Right, so I'm going to write a recommendation list today, as it's Saturday. I'll focus on children aged about 10 to 12 who are keen on reading, but don't want to read children's books or books that are too adult. If I haven't reviewed these yet, I almost certainly will! This is by no means all of the books suitable, but it's a good starting point! If you have anything to add to the lists, please comment and I'll put it in (or at least read it).
Fantasy: Keys to the Kingdom series and the Seventh Tower series by Garth Nix, His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman, The Carpet People, The Bromeliad, The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents and Nation by Terry Pratchett, The Blue Sword and The Hero and the Crown by Robin McKinley (some adult themes but very oblique), The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel series by Michael Scott, The Bartimeus Trilogy by Jonathan Stroud, The Power of Five by Anthony Horowitz, The Septimus Heap series by Angie Sage, the Stravaganza series by Mary Hoffman, Midnight by Lene Kaaberbol, A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket.
Sci-Fi, Spy and Adventure: The Artemis Fowl series, the Supernaturalist, Half-Moon Investigations and Airman by Eoin Colfer, the Alex Rider series by Anthony Horowitz, H.I.V.E by Mark Walden, the Traces series by Malcolm Rose, the Mortal Engines series and the Larklight series by Philip Reeve, Montmorency by Eleanor Updale, The Young Bond series by Charlie Higson
Romance and Friendship: The Confessions of Georgia Nicholson by Louise Rennison, most books by Jaqueline Wilson (the Girls in... series and Love Lessons contain more adult themes), the Jess Jordan series by Sue Limb, the first few books of Twilight by Stephenie Meyer (some adult content in later books), Love 15 and the Teenage Worrier's Guide to... by Ros Asquith (some adult themes), Exodus by Julie Bertagna (some adult themse, some sci fi!).
The Romance and Friendship section is a little sparse because nearly all of these books do contain adult themes - just let me know what you think is suitable and I can make better judgements.
Hope this list helps, anyway - I'll keep adding to it - and happy reading!
Showing posts with label fantasy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label fantasy. Show all posts
Saturday, 12 February 2011
Friday, 11 February 2011
Across the water!
Well, not in that direction. Today we're heading to Australia, the home of Garth Nix, the undisputed master of teen fantasy fiction. Nix has written more books than you can shake a stick at, and if I were to try to write them all down I'd definitely miss some! Suffice it to say that from the Old Kingdom series to the Keys to the Kingdom series, passing through the Seventh Tower series on the way, you and your child will be well catered for.
There's a good variety of age-suitable reading here, from the Old Kingdom series which contains a lot of horror and some adult themes, through to the Keys to the Kingdom series, an enjoyable fantasy romp suitable for slightly younger but adept children. The books are definitely ones for transitional readers, and they're a little more edgy than traditional children's fare.
Nix has a wonderful way with words and with characters, and manages to pull off the reluctant-and-less-able hero every time, which you'd think would eventually get boring. For readers who prefer a bit of sci fi in the mix, he also wrote Shade's Children, which is very different from his usual fantasy style, and also contains one or two adult themes.
As a writer, Nix might tend to stick to fantasy, but a lot of his books have an enjoyable blend of science and magic which serves to make them a lot more accessible to the reader than most fantasy novels are. Another factor in this is his excellent use of characters. Whether it's Tal in the Seventh Tower series, or Arthur Penhaligon in the Keys to the Kingdom series, they are immediately human, and very easy to identify with.
But his talent doesn't end there. In Sabriel, the first book in the Old Kingdom series, Nix writes the eponymous female character so real that you'd almost think he'd been a woman. This might sound a little petty, but fantasy is quite often a male-dominated field (and also usually a plot rather than character driven field), and so to find a believable female character is always a godsend, especially for girls who might otherwise be put off from fantasy.
So, how readable are they? Well, these books are accessible pretty instantly, as they explain the various fantasy worlds without the need for pages of description, and they have some excellent characters. Once you've got that far, they've also got some pretty rip-roaring plots. But as always with fantasy, not all kids are going to like it, and that's especially true of those who might find reading difficult. If they do get into the series, I'd say that they'll find them a total gem, but some kids are put off by the idea of magic and myth, and they're just not going to like Nix's stuff. I was personally a little disappointed with the end of the Keys to the Kingdom series, but I can't speak for all his readers there. Overall, a fantastic set of books for any kid who likes, or might like fantasy. Oh, and Garth Nix? It might be the perfect name for fantasy, but it's his real name.
There's a good variety of age-suitable reading here, from the Old Kingdom series which contains a lot of horror and some adult themes, through to the Keys to the Kingdom series, an enjoyable fantasy romp suitable for slightly younger but adept children. The books are definitely ones for transitional readers, and they're a little more edgy than traditional children's fare.
Nix has a wonderful way with words and with characters, and manages to pull off the reluctant-and-less-able hero every time, which you'd think would eventually get boring. For readers who prefer a bit of sci fi in the mix, he also wrote Shade's Children, which is very different from his usual fantasy style, and also contains one or two adult themes.
As a writer, Nix might tend to stick to fantasy, but a lot of his books have an enjoyable blend of science and magic which serves to make them a lot more accessible to the reader than most fantasy novels are. Another factor in this is his excellent use of characters. Whether it's Tal in the Seventh Tower series, or Arthur Penhaligon in the Keys to the Kingdom series, they are immediately human, and very easy to identify with.
But his talent doesn't end there. In Sabriel, the first book in the Old Kingdom series, Nix writes the eponymous female character so real that you'd almost think he'd been a woman. This might sound a little petty, but fantasy is quite often a male-dominated field (and also usually a plot rather than character driven field), and so to find a believable female character is always a godsend, especially for girls who might otherwise be put off from fantasy.
So, how readable are they? Well, these books are accessible pretty instantly, as they explain the various fantasy worlds without the need for pages of description, and they have some excellent characters. Once you've got that far, they've also got some pretty rip-roaring plots. But as always with fantasy, not all kids are going to like it, and that's especially true of those who might find reading difficult. If they do get into the series, I'd say that they'll find them a total gem, but some kids are put off by the idea of magic and myth, and they're just not going to like Nix's stuff. I was personally a little disappointed with the end of the Keys to the Kingdom series, but I can't speak for all his readers there. Overall, a fantastic set of books for any kid who likes, or might like fantasy. Oh, and Garth Nix? It might be the perfect name for fantasy, but it's his real name.
Thursday, 10 February 2011
What's life without a talking mouse?
Today's review/recommendation is dedicated to the memory of Brian Jacques, who died last week. Jacques wrote the acclaimed Redwall series, which has been popular for years with children of both genders from the ages of about 8 to 12.
The series focuses around a fantasy world populated by talking animals, with a clear good/evil divide made between 'vermin' such as stoats, rats, foxes and weasels, to name a few, and good creatures such as mice, badgers, moles and shrews. Although you might see a worrying tendency to demonise creatures of a certain species, Jacques does challenge this in his book 'The Outcast of Redwall', so children aren't taught by this series just to judge blindly.
'Redwall' was the first book published in the series, and is a good starting point, although it has some differences from the rest of the series and is not the first book chronologically speaking. There isn't really any need to follow the publishing order, though, as each book stands alone, although certain characters will make several appearances. 'Mossflower', the second published book but first to be written, is another excellent starting point.
The series is usually focused around Redwall Abbey, and tends to involve large pitched battles to the death, exciting confrontations, humorous interludes, and surprisingly well-fleshed-out characters. Expect tear-jerking scenes (for the kids, not you), riddles to solve, and a variety of funny accents to play with if reading out loud. The animals also eat fantastically well, with huge feasts at the least provocation, and it has been suggested that the reason for Jaques' amazingly realistic descriptions is that he first began writing these stories for the pupils of a school for the blind. In any case, the stories are great to read out loud, but voracious readers may well take the books from you and finish them. The books are long, but each one is its own little epic, and may well introduce children to the idea of reading longer books.
I should make it clear that Redwall is a series that kids grow out of. I don't know many children who kept reading the books into their teens, and the books have an essentially childish nature, for all of their themes of love and war, that tends to put off older readers. Also, the level of description (and the talking animals) might well put off reluctant readers, although that said, imaginative children will have great fun working Redwall into their games.
However, for the time that the kids do love Redwall, each new book that they find will be a joy. Younger children can be introduced to the series through the Redwall picture books, such as 'The Great Redwall Feast', which is beautifully illustrated by Christopher Denise. And even though I grew out of Redwall years ago, I still have a soft spot for all the old stories I used to read, and would recommend them to intelligent young children who might be bored of shorter books. Thanks, Brian Jacques. RIP.
The series focuses around a fantasy world populated by talking animals, with a clear good/evil divide made between 'vermin' such as stoats, rats, foxes and weasels, to name a few, and good creatures such as mice, badgers, moles and shrews. Although you might see a worrying tendency to demonise creatures of a certain species, Jacques does challenge this in his book 'The Outcast of Redwall', so children aren't taught by this series just to judge blindly.
'Redwall' was the first book published in the series, and is a good starting point, although it has some differences from the rest of the series and is not the first book chronologically speaking. There isn't really any need to follow the publishing order, though, as each book stands alone, although certain characters will make several appearances. 'Mossflower', the second published book but first to be written, is another excellent starting point.
The series is usually focused around Redwall Abbey, and tends to involve large pitched battles to the death, exciting confrontations, humorous interludes, and surprisingly well-fleshed-out characters. Expect tear-jerking scenes (for the kids, not you), riddles to solve, and a variety of funny accents to play with if reading out loud. The animals also eat fantastically well, with huge feasts at the least provocation, and it has been suggested that the reason for Jaques' amazingly realistic descriptions is that he first began writing these stories for the pupils of a school for the blind. In any case, the stories are great to read out loud, but voracious readers may well take the books from you and finish them. The books are long, but each one is its own little epic, and may well introduce children to the idea of reading longer books.
I should make it clear that Redwall is a series that kids grow out of. I don't know many children who kept reading the books into their teens, and the books have an essentially childish nature, for all of their themes of love and war, that tends to put off older readers. Also, the level of description (and the talking animals) might well put off reluctant readers, although that said, imaginative children will have great fun working Redwall into their games.
However, for the time that the kids do love Redwall, each new book that they find will be a joy. Younger children can be introduced to the series through the Redwall picture books, such as 'The Great Redwall Feast', which is beautifully illustrated by Christopher Denise. And even though I grew out of Redwall years ago, I still have a soft spot for all the old stories I used to read, and would recommend them to intelligent young children who might be bored of shorter books. Thanks, Brian Jacques. RIP.
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