I thorougly enjoyed the books I have found. ( 1 and 2.)
I would like to throw out there: Operation Red Jericho and it’s two other titles ( I haven’t found #3 at the library yet.) Operation Typhoon Shore and Operation Storm City.
Adventure novel set in the 20’s. Exotic locales. Kung fu, Mysterious stranger in a white hat. A tiger. Secret Society Stuff. Nonstop action.
I read The House With The Clock in its Walls every year to my 7th Grade classes.
They adore it!
:smack: Administers hearty kick to own backside
Definitely a must-read!
And good October reading.
I’ll concur on The Great Brain and the Pratchett series’, and of course the Mad Scientists’ Club (the two full-length novels that were never, or barely, published back in the day are available again, to boot). I first read many of these when I was less-old, and they’re still good friends of mine.
John Christopher’s The White Mountains, first book of the Tripods Trilogy, is another good sci-fi book, set on a post-alien conquest Earth reduced to a pre-industrial state under the mental domination of the mysterious Tripods.
And about John Bellairs…
(From the back cover of many editions, so not a spoiler)
:eek:
Anything with illustrations by Edward Gorey just doesn’t screw around.
For fantasy, I second David Eddings. Also, Terry Brooks’ Shannara books (at least the “Original Series”) would be good for a 12 year old. Lord of the Rings goes without saying (even though I just did :)).
What did you guys think of the Inkheart series?
I don’t seem to like Cornelia Funke. I read Inkheart and The Thief Lord and wasn’t impressed with either.
48 postings and no one has mentioned the Tarzan series? I honestly feel sorry for any boy who gets through his early teens without reading the Tarzan books. Next to the original, Tarzan, I recommend The Tarzan Twins which is about two teenage boys who get lost in the jungle.
Why not Hornblower?
Start at the beginning, the unsure, shy midshipman and work through them.
How about Wilbur Smith?
I would guess he’s a little old for Willard Price, but maybe that legal writer guy might be a good option (The Runaway Jury)
The other one you may be able to pass him could be Frederick Forsythe…
Cabin on Trouble Creek, which I haven’t read, but is on my list to read, looks really interesting.
Wanted to give an update and thank everyone again for all the wonderful suggestions! My son just finished the Percy Jackson & The Olympians series by Rick Riordan. When he first read the back cover of The Lightning Thief at the library, he turned his nose up and said “I don’t think so”, but he couldn’t find anything else that interested him. I told him to read a couple of chapters and if he didn’t like it, we’d return the book and no harm done. He finished the book in a day and a half and begged for the entire series!!!
So thanks so much Dopers! Not sure what he’ll be moving on to next but we’ll be taking a second look at the great suggestions in this thread.
He was also thrilled to find out that the movie The Lightning Thief will be out this February - hope he enjoys it as much as he did the book!
My son has always read a lot of non-fiction. It’s hard to make specific suggestions because it depends on the kid’s interests. My son was interested in history so he read a lot of books about the Civil War, WWs I & II, the Old West, etc. There are good non-fiction books about any kind of sport or hobby a kid might be interested in. Lots of possibilities on the bio shelf, too. My son was not a science fiction fan, but a kid who is would probably also find a lot of good stuff in the science section.
Also, my kid loved the *People’s Almanac *books by David Wallechinsky. He read and reread my copies of those books, and all the similar ‘trivia’ type books I own, including The Straight Dope books.