? She’s got stuff planned to keep us reading to 2009! Right now I’m impatient for Trickster’s Queen… ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2004, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-out-there-enjoy-childrens-and-or-young-adult-books/253998/18 "2004-07-08T02:10:35Z")
Oh, I completely forgot to mention the Redwall books. :smack: ---
**Author:** ![FriarTed](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/friarted/32/1052_2.png) [@FriarTed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FriarTed)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2004, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-out-there-enjoy-childrens-and-or-young-adult-books/253998/19 "2004-07-08T03:29:56Z")
It wasn’t till I was out of college that I discovered the greatness that was THE VELVETEEN RABBIT, PETER PAN, WIND IN THE WILLOWS, and WINNIE THE POOH. When I was a child, I didn’t want to read that baby stuff! ---
**Author:** ![Lathe\_of\_Heaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Lathe\_of\_Heaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lathe_of_Heaven)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2004, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-out-there-enjoy-childrens-and-or-young-adult-books/253998/20 "2004-07-08T03:48:57Z")
Garth Nix! Butt-kicking Aussie author, whose sophisticated and relentlessly dark fantasy novels are stocked in the Young Adult section… for no reason _I_ can discern. I, too, like children/YA books. I have taken to repeating to myself: “It’s nobody’s business what I read, it’s nobody’s business what I read.” [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-else-out-there-enjoy-childrens-and-or-young-adult-books/253998.md?page=2)